Category Archives: national organizations

Which Is Better Google Or Bing – In this particular case well…

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Community Energy Systems is a nonprofit 501c3 organization chartered in Illinois in Sangamon County. As such we are dependent on public donations for our continued existence. We also use Adsense as a fundraiser. Please click on the ads that you see on this page, on our main page and on our Bulletin Board (Refrigerator Magnets) and you will be raising money for CES. We say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who do.

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Not very much. Yes it is a Google Whore title but I came by it honestly. I saw this piece at Peak Oil about Green Heroes and Villains:

http://www.peakoil.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=52786

I wasn’t very interest in the Villains though I may post them tomorrow.

http://www.newstatesman.com/environment/2009/11/heroes-villians-have-your-say

20 green heroes and villains: Have your say

Published 18 November 2009

The Heroes:

http://www.newstatesman.com/environment/2009/11/franny-armstrong-al-gore-james-love

In fairness I am only showing you 5 of them. You’ll have to read the rest from the source.

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National Grid

Electric lights

For a few hours one morning earlier this month, wind energy provided more than half of Spain’s total electricity needs. Spain’s network of wind farms was generating 11.5 gigawatts, equivalent to ten medium-sized power stations. Why is Britain not latching on to this cutting-edge clean technology with the same vim? After all, we have a much greater wind resource to exploit than Spain. A principal reason is probably the unquestioning acceptance by many of the myth that wind power is too variable in its output and requires a large amount of energy back-up – provided by fossil fuels or nuclear power – to stop the lights going out.

So when National Grid – which should know about such matters – published a comprehensive report in June exposing this myth, it was a huge boost for the wind industry. The 82-page report thoroughly debunked the suggestion that large rises in back-up power will be needed as Britain increases the amount of energy generated by wind.

Later in the year, National Grid weighed in to make the same point again. When the respected renewable energy expert and consultant David Milborrow wrote a report showing that Britain’s energy system is already capable of taking a large amount of wind power, National Grid backed his work.

John Sauven

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James Lovelock

The Gaia guy

As one of the people who saw climate change coming, James Lovelock takes a positive view of our impending doom. He evolved the theory of Gaia – that our planet is “a single living entity” – 40 years ago, and showed the delicacy with which our precious atmosphere is balanced.

He wrote in 1979 that “if we stopped burning [fossil fuels] tomorrow it might take 1,000 years for atmospheric carbon dioxide to revert to its normal level”, but he now believes that catastrophic global warming is inevitable and that probably 80 per cent of the human race will be wiped out by the end of the century. Never mind, he says, it will be like the Second World War: once it was under way “everyone got excited, they loved the things they could do, it was one long holiday . . . so when I think of the impending crisis now, I think in those terms. A sense of purpose – that’s what people want.”
Bibi van der Zee

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Skykon

Wind firm

When Vestas closed its factory on the Isle of Wight in the summer, there was one company left producing wind turbines in the UK. By then Skykon had already bought another Vestas plant on the Mull of Kintyre, saving some 100 jobs and promising to create around 200 more. The plant manufactures towers for wind turbines and is an important symbol of the green new deal proposed by environmental campaigners and green politicians. Growth in a period of ­recession: proof that environmental ­investment makes sense.

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Marina Silva

Amazon worrier

The environmentalist and politician Marina Silva was named “Champion of the Earth” by the United Nations Environment Programme for her groundbreaking fight against defores-tation in Brazil. A native Amazonian, she unionised communities and led protests against deforestation and displacement. She became a senator and built support for environmental protection of reserves, and implemented policy that brought social justice and sustainable development to the Amazon region. When she resigned from government last year, a top Greenpeace official said “it’s time to start praying”. These prayers have been answered: Silva is the Brazilian Green Party’s presidential candidate in the next election.

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Rajendra Pachauri

The optimist

Some people view the possibility of climate change with apathy or despair; others, such as Pachauri, approach it with boundless enthusiasm and hope. The chair of the ­Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) since 2002, Pachauri is one of the world’s most important scientists. The IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report, released in 2007, is the starting point for anyone interested in why tackling climate change will be the most pressing political issue of the 21st century.

