Car culture hurts the poor, unemployed, disabled, young, and elderly. Anyone care?

Reporter-Times: "For the working poor, one of the hardest things about their jobs can be getting there.
Owning a reliable car can be expensive, and having limited public transportation options in Martinsville and the rest of the county means the area’s most vulnerable sector of the labor force often has to improvise to get to work on time.
Steve Gerber, the director for Coordinator Aging Services for Morgan County, said people often walk or turn to friends or relatives to hitch a ride.
“A lot of people in Morgan County are very resourceful,” Gerber said. “If they can get a job close enough, they will get a bicycle.”
Regardless, he said, the daunting task of always searching for a way to work and back, coupled with variables such as inclement weather and the availability of sidewalks, takes its toll."

Corporate media "friendly" attack on #freetransit

The campaign for free public transit is definitely having an impact. The idea is inexorable and is spreading world-wide.

It is only natural that it should draw attacks from the corporate media. Many profiteers benefit from subsidized sprawl and they stand to lose a lot if free transit gains critical mass.

These attacks are a sign of success. Keep up the struggle.

You benefit from #publictransit even if you do not ride it yourself

Laredo Morning Times: "• If you are a homeowner, public transportation in a community could spell financial security during times of economic uncertainty. Residential property values performed 42 percent better on average during the last recession if they were located near public transportation with high-frequency service, according to a report by the National Association of Realtors and APTA.
• Seventy percent of millennials prefer a city or town that features a multimodal transportation option that includes public transportation. By investing in public transportation infrastructure, a community increases the likelihood of attracting new talent and industry to the area, especially as public transportation systems adopt technologies like smartphone charging stations on vehicles and facilities and fare collection via smartphone.
• Public transportation is a 61 billion dollar a year industry that puts people to work – 1.1 million jobs are created or sustained annually. As such, public transportation advocates say that by supporting measures that improve these systems, local residents will be doing their community a favor."

Oil industry will require many years to recover from price collapse

Resource Insights: "Each day that oil prices stay low heightens the risk that the world will soon experience flat or falling worldwide oil production--something the oil supply optimists said simply couldn't happen with these new oil resources now available to us."

March against fare hike and for #freetransit in Sao Paolo Brazil

U.S. Department of Energy: Our forecasts aren't really forecasts (or are they?)

Resource Insights: "It would be very difficult for the EIA to speak plainly and tell Congress--now filled with representatives who've been thoroughly propagandized by the U.S. oil and gas industry and, in some cases, heavily subsidized in their campaigns both directly and indirectly by the industry--that the shale boom isn't all that it's been advertised to be and, that large uncertainties suggest that the country should not place all of its eggs in the oil and natural gas basket."

Disclaimer: Trillion-dollar #autosprawl system does not work in winter

photo from abcnews.go.com

Abandoned mall that was once the largest in the world

yahoo.com: "Once a symbol of American retail, many shopping malls have begun to decline and even close in recent years. Randall Park Mall shut its doors in 2009 after being hit hard by the recession. When the mall opened in 1976 in North Randall, Ohio, the town had a population of just 1,500. Though only two floors high, the mall spanned a whopping two-million square feet and employed 5,000 members of staff. These haunting images show the dust-covered remains of what were once thriving shops and even a movie theatre."

Photo Matthew Christopher/Caters News

Most US people hopelessly brainwashed and "out of the loop"

https://twitter.com/Al_Jabali_4/status/555315896148049920/photo/1

#Falseflag operations actually very common, as governments have confessed

The First Question to Ask After Any Terror Attack: Was It a False Flag? | Zero Hedge: "Japanese troops set off a small explosion on a train track in 1931, and falsely blamed it on China in order to justify an invasion of Manchuria."

Free-Fare Movement March in Sao Paolo

False-flag operations to keep #Islamicstate away from Kirkuk oil

The US war against the Islamic State is about oil. Specifically, easy-to-get oil in the Kirkuk, Iraq area.

The US is losing the war on all fronts. Seventy percent of its soldiers do not want to fight on the ground. Air attacks must be conducted carefully to avoid capture of pilots.

More billions are being spent on so-called "moderates," in Syria and Iraq. Some of these claim to be more-Islamic than the Islamic State, but their leaders are being exposed on social media as fakes and spies.

In desperation, false-flag attacks are necessary to whip up furor against Muslims to continue the war. It is important to expose these operations. First, ask yourself, who benefits most?

Here are some tips.

Energy inequality

The best way to understand economics and politics is to understand energy. A good start is to listen to talks by Richard Heinberg of the Post Carbon Institute. Though we disagree on solutions, Post Carbon does excellent analysis of today's problems.

The profit system has created energy inequality. A small percent of humanity is wasting a large percent of fossil fuel. Most humans live with small energy input and output, but they are the ones who suffer the most from the unequal system.

The main pillar of this system is the desire for suburban-style living. Sprawl profiteers depend on this to keep people subsidizing it, and allowing environmental destruction.

There is a way out of this. Provide car-free cities. This will attract people, and reduce birth rates. With more people in the city, they will see that it is safe and clean. Then more people will come. The suburbs can be returned gradually to organic farms. This is a goal you can pursue at the local level. Both degrowth and growth advocates can be won to it. Small steps can be taken. Start with a free shuttle downtown. Then make more buses free. Set up local food markets. There is much you can do.

If you are more stay-at-home, become a #freetransit blogger. We need people with local knowledge. You can be public or anonymous. Contact us at fpteditors at gmail.

photo from Scamp

Taliban delegation hold talks with Chinese officials on Afghanistan

Khaama Press: "According to reports, a delegation of of Taliban officials have recently visited China to meet with the Chinese officials and discuss issues related to Afghanistan."