Coal in 2016

4th September 2024

Dear Madam Vice President,

A point that should be made in regards to the 2016 election is that Trump told the mining community that they will have jobs and Clinton told the world that coal mining companies needed to close. It gave a large part of the voting public the idea that Trump meant jobs and Clinton meant unemployment.

Trump lied but Clinton’s point was just as wrong. Companies need to evolve to live in the future not die. A company that made typewriters can make other things. Royal was a big typewriter company back in the day, and it was founded in 1904 but it still makes things today even as it was founded to make typewriters.

The point is that we need a plan for Coal Country America. We need a plan for hope in the small towns who view Donald Trump as the man who will save their way of life. The economic engine of the coal mine is at its end and we need to find a new engine to fuel small town America.

Much as the coal furnaces that once powered our turbines have given way to solar panels so must the mines give way to a new form of power. What that may be I couldn’t say. I would encourage a green future, but I don’t know what would work in this situation.

What I do know is that innovation often brings humanity into the cities and away from the small towns which breeds poverty and homelessness. The loss of the steam engine in trains left many a small rail stop as a ghost town.

The important thing is that small town America needs to know that you’re on their side. The people need to know that you are here to make the transition away from coal as painless and beneficial as possible.

God Bless America,


Richard Leland Neal

 

The Queen Mary - Ingenuity and Elbow Grease

26^th July 2021

Dear Mayor Garcia,

I was chewing the problems facing The Queen Mary over in my mind when an idea came up. Have we considered using the open parking lots of the ship’s complex for a swap meet? It would bring in some money in the short term and get people used to going to the ship.

The first problem with The Queen Mary is that she is expensive to maintain, but the second problem she has is that there is nothing to do around her. A swap meet with oddities and inexpensive food would give more of the citizens a reason to frequent the attraction. With more people there would be more popularity and more interest.

Once you have a good attendance going more expensive attractions can be added that upgrade the draw. This would give you the flexibility to add one attraction at a time, and attendance at amusement parks tend to rise with the addition of attractions. 

There are already a group of buildings associated with the ship that I believe were some kind of shopping district. Those shops and attractions would be the least expensive to reopen and they could focus on oddities like Japanese products hard to find in America. The Queen Mary could be the only place in Long Beach where you can get a Mango Kit Kat or a Salted Caramel Pepsi. Both of these are real products and people pay out the nose for them in the United States.

The truth is that you need a long term plan to save The Queen Mary and a short term project to get her moving in the right direction. In one year, we want the ship back open and seeing to guests, in ten years we want to see her fully restored and making money, if fifty we want to see her as the heart of a group of attractions that brings pride to the city and tourists from all over the world.  

The Queen Mary has become a mark of greatness for the state of California, and we need to hold her up high. This is as much a matter of ingenuity as it is elbow grease and a measure not just of our economy but of our spirit.

Stay strong,

 

Richard Leland Neal

Fire Reef

11^th November 2020

Dear Governor Newsom,

I’ve been a resident of the great state of California all my life and watching the wildfires burn is of growing concern. I sheltered in place but was almost trapped in my home by the smoke and ash. For now the economy is faltering and the tourists that make up much of the California economy are gone, but they will return, and we want them to find something better when they come around again.

Then I look at the burnt out buildings on the news and see the fire scorched husks of cars and ask myself if there isn’t something that can be done with the aftermath to lessen the likelihood or severity of the next fire. At very least some plan to help California pay for it all could be found in the wreckage of homes and businesses.

Then it came to me that not all of the state’s forests are susceptible to fire, they are all subject to climate change, but some grow where fire cannot reach. I write of our kelp forests which are of the fastest growing variety. Unlike a forest of trees, the kelp forests need something like stone or brick to anchor them in place. A burnt out chimney may not be of use to a new home, but it can provide habitat for sea creatures, and aid the kelp that will fight global warming. 

It would come to me that in the wake of the fires we have burnt out bricks that would go to the landfill. These could be used to expand our natural reef system and build the forests of kelp or at very least stop beach erosion. A large memorial reef could be planned with the burnt materials of lost homes and cars. This would benefit our environment, commercial fishing, and tourist trade. 

The fires have become a way of life here in California. We have come to accept that they will get worse every year. We need to prevent them as best we can, fight them as efficiently as possible, and heal stronger than before. After all, who would take a vacation in a state where the sun is blotted out with smoke?

Just a suggestion,

 

Richard Leland Neal

Devium

4^th November 2017

Dear Cassi,

A friend of mine is losing her apartment. It falls on me as one of the few folks who care to help her with finding a home for her two cats before she moves to another state. I figure I’m going to talk a good deal about this woman for the next few letters so I’m going to give her a name for our conversation.

I name this friend Devium which is Latin for wayward.  If there is a way I could describe her life it would be that it is wayward so that is the best name I can give her.

In any case, Devium has a drive of some thousand miles ahead of her and I had it in my head to search for a home for her cats up in that area in the hope that I may drive for her, driving isn’t a thing Devium is good at, and it’s a good deal easier to drive that distance in one shot if you have company.

I spoke of this with Pickle and he was upset. He first tried to convince me not to go by arguing that if something happened to one of my cats he’d have to rely of PonyGirl to take them to the vet. As if owning cats meant that I could never leave the house.

Funny how Pickle can turn a moment in to something horrible. I mean, was he threatening my animals if I left or just upset that I wouldn’t be cooking for a few days. When you’ve live with a crisis for your whole life the way I have it’s easy to forget about it for a moment. Then it just comes crashing back into your head.