Pachauri and the IPCC had to work hard to convince sceptics of their arguments. Climate change science is inherently probabilistic and critics exploit that uncertainty to promote alternative agendas. But as a businessman and an engineer, I have always found Pachuari’s approach to problem-solving very refreshing. His motto appears to be: “If you can’t find a solution, you’re simply looking in the wrong place.” Through tireless and dedicated science, the IPCC has created a stable consensus on the need for action on climate change. The message has been projected beyond the scientific community and is now adopted by businessmen, policymakers, religious leaders and civil groups. This is a precious first step.
Lord Browne

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But then I thought What Would Google Do (WWGD for those keeping track)? So I typed in “green heroes” at Google. This is what I got:

http://greenhero.greenworkscleaners.com/index.tbapp

http://www.green-heroes.org/

http://www.greenheroes.com/

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20327271.900-better-world-global-green-heroes.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jan/05/activists.ethicalliving

Then I hit the article I was quoting from above.

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Then I though What Would Bing Do (WWBD)? So I typed in “green heroes” into Bing. This is what I got.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jan/05/activists.ethicalliving

http://greenheroes.com/

http://www.go-green.ae/greenheroes.phphttp://greenseniors.typepad.com/greenseniors/green_heroes/

http://www.greenheroes.tv/blog/

http://www2.btcv.org.uk/display/greenheroes2009

http://greenhero.greenworkscleaners.com/index.tbapp

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Google got me to the piece I was interested in but gave me less choices with an emphasis on print sources.  Bing produce more and varied sources but never got me back to the original story. I am guessing that is a toss up as they say.

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High Speed Rail – Improved travel at reduced energy use or boon to Union Pacific

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Community Energy Systems is a nonprofit 501c3 organization chartered in Illinois in Sangamon County. As such we are dependent on public donations for our continued existence. We also use Adsense as a fundraiser. Please click on the ads that you see on this page, on our main page and on our Bulletin Board (Refrigerator Magnets) and you will be raising money for CES. We say a heartfelt THANK YOU to all who do.

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Will High Speed Rail become a fast way for the general public to get around at a reduced energy cost? Or will it become a fast way for the Wealthy to commute from city to city? Will Union Pacific and the other big railroads carve up small towns in the rural areas while doubling and tripling freight traffic? Only time will tell. BUT here is Union Pacific’s take on it from the The State Journal Register.

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http://www.sj-r.com/opinions/x880803278/Joseph-Bateman-Rail-upgrade-needed-for-passenger-service-not-freight

Joseph Bateman: Rail upgrade needed for passenger service, not freight

THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER

Posted Nov 04, 2009 @ 12:04 AM

Last update Nov 04, 2009 @ 06:58 AM

Contrary to the headline and opinions expressed in the Oct. 25 article “High-speed rail spending to be a boon to freight rail companies,” Union Pacific does not need for its freight operations the improvements contained in IDOT’s proposal for high-speed passenger service in the St. Louis-to-Chicago corridor. The public expenditure required for track capacity and other improvements needed on the UP line for high-speed passenger service is necessitated by the increased frequency in passenger service (10 to 18 daily trains) and the increase in maximum passenger train velocity (79 to 110 mph), not by the increased UP freight operationsPlans to build our new Joliet intermodal terminal, which could result in additional UP traffic in the corridor, were announced long before high-speed passenger rail or stimulus funding grabbed the national spotlight. Union Pacific currently has adequate capacity on our existing rail corridor infrastructure to support growth in freight train volumes. If the time comes when we might require additional capacity, we will build and finance it ourselves, just as we have done throughout our 23-state, 32,000-mile network for nearly 150 years.Nonetheless, we think it is important for Springfield residents to be aware of misconceptions and facts regarding this project that have not been widely reported:* Union Pacific did not ask for higher-speed passenger trains on our line. We are responding to requests from the state of Illinois and others to host this service on our line.* One high-speed passenger train consumes the equivalent track capacity of two to three freight trains. Even without freight train growth, a computer simulation of the corridor demonstrated that double track infrastructure is needed to meet required levels of service and reliability for IDOT’s four-hour express passenger schedule.

