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Two old friends are having a discussion about Benjamin Netanyahu and his level of intelligence; one says he’s “stupid,” and the other disagrees.

Now, I don’t follow Israeli politics as closely as either of these two, but here’s my take on the matter: Insofar as he’s a demagogue, and an extremely effective one at that, we need to grant that he possesses intelligence along a certain dimension that is sufficient to enable him to figure out, with fabulous precision, how to address his audience and control their behavior at the polls.

It’s unclear if he’s capable of solving differential equations, speaking half a dozen languages, or following the advancements in particle physics, but that’s completely irrelevant.  The only matter at play here is his love of power, and his capacity to manipulate “common” people, using rhetoric to stir up the passions of the masses so as to push him into power and keep him there.

Here in the U.S., we frequently have the same conversation about Trump.  Those outside his base see him as unintelligent, a conclusion we draw from his childish use of the language, and his total lack of interest in information that would have helped him do his job (Where is Israel? Should COVID patients ingest bleach?)  But again, this is irrelevant, in the same way that characteristics like charisma and height are irrelevant to the success of chess players.
In addition, Trump is clearly a criminal sociopath.  Now, most people don’t think of people like Netanyahu (or Hungary’s Orban or Turkey’s Erdogan) as kind and decent people, but they don’t seem as deeply disturbed as Trump.

The Intelligence Level of the World’s Demagogues

Renewable Energy

Solar PV in Spain

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I see.

There’s not enough land in Spain to support rooftop and ground-mounted solar at a fraction of the cost.

LOL.

Solar PV in Spain

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Renewable Energy

What’s Wrong with Human Civilization?

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It’s possible that right now, there are other civilizations observing the human race, studying us from afar, and noticing our decline into savagery and eventual extinction by turning billionaires into trillionaires.

People say that the principal weakness of human beings is that we can’t plan for the future as a species.  Dogs are arguably even worse, though they aren’t consumed with greed.  They don’t plot the starvation of millions of other dogs so they themselves can have enough food to last a billion years.

As an elderly man, I’ll be leaving this planet soon, but I won’t cease pondering this until my heart stops beating.

What’s Wrong with Human Civilization?

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Renewable Energy

One’s Purpose in Life

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The drawing here reminds me of a conversation I had with my mother in the early days of 2GreenEnergy when she saw that my focus had become an ongoing effort to improve the wellbeing of all the planet’s inhabitants–now and into the future.

She asked me, “Why don’t you just live your life?”

I explained, “This is my life.”

One’s Purpose in Life

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