Stay safe, Little Sister,

Richard Leland Neal

Trickledown Economics

People Don't Realize - Robert Bernard Reich

This is Not a Thriving Economy - Bernie Sanders

Americans Have Slipped into Poverty - Bernie Sanders

Our Economy - Bernie Sanders

Depression vs. Recession - Harry S. Truman

Some Who Are - Bernie Sanders

Graduate On Time

Let me make the point that I intended to get out of college in 2009 and I made it in 2011. The professors had no problem with this as they had no concern for the well being of their students.

The geranial lack of transparency in the modern college setting leads to abuses of the student and the tax payer. I’m not sure what we can do about it but I just know something must be done.

9^th August, 2007

Dear (Lighting and Sound Instructor),

This mail was first to you and (other Lighting Instructor), but long story short I need to get into THTR 386 section 17601 this semester or I don’t graduate on time. I’m already in (other Lighting Instructor’s) class. The following is a lengthy explanation of how I’m screwing up my life this semester intended for my advisor who is (other Lighting Instructor), or you. We can’t be sure. I just want to graduate. I’m leaving the rest of the letter, but you may stop reading now if I have convinced you. There is the part about sound that I’m going to have to talk over with (other Lighting Instructor), but again I still just need in your class.   

I’m writing the two of you because I could not add your classes. THTR 279 section 17553 and THTR 386 section 17601. Despite trying to add them on the first day I couldn’t as they were full. As (the Supervisor of Undergraduate Studies) appears to be confused on which of you is my faculty adviser, I’ve already said I have no problem with (other Lighting Instructor), let me say that these sections of these classes are essential for a Spring 09 graduation.

I need sixty units or fifteen degree applicable units per semester for four semesters to graduate in the Spring of 09 with a degree in light and sound. I’m taking a total of seventeen units this semester three of which are not degree applicable. These three units are THTR 364 Playwriting. I take them at the request of both (other Lighting Instructor), and (the Supervisor of Undergraduate Studies).

This leaves me one unit short for the semester and I can make that up. If you allow me to add your two classes I can make my graduation date, and if you don’t there will be no possibility of graduating at that time. 

The only major problem with this graduation semester is that it is Spring 09 that I will take advanced sound. This is presently unavoidable and if you feel that I need to spend more time a (the State College) then I would like to have the maximum number of units completed so that additional semester may be dedicated to minors or productions.

I have to bow to the greater judgment of you two advisors, but I favor an aggressive plan. I most comment that writing as a replacement for sound is not much of an option. I want a degree that is going to make money, as best as a theatre degree can, light and sound appear to be a good combination.

I must confess I’m fighting for Spring 09 more because I want to end my career as a security guard, but the point is to move on to something better not something else.

Please let me in your classes,

Richard Leland Neal

College?

What is this? Three letters to Cassi in a row, and I have even been posting irregularly. Not that any of the people who read this take the opportunity to comment.

In any case, I’m hoping that I’ve broken my depression and started recovery. That’s not an easy thing in this economy.

Well, this is about private colleges and their level of suck. Student beware.

5^th September 2011

Dear Cassi,

Over the past few weeks I’ve been looking to further my education by attending a grad school. The only problem with this idea is that the school I have the most chance of attending are the private universities. These schools are a world apart from what they were before the online integration.

    

The first and foremost problem is that most of these schools are not as reputable as there state and nonprofit counterparts, and tend to take a factory look at education. Their goal is to get as many people enrolled as possible. Many of these students are unprepared for college, and they pay their way through student loans. The average student comes away from these programs with more than thirty thousand dollars in debt. Once more, the online schools have the highest default rate on those loans.

    

These schools gear there cost to student loans and make their money from the generosity of the government. The only problem with this is that it’s harder to get a job with a degree from one of these universities. These schools are a stepladder up from the lower levels of society, but a stepladder with rungs missing that shakes when you try to climb.

    

Now I have three of these schools calling after me, and still they may be the best option I have to better myself. This world is a mess of bad ideas and faint hopes. I have no idea what to do with my life, but then neither does the rest of the world.

Stay safe, Cassi,

Richard Leland Neal

Unsure

Okay, here it is, a real letter to Cassi.

6^th June 2011

Dear Cassi,

Well, you’ll likely get three letters together this time. I was on my way to drop off my last letter when I found the preceding letter in my car. I had a good amount on my mind when I was mailing that. It was the last week of school, and I was worried about them letting me graduate.

I keep wondering what I’m going to do with my life in the bad economy. Nothing I ever do tends to pan out, or maybe I’m just not putting enough into it. I don’t know. I spent tens of thousands of dollars on my education, and now it looks like I’m going to have to double that figure at grad school.

I had to ask for an accommodation because I was working and couldn’t find an internship because I was working. Then I lost my job, and the accommodation was pointless. However, what was done was done, and I was going through with it.

After I passed the class I had to email an adviser, and have them change my records to reflect that I had been given the accommodation. I sent out the email half hoping that it would be denied and that I would have more classes. That’s a funny thing to hope for after all this time.

Then I got an email back saying that I had to wait longer. No plans can be made. Finally, I got a mail back saying all had been done, but even now I have no idea if I’m a college graduate. I’m listed as candidate not graduate.

Now I just have to hold everything until I get my diploma. I’m going to apply for grad school in that time anyway. There is no better way to test this development.

Stay safe,

Richard Leland Neal