* UP always has been willing to review any mitigation alternatives the city of Springfield may propose for the Third Street corridor, including grade separations. To date, we have received no suggestions for mitigation from either the city or county.

* Congested urban areas such as between Sangamon and Iles avenues in Springfield require speed restrictions, most likely in the 40 to 50 mph range, not the 110 mph maximum speed envisioned elsewhere in this corridor. Passenger trains will operate even slower in the downtown area because of the station stop.

* The maximum number of trains running through the Third Street corridor would be 40 combined passenger and freight per day, assuming maximum growth of UP’s business over the next 10 years. In contrast, there would be 60-plus trains per day using the 10th Street corridor to accommodate Union Pacific, passenger and Norfolk Southern trains.

* At-grade road-rail crossings in Springfield would be blocked by 40 trains for a total of approximately 65 minutes per crossing per day, not five hours per day. Unnecessary speed restrictions or inadequate rail capacity provisions, however, would create bottlenecks that will add to blocked crossing time.

* Constructing a bypass for UP on the 10th Street corridor would require displacing many residences and businesses to accommodate the required double track and grade separations. In addition, a new connection track at North Grand Avenue would be required through or near an area now occupied by housing, the ballpark, Memorial Stadium and tennis courts.

High-speed passenger rail ultimately boils down to a public policy decision. If private freight rail infrastructure is to be used for passenger service, then federal grant policy requires that sufficient infrastructure capacity must be provided to efficiently and reliably handle both existing and future freight and passenger service on demand. That infrastructure must be paid for by the party precipitating that need, in this case, the sponsor of expanded passenger train operations.

Joseph Bateman is vice president for public affairs of Union Pacific.

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I plan on writing a response, so if the SJ-R doesn’t publish it then I will put it up as a post.

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Energy Independence Does Not Have To Be A Growth Model – Simpler is better

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While I am having this meditation on “living off the land”, I have said that this is not a discussion about primitive living. It is not log cabins and horses…though I like both. It is about living with the Earth. It is about making the Earth the first consideration in everything we do. It is recognizing that Burning Things Up is a primitive behavior and one unfitting of 21 century humans. I am not talking about camp fires or barbecues here. I am talking about 500 coal fired power plants. I am talking about 115 nuclear power plants that if we are not careful will be killing things long after we as a species are gone. This also means rejecting all growth oriented economic models, because they rely on overpopulation and over production which, along with our Burning Behavior, are killing the Earth. But here is the growth view of Energy Independence. Kinda frightening don’t you think?

http://www.americanenergyindependence.com/

Energy Independence is a civilization changing idea

Oil is a natural source of energy, but it is not the only source of energy. With the help of new technology, America’s energy needs can be obtained from sources other than petroleum. American technology has put a man on the moon, mapped the human genome, and successfully landed robotic exploration vehicles on Mars. It seems reasonable to believe that American scientists and engineers could also develop environmentally safe alternative energy technology that would free America, and the world, from oil dependence.

President Barack Obama
“At a time of such great challenge for America, no single issue is as fundamental to our future as energy. America’s dependence on oil is one of the most serious threats that our nation has faced. It bankrolls dictators, pays for nuclear proliferation, and funds both sides of our struggle against terrorism. It puts the American people at the mercy of shifting gas prices, stifles innovation and sets back our ability to compete.”
Address given at the White House January 26, 2009

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog_post/Fromperiltoprogress/ Obama at the White House January 26, 2009 –>

Journey to Energy Independence

Following the 1973 Arab oil embargo, the idea of energy independence captured the imagination of the American people. Then during the 1980’s, the accumulative effect of increased automobile fuel efficiency combined with increased global oil production created a surplus of oil on the world market. As a result, the price of oil dropped back below pre-1973 levels and America’s enthusiasm for energy independence faded into memory. Now, more than thirty years after the oil embargo, re-awakened by the terrorist attack on 9/11 and war in the Middle East, the idea of American energy independence has returned with a vengeance, becoming a powerful force shaping the political views of a new generation of Americans.

