The comparison between Germany and Japan as precision industrial experts makes sense. I'd never thought about it in terms of "our national identity shares this

The comparison between Germany and Japan as precision industrial experts makes sense. I'd never thought about it in terms of "our national identity shares this core aspect with their national identity." As the quip goes in the US, 'The left is a big tent party (accepts all sorts) and so is constantly debating itself. Whereas the right expects everyone to fall in line with the party platform.' But recent presidencies challenged the truth of that. Coal serves similarly here, for a single reason: votes in Illinois, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and West Virginia. Were those not necessary states to forge a path the presidency, no one would care about the topic. But since they are, even negative statements about coal are couched in very careful language. IMHO, it's actually more about the ideal of a "coal miner" than it is about actual coal mining. Most of the people supporting it will never work a day in a mine: and nor will many others, with the amount of automation these days. But why let facts get in the way of a good political story? :) I was happy to see the UK's push at COP26 for annual subsequent meetings to examine and refine nationally determined contributions [0]. Hopefully that will put some "Words are cheap, but we don't actually intend to follow through" countries under more scrutiny. [0] https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-59231636 https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-59231636