<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" ><tr><td valign="top" style="font: inherit;">What we need, in my opinion, is a Manhattan Project-esque effort put into building state-of-the-art nuclear plants. Nothing else right now is a viable drop-in replacement for our energy needs. Solar, wind, geothermal, ethanol, hydroelectric, tides, etc are all supplemental technologies that will never work in the short to medium time frame to cover our energy needs alone. They still need to be developed, but none of them are reliable forms of base energy generation. Build breeder reactors that can use the majority of our nuclear waste as fuel so we don't run into supply problems, and build enough of them to handle a minimum level of our electrical needs.<br><br>In concert with that, start minimizing the use of foreign oil even if it means letting the "drill, baby, drill" folks loose. I'd rather deal with the occasional oil leak
then with crazy dictatorships. Build up the current alternative energy technologies as a supplemental system to cover problems with the nuclear plants or high usage scenarios. Develop the "smart grid" and work on energy storage for off-peak hours. Move over to electric cars in a big way after our base electrical needs are taken care of, and then drop the transportation and energy-production portions of oil use.<br><br>Let's make ourselves self-sufficent for energy generation without resorting to an agrarian life style. Reduce our dependency on Middle Eastern religious states and South American dictatorships first, then reduce oil use to making plastics and fertilizer and lubricants.<br><br>The only way I could see the supplemental alternative energy technologies producing the majority of our power would be converting every house and place of business to be as energy neutral as possible with solar panels, wind, etc. You'd
need an extremely complex distributed smart grid energy transportation system for that to work. Maybe someday, but we're currently fighting two wars with the same type of religious fanatics we buy our oil from. Not a good way to do business.<br><br>Any thoughts?<br><br>Paul<br><br>--- On <b>Tue, 5/4/10, Art Deco <i><deco@moscow.com></i></b> wrote:<br><blockquote style="border-left: 2px solid rgb(16, 16, 255); margin-left: 5px; padding-left: 5px;"><br>From: Art Deco <deco@moscow.com><br>Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Say What?<br>To: "Vision 2020" <vision2020@moscow.com><br>Date: Tuesday, May 4, 2010, 10:41 AM<br><br><div id="yiv192042199">
<style></style>
<div><font size="2">And this is exactly why we need a large scale public/private
effort to develop solar and other less environmentally adverse energy
sources. Those of us who are old remember the space race effort. Why
not one like that for alternative energy? Think of the jobs such an effort
could engender, especially now when the economy needs a boost at the bottom --
creating wealth the old-fashioned way through labor, skilled and unskilled,
while creating huge public benefit worldwide.</font></div>
<div><font size="2"></font> </div>
<div><font size="2">W.</font></div>
<blockquote style="border-left: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 0); padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 0px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 0px;">
<div style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none;">----- Original Message ----- </div>
<div style="background: rgb(228, 228, 228) none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><b>From:</b>
<a rel="nofollow" title="garrettmc@verizon.net" ymailto="mailto:garrettmc@verizon.net" target="_blank" href="/mc/compose?to=garrettmc@verizon.net">Garrett
Clevenger</a> </div>
<div style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none;"><b>To:</b> <a rel="nofollow" title="vision2020@moscow.com" ymailto="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com" target="_blank" href="/mc/compose?to=vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</a> </div>
<div style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none;"><b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, May 04, 2010 9:42 AM</div>
<div style="font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none;"><b>Subject:</b> Re: [Vision2020] Say What?</div>
<div><br></div><br>What an idiot! But what else would we expect from Brown.
Coming from his mouth, with his background, whatever he says is meaningless,
anyway.<br><br>For anybody who has concerns for the environment and people,
this disaster is exactly what we don't want.<br><br>This is precisely why
offshore drilling should be banned and precisely why the drill, baby, drill
people are so shortsighted.<br><br>It's too bad that some people just don't
get it and that things like this will keep happening.<br><br>How many
catastrophes like this do we need to wake us
up?<br><br>Garrett<br><br><br><br>"This is exactly what they want, because now
President Obama can pander to<br>the environmentalists and say, 'I'm gonna
shut it down because it's too<br>dangerous.'"<br><br>- Katrina-era FEMA head
Michael Brown, on the oil slick approaching shore<br>and possibly moving up
the east coast<br><br>Video<br><a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/03/michael-brown-obama-wante_n_562004.html">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/03/michael-brown-obama-wante_n_562004.html</a><br><br>---------------------------------<br><br>=======================================================<br> List
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