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http://www.energyindependencenow.org/

  Donate Now

EIN MISSION

Energy Independence Now (EIN) is a non-profit organization dedicated to developing innovative, action-oriented solutions to catalyze a rapid transition to a clean, renewable energy and transportation economy in California through policy, advocacy and research.

PHILOSOPHY

EIN believes that the urgency and the massive scale of the climate change, petroleum dependence, and air quality challenges facing California and the world warrant solutions that are immediate, diverse and far reaching. EIN believes that any and all vehicle technologies and alternative fuels that hold the promise of addressing these challenges should be actively pursued. In short, we advocate in support of a “silver buckshot” approach where there is no “silver bullet.” In addition, we believe it is critical to advocate for both the deployment of immediate, near-term solutions as well as longer-term solutions that will help us achieve 2050 climate goals.

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I mean they have pictures of children and blue skies and woman scientists but they are still talking go go capitalism.

http://apolloalliance.org/about/mission/

Our Mission

The Apollo Alliance is a coalition of labor, business, environmental, and community leaders working to catalyze a clean energy revolution that will put millions of Americans to work in a new generation of high-quality, green-collar jobs. Inspired by the Apollo space program, we promote investments in energy efficiency, clean power, mass transit, next-generation vehicles, and emerging technology, as well as in education and training. Working together, we will reduce carbon emissions and oil imports, spur domestic job growth, and position America to thrive in the 21st century economy.

Background

Apollo was launched in the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy to catalyze a clean energy revolution in America, a revolution in the way our country generates and uses energy so profound that it will touch literally every quarter of American life. Harkening back to President Kennedy’s visionary call to restore America’s technological leadership by landing the first man on the Moon within the decade, the Apollo Alliance spoke directly to the core values we share as Americans: our can-do spirit, our inherent optimism, and the pride we feel (or want to feel) about our country’s place in the world. The subtext was clear: we did it before, we can do it again. This is America, the richest, most technologically advanced and industrious country in the world. If anyone can do it, we can. And we will.

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Which leads to this on the other side…see they are both debating growth models of energy:

http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/2008/03/17/the-myth-of-energy-independence.html

The Myth of Energy Independence

Q&A with Robert Bryce, author of ‘Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of Energy Independence’

By Justin Ewers

Posted March 17, 2008

George W. Bush says he’s for it. So do Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, and Nancy Pelosi. On the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama promise they’ll work toward it. What has inspired all of this bipartisan enthusiasm? Energy independence, the notion that by turning to greener energy sources like ethanol and wind power, we can not only help the environment—and slow global warming—but create millions of new jobs and, most important, wall ourselves off from the murderous petro states of the Middle East.

If it all sounds too good to be true, that may be because it is, argues Robert Bryce in Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of Energy Independence, published this week. Bryce, managing editor of Energy Tribune magazine, lays out the case against the short-term viability of all of today’s renewable energy

darlings: ethanol, wind, and solar power. No matter what the pols say, he insists, for the foreseeable future, oil, coal, and natural gas are here to stay. U.S. News spoke with Bryce about fossil fuels, global warming—and the promises of politicians.

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Even the left has to get in on it. But again they are talking growth here:

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2008/05/seven-myths-energy-independence

