11/4/2021

My Dear Friend & POTUS, JRB,

            I just spoke to the girl next door. Actually, Susie used to live next door to me 50 years ago. She’s a year younger than me & our moms are close. I haven’t spoken with her for many years, but hearing her voice & laughter brought me that warm fuzzy feeling one gets from being reminded of their childhood. We share a mutual friend who was visiting Susie while on a jaunt to Chicago, & they decided to call me. What a nice way to start my day!

            If they hadn’t called, I would be in a quandary. Specifically, what should we do to entice the people of Africa to keep their fossil fuel in the ground? Their parents & grand-parents did not consume energy to create the anthropogenic climate change we are dealing with, so why should they forgo the economic benefits of developing their energy reserves? The CSM suggests that hope lies in the idea of leap-frogging from no electricity to renewable sources, but that’s going to take some investment. Let’s do it!!! I would much rather my tax dollars be invested in electricity in Senegal than paying for a new nuclear weapon. Let’s light up the world rather than blowing it up.

            I was disappointed to see that the junta in Burma has denied bail to Danny Fenster (DF). VOA suggested that Gov. Bill Richardson’s meeting with Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing might lead to DF’s release. It’s too bad that wasn’t the case. I know that DF’s family is doing all it can to get him released. I hope you are, too. Being a journalist should not be a crime.

            All of the papers indicate that Glenn Youngkin’s victory in VA is a blow to you. I hope you don’t take it personally. As you well know, we win some & lose some. As Bayard Rustin would say, “what God requires of us is that we not stop trying.”

            HYITL,