For reasons unknown, I've always thought that the hydroelectric stations would be located very close to Niagara Falls, if not at the Falls itself, but such is not the case. The stations themselves are located quite a distance downstream and the water is fed through underground tunnels. These tunnels supply reservoirs which then feed the turbines. It is a much more complex system than I thought and a lot of digging was involved.
The Niagara River moves a lot of water; it flows at 35 mph. But the waterfall that Uncle Ken saw last week was only about half of the actual volume of water from the river, the rest being diverted for generation of electricity. And they turn down the flow even further at night and during the winter so only about 25% of the river's flow makes it to the Falls. It's quite a system, but I hope they never have to turn off the Falls completely.
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I have no idea how the investigations into Russian involvement with our elections will turn out, or if the Trump campaign was actually involved. They may all have been, as the spymasters say, "useful idiots." If the game plan of the Russians was to disrupt our way of life, they have succeeded. Freedom of the press means very little when there is such a high degree of distrust.
Here's another thing that I learned from one of the Rachel Maddow broadcasts. I like her, she seems to be able to explain things well, at least to the extent that I can understand them. Anyhow, she was talking about leaked documents and that some of them may be phony. That top-secret NSA memo you received anonymously may not be the real deal, but of course you will never know because the NSA ain't gonna tell you one way or the other. And with all the lies and contradictions coming out of the White House we may never know what is actually happening. Confusion reigns, and the circus is becoming a melodramatic tragedy.
The pundits are claiming that Sessions is in the doghouse and on his way out. He is a stubborn coot and probably will not resign but if he gets fired there will be a shitstorm of epic proportion. His loyalty to Trump is being poorly rewarded, but sooner or later Trump will find someone willing to fire Mueller and end the investigations. But then what? The other day some former bigwig from the intelligence community mentioned the word "coup," which is a very scary notion. At this rate it won't take many steps for the US to become a full fledged banana republic, an idea which lacks appeal.
I can see it now, Trump resigns before the legal dogs chew him apart and Pence gives him a pardon for anything and everything. The newly appointed vice-president, Ivanka herself, goes on a goodwill tour to ensure that the brand is intact and all is well. But maybe not. It could be that Pence refuses any pardons and lets the whole circus get what they deserve. A sweet outcome, if not for Pence himself who may actually worse than what we have now. What a mess.
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Enjoy the ballgames, Uncle Ken. I see the Cubs are tied for first place in their division.
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