The Seven Myths of Energy Independence

Why forging a sustainable energy future is dependent on foreign oil

—By Paul Roberts

 Put another way, the “debate” over energy independence is not only disingenuous, it’s also a major distraction from the much more crucial question—namely, how we’re going to build a secure and sustainable energy system. Because what America should be striving for isn’t energy independence, but energy security—that is, access to energy sources that are reliable and reasonably affordable, that can be deployed quickly and easily, yet are also safe and politically and environmentally sustainable. And let’s not sugarcoat it. Achieving real, lasting energy security is going to be extraordinarily hard, not only because of the scale of the endeavor, but because many of our assumptions about energy—about the speed with which new technologies can be rolled out, for example, or the role of markets—are woefully exaggerated. High oil prices alone won’t cure this ill: We’re burning more oil now than we were when crude sold for $25 a barrel. Nor will Silicon Valley utopian­ism: Thus far, most of the venture capital and innovation is flowing into status quo technologies such as biofuels. And while Americans have a proud history of inventing ourselves out of trouble, today’s energy challenge is fundamentally different. Nearly every major energy innovation of the last century—from our cars to transmission lines—was itself built with cheap energy. By contrast, the next energy system will have to contend with larger populations and be constructed using far fewer resources and more expensive energy.

So it’s hardly surprising that policymakers shy away from energy security and opt instead for the soothing platitudes of energy independence. But here’s the rub: We don’t have a choice. Energy security is nonnegotiable, a precondition for all security, like water or food or defense. Without it, we have no economy, no progress, no future. And to get it, we’ll not only have to abandon the chimera of independence once and for all, but become the very thing that many of us have been taught to dread—unrepentant energy globalists.

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Can We Live Off The Land If We Have To – Bear in mind that doom is rarely sudden

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Rome did not end in a day or a week or a year or even a decade. Still the past few day’s meditations have been CAN we live off the Earth peacefully? Today’s is better thought of as WILL we HAVE to life off the Earth peacefully?

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/story/print?guid=47729BA0-933E-4299-92CC-EB41EEE671D2

Paul B. Farrell

Paul B. Farrell

 

Oct. 20, 2009, 1:38 p.m. EDT

Death of ‘Soul of Capitalism:’ Bogle, Faber, Moore

20 reasons America has lost its soul and collapse is inevitable

By Paul B. Farrell, MarketWatch

ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (MarketWatch) — Jack Bogle published “The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism” four years ago. The battle’s over. The sequel should be titled: “Capitalism Died a Lost Soul.” Worse, we’ve lost “America’s Soul.” And worldwide the consequences will be catastrophic.

That’s why a man like Hong Kong’s contrarian economist Marc Faber warns in his Doom, Boom & Gloom Report: “The future will be a total disaster, with a collapse of our capitalistic system as we know it today.”

No, not just another meltdown, another bear market recession like the one recently triggered by Wall Street’s “too-greedy-to-fail” banks. Faber is warning that the entire system of capitalism will collapse. Get it? The engine driving the great “American Economic Empire” for 233 years will collapse, a total disaster, a destiny we created.OK, deny it. But I’ll bet you have a nagging feeling maybe he’s right, the end may be near. I have for a long time: I wrote a column back in 1997: “Battling for the Soul of Wall Street.” My interest in “The Soul” — what Jung called the “collective unconscious” — dates back to my Ph.D. dissertation: “Modern Man in Search of His Soul,” a title borrowed from Jung’s 1933 book, “Modern Man in Search of a Soul.” This battle has been on my mind since my days at Morgan Stanley 30 years ago, witnessing the decline.

Has capitalism lost its soul? Guys like Bogle and Faber sense it. Read more about the soul in physicist Gary Zukav’s “The Seat of the Soul,” Thomas Moore’s “Care of the Soul” and sacred texts.

But for Wall Street and American capitalism, use your gut. You know something’s very wrong: A year ago “too-greedy-to-fail” banks were insolvent, in a near-death experience. Now, magically they’re back to business as usual, arrogant, pocketing outrageous bonuses while Main Street sacrifices, and unemployment and foreclosures continue rising as tight credit, inflation and skyrocketing Federal debt are killing taxpayers.

Yes, Wall Street has lost its moral compass. They created the mess, now, like vultures, they’re capitalizing on the carcass. They have lost all sense of fiduciary duty, ethical responsibility and public obligation.

