Cart before Horse
Apparently Joe didn't hear the “not” in “Don't put the cart before the horse.” Most of you folks know the expression suggests that something is done contrary to the natural or normally effective sequence of events.
In Afghanistan, Joe removed the troops, then told our allies, left all of our equipment behind, and then sorta tried to get US citizens and Afghanistan allies out of the country. How did that work out?
It didn't work out very well for 13 American soldiers and over four hundred Afghans faithful to the American cause who were killed. Joe responded, “Hurray for America. We're out,” and ignored all the downsides of his cart-before-horse plan.
First graders thought that was stupid, and they were right.
The order should have been to tell our allies we're about to pull out, get our Americans and Afganistan friends out, get our equipment out, and then, the last thing, remove our troops.
Joe's obsession with fossil fuels has led him into another cart-before-horse decision.
First Joe killed the Keystone Pipeline which would have assured us energy independence for years. Next he has regulated the fossil fuel industry damn near out of useful production.
Okay, Joe, what is your plan to replace the fossil fuels?
How about solar and wind?
How about it? These two together are providing about 4% of our current energy. Hmm.
Windmills would require approximately 1,260, 000 windmills to supply the total power currently required by the US; they're subject to the vagaries of the wind; they make noise unbearable by a lot of folks; and, worst of all, they kill birds. Nobody wants them in their backyard, and nobody wants to provide the energy lines to the windmills if placed in remote locations.
Solar farms sufficient to supply all US power would require 22,000 square miles; solar doesn't kill birds; but they take huge swaths of land; and they are subject to the vagaries of the winds.
Well, what about nuclear? “Oh, my Gawd! Run for your lives!”
Nuclear currently provides about 20% of our national energy. It has a small footprint and provides energy regardless of the wind or sunshine---wait a minute, that sounds pretty good. The last plant was built in 1990 but a handful are coming on line in the next few years---it takes a long time to build one of these.
So…what's left that isn't a unicorn source of energy?
Oil, coal, natural gas, and nuclear.
What Joe's cart-before-horse plan failed to provide as a first step was a practical replacement for fossil fuels. It's never a good idea to burn down the house while you’re still in it.
I checked with the first graders of America, and they said, “Damn it, Joe: it's “horse before cart” not “cart before horse.”
enough