April 2026 – This is Not Cool

Iran War Makes Renewables the Obvious Choice for Developing World

For the average MAGA Republican white guy, they may be “shithole Countries”.
But the most dynamic and rapidly growing markets of coming decades are in the developing world.
They’ve been watching. Taking notes.
The Trump administration’s energy policies have been shaped by gas barons like big donor Harold Hamm and his hand-picked energy secretary, fracking mogul Chris Wright.
Their whole play is to cajole, coax, threaten or force US states and the developing world to build and lock in expensive natural gas infrastructure – pipelines, LNG export and re-gasifying facilities.
They’ve also made it clear that they are untrustworthy, unreliable, and willing to brutally betray anyone that displeases them.
50 years ago there weren’t many other places to go for energy. Now, they have abundant and cost effective clean energy alternatives.
What do you think they’re going to do?

Financial Times:

Donald Trump’s war on Iran will have many unforeseen consequences that he won’t like. One of them is likely to be an acceleration of the global shift to low-carbon energy.

As my FT colleague Gideon Rachman points out, Iran has now proven that control of the strait “gives it a stranglehold over the world economy . . . Even if the Islamic republic decides, at some point, that it has an interest in reopening the Strait of Hormuz — it will always want to retain the option of closing it again as a visible threat to ward off aggressors.”

Heavy reliance on imported oil and gas, in short, means a chronic risk of severe and unpredictable economic shocks. The Iran crisis has focused the minds of governments around the world on this problem — and on how clean energy could help them address it.

“I think we should take this opportunity to transition to renewable energy more quickly and at a large scale,” South Korean President Lee Jae-myung told a cabinet meeting as the war escalated.

On Friday last week, economic ministers from south-east Asian countries agreed at an Asean meeting to “accelerate [the] renewable energy transition” to “strengthen regional energy security and resilience”.

Farmers, Scientists Sounding Alarm on Western Snowpack

LA Times:

California’s snowpack is supposed to reach its peak April 1, so today, state surveyors hold their final Sierra snow survey of the year.

But instead of peak snow, there’s almost none.

Snow across California’s Sierra Nevada measured just 18% of average Monday — among the smallest in decades. A month of record-shattering heat thawed the snow and sent runoff coursing into streams and rivers, leaving only minimal water in the mountains as the state heads into dry season.

The early melt is a symptom of global warming that scientists say is becoming more pronounced.

“This particular year is as clear an indication of the influence of climate change as anything we’ve seen,” said Peter Gleick, a leading water scientist and co-founder of the Pacific Institute. “Climate change is influencing California’s water system quickly and severely.”

This year the Sierra snowpack peaked on Feb. 25 at 73% of average.

The summerlike heat in March broke monthly records in many areas of the Western U.S., accelerating the melting of snow in the Rocky Mountains as well.

Iran Targeting Tesla, Among Other US Corporations

Electrek:

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has named Tesla among 18 US companies whose Middle East operations it is threatening to attack in retaliation for the killings of Iranian military leaders. The threat carries an explicit deadline: 8:00 PM Tehran time on April 1.

Tesla has been rapidly expanding across the Gulf over the past year, with showrooms, service centers, and more than 30 Supercharger stations now operating in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar — all directly in the crosshairs.

In a statement published through Sepah News, its official outlet, the IRGC declared that “for every assassination, a U.S. company will be destroyed,” and warned that 18 American firms should “expect the destruction of their respective units” starting Wednesday evening.

The full list includes Cisco, HP, Intel, Oracle, Microsoft, Apple, Google, Meta, IBM, Dell, Palantir, Nvidia, JPMorgan Chase, Tesla, General Electric, Boeing, Spire Solutions, and UAE-based AI firm G42.

Trump’s Disaster Master Doubles Down on Teleporting to Church, and Waffle House

Sticking to his guns, Trump official refuses to waffle on his teleportation claims.
So if you’re trapped on your roof by a flood, no worries, he’ll beam you up.

Raw Story:

In the wake of CNN’s bizarre report that President Donald Trump’s Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster chief Gregg Phillips has claimed that he was “teleported” to a Waffle House 50 miles away, Phillips doubled down, proclaiming “haters gonna hate” in a post to Truth Social.

“I have no regrets for my words nor my faith in my Savior, Jesus Christ,” wrote Phillips. “The Bible has many examples of the power of God.” He also claimed his words were taken “out of context,” and in another post structured like a poem, stated, “I know what I’ve experienced,” and compared himself to Jesus Christ being resurrected from the dead.

In addition to the Waffle House claim, Phillips said that at one point while he was driving, his vehicle was “lifted up” by supernatural forces and transported to a nearby church.