Here are the Top 20 reasons American capitalism has lost its soul:

1. Collapse is now inevitable

Capitalism has been the engine driving America and the global economies for over two centuries. Faber predicts its collapse will trigger global “wars, massive government-debt defaults, and the impoverishment of large segments of Western society.” Faber knows that capitalism is not working, capitalism has peaked, and the collapse of capitalism is “inevitable.”

When? He hesitates: “But what I don’t know is whether this final collapse, which is inevitable, will occur tomorrow, or in five or 10 years, and whether it will occur with the Dow at 100,000 and gold at $50,000 per ounce or even confiscated, or with the Dow at 3,000 and gold at $1,000.” But the end is inevitable, a historical imperative.

2. Nobody’s planning for a ‘Black Swan’

While the timing may be uncertain, the trigger is certain. Societies collapse because they fail to plan ahead, cannot act fast enough when a catastrophic crisis hits. Think “Black Swan” and read evolutionary biologist Jared Diamond’s “Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed.”

A crisis hits. We act surprised. Shouldn’t. But it’s too late: “Civilizations share a sharp curve of decline. Indeed, a society’s demise may begin only a decade or two after it reaches its peak population, wealth and power.”

Warnings are everywhere. Why not prepare? Why sabotage our power, our future? Why set up an entire nation to fail? Diamond says: Unfortunately “one of the choices has depended on the courage to practice long-term thinking, and to make bold, courageous, anticipatory decisions at a time when problems have become perceptible but before they reach crisis proportions.”

Sound familiar? “This type of decision-making is the opposite of the short-term reactive decision-making that too often characterizes our elected politicians,” thus setting up the “inevitable” collapse. Remember, Greenspan, Bernanke, Bush, Paulson all missed the 2007-8 meltdown: It will happen again, in a bigger crisis.

3. Wall Street sacked Washington

Bogle warned of a growing three-part threat — a “happy conspiracy” — in “The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism:” “The business and ethical standards of corporate America, of investment America, and of mutual fund America have been gravely compromised.”

But since his book, “Wall Street America” went over to the dark side, got mega-greedy and took control of “Washington America.” Their spoils of war included bailouts, bankruptcies, stimulus, nationalizations and $23.7 trillion new debt off-loaded to the Treasury, Fed and American people.

Who’s in power? Irrelevant. The “happy conspiracy” controls both parties, writes the laws to suit its needs, with absolute control of America’s fiscal and monetary policies. Sorry Jack, but the “Battle for the Soul of Capitalism” really was lost.

4. When greed was legalized

Go see Michael Moore’s documentary, “Capitalism: A Love Story.” “Disaster Capitalism” author Naomi Klein recently interviewed Moore in The Nation magazine: “Capitalism is the legalization of this greed. Greed has been with human beings forever. We have a number of things in our species that you would call the dark side, and greed is one of them. If you don’t put certain structures in place or restrictions on those parts of our being that come from that dark place, then it gets out of control.”

Greed’s OK, within limits, like the 10 Commandments. Yes, the soul can thrive around greed, if there are structures and restrictions to keep it from going out of control. But Moore warns: “Capitalism does the opposite of that. It not only doesn’t really put any structure or restrictions on it. It encourages it, it rewards” greed, creating bigger, more frequent bubble/bust cycles.

It happens because capitalism is now in “the hands of people whose only concern is their fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders or to their own pockets.” Yes, greed was legalized in America, with Wall Street running Washington.

5. Triggering the end of our ‘life cycle’

Like Diamond, Faber also sees the historical imperative: “Every successful society” grows “out of some kind of challenge.” Today, the “life cycle” of capitalism is on the decline.

He asks himself: “How are you so sure about this final collapse?” The answer: “Of all the questions I have about the future, this is the easiest one to answer. Once a society becomes successful it becomes arrogant, righteous, overconfident, corrupt, and decadent … overspends … costly wars … wealth inequity and social tensions increase; and society enters a secular decline.” Success makes us our own worst enemy.

Quoting 18th century Scottish historian Alexander Fraser Tytler: “The average life span of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years” progressing from “bondage to spiritual faith … to great courage … to liberty … to abundance … to selfishness … to complacency … to apathy … to dependence and … back into bondage!”

