Wow, I Hate Waking Up At 1:00 A.M. To Post This But My iPhone Is Pinging With Alerts -- July 31, 2018

I saw the story earlier today but I'm so tired of the Keystone XL story I did not want another stand-alone post on the subject but something tells me if I don't post this story as a stand-alone, 37 readers are going to write me. So, here it is: the US State Department gives a "positive" environmental impact statement for the Keystone XL's new route through Nebraska.

A reader has also provided an even better article which includes a map of the new route, from the Lincoln (Nebraska) Journal Star (which I bet is owned by Berkshire Hathaway).

Really? This was what the fuss was all about?

The "green" -- mainline alternative -- in the map above s represented by the "rope" in the video below. The individual on the right portrays the Nebraska Supreme Court; and the individual on the left portrays the US State Department:

An Issue of Trust
I posted this story earlier today at a couple of older posts as updates feeling I had done my part at least archiving the story. I felt strongly that the story did not deserve a stand-alone post. I have more important things to do these days. Like check the Dow futures. 

Keystone XL milestones are tagged with this clever tag: Keystone milestones.

I didn't want a stand-alone post on this newest update because it seems we have been here before. My recollection is that under Hillary, the US State Department gave a "positive" report on the original route, but after months of prodding from the mainstream media and the US public (those few who were even interested) Hillary finally flip-flopped (though she claims the flip-flop was not a flip-flop but a nuanced reconsideration or something to that effect) and said she clearly opposed the Keystone XL. At least when she was campaigning in Nebraska and California and New York.

So, here we go again. The US State Department under ... Mr Pompeo (?) ... has signed off on the new route, and now we can expect continued lawsuits, op-ed pieces in The New York Times, fake news on CNN, and waiting with bated breath for the Nebraska Supreme Court to give its opinion which it has promised to do later this year, or if not then, sometime next year (that would be 2019 AD -- at least one reader has asked whether the Keystone XL saga began in BC or AD (BCE or CE).

Back on March 27, 2017 -- yes, more than a year ago, I posted this for the archives.

Trump administration approves federal application for Keystone XL pipeline. It's hard to believe but I had 49 episodes of "As The World Turns" following the Keystone XL story. The 49th episode is at this link.

Wow, this is funny. I put that part about Berkshire Hathaway owning The Lincoln (Nebraska) Journal Star in as tongue-in-cheek. It was a joke. But worried about being accused of fake news, I had my fact checkers look into this.

This is hilarious. The screenshot -- from this link -- otherwise people would think I'm making this up:

Note three items from the screenshot:

• the date: June 26, 2018 -- like less than a month ago
• this is the "top story" for that day in this newspaper
• a picture of the man who says he pays less taxes (on a percentage basis) than his secretary for those who have not seen a picture of him (lately); with Trump's tax reform, my hunch is he pays even less taxes now

But, having said all that, the fact checkers tell me that Berkshire Hathaway does not own the Lincoln (Nebraska) Journal Star. The list of publications owned by Berkshire is at this wiki link. Again, I could be wrong; things change; I miss things. A lot of things.

But deep in the linked story:

Both Lee and BH [Berkshire Hathaway] Media were careful to clarify that this is not a merger or acquisition, and both companies' newspapers will retain local control over their news operations and editorial pages. However, Junck said the agreement does not bar the companies from merging in the future.

Disclaimer: I miss a lot of things.