Where is America in the cycle? “It is most unlikely that Western societies, and especially the U.S., will be an exception to this typical ‘society cycle.’ … The U.S. is somewhere between the phase where it moves ‘from complacency to apathy’ and ‘from apathy to dependence.'”

In short, America is a grumpy old man with hardening of the arteries. Our capitalism is near the tipping point, unprepared for a catastrophe, set up for collapse and rapid decline.

15 more clues capitalism lost its soul … is a disaster waiting to happen

Much more evidence litters the battlefield:

  1. Wall Street wealth now calls the shots in Congress, the White House
  2. America’s top 1% own more than 90% of America’s wealth
  3. The average worker’s income has declined in three decades while CEO compensation exploded over ten times
  4. The Fed is now the ‘fourth branch of government’ operating autonomously, secretly printing money at will
  5. Since Goldman and Morgan became bank holding companies, all banks are back gambling with taxpayer bailout money plus retail customer deposits
  6. Bill Gross warns of a “new normal” with slow growth, low earnings and stock prices
  7. While the White House’s chief economist retorts with hype of a recovery unimpeded by the “new normal”
  8. Wall Street’s high-frequency junkies make billions trading zombie stocks like AIG, FNMA, FMAC that have no fundamental value beyond a Treasury guarantee
  9. 401(k)s have lost 26.7% of their value in the past decade
  10. Oil and energy costs will skyrocket
  11. Foreign nations and sovereign funds have started dumping dollars, signaling the end of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency
  12. In two years federal debt exploded from $11.2 to $23.7 trillion
  13. New financial reforms will do little to prevent the next meltdown
  14. The “forever war” between Western and Islamic fundamentalists will widen
  15. As will environmental threats and unfunded entitlements

“America Capitalism” is a “Lost Soul” … we’ve lost our moral compass … the coming collapse is the end of an “inevitable” historical cycle stalking all great empires to their graves. Downsize your lifestyle expectations, trust no one, not even media.

Faber is uncertain about timing, we are not. There is a high probability of a crisis and collapse by 2012. The “Great Depression 2” is dead ahead. Unfortunately, there’s absolutely nothing you can do to hide from this unfolding reality or prevent the rush of the historical imperative.

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I am just shaking in my boots.

Oh, and if you are interested in hiring a green consultant…I hear these guys are pretty good.

 http://www.greenappleconsult.com/

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I March In The Labor Day Parade With IBEW 193 – Labor Unions are 300 years old

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Which makes commercial oil production look like a baby at 150 (please see last weeks Posts).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_union

As always it was very very cool, everyone gathered:

laborday0.jpg

laborday1.jpg

laborday3.jpg

And Everyone marched:

laborday4.jpg

Some places were crowded:

laborday5.jpg

Some places weren’t. But it always amazes what things you never notice unless you are actually in the street. Somehow on the sidewalk they just do not stand out.

laborday6.jpg

Then it was over, but we will be back next year:

laborday10.jpg

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Al Casella – What other people had to say

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Disclaimer – I got these comments off of the “guest books” both at the SJ-R and the funeral home. They are online. Thus I suppose public. If anyone objects to their comment being displayed here I will immediately take it down.

Claimer – This is not an all inclusive list. I picked people I know or Know OF, and people’s comments that seemed typical. If you wish to add your own please do.

SJ-R:

http://www.legacy.com/sj-r/Obituaries.asp?Page=SearchResults

Butler Funeral Home:

 http://www.kirlin-egan-butler.com/_mgxroot/page_10730.php

I am so sorry to hear about the loss of such an influential person in my life. I only wish I would have known before the funeral so I could have attended. He will absolutely be missed.

Layla Paulus-Slater Mar 18, 2009 Dunlap, IL

 

 Al was a scientist with a social conscience.What a warm,positive,loving human being!He was always there to lend support when supporters were few and far between.He saw the whole university as his home,not just his program or school.Great mind,great fun-loving personality,great colleague and friend.If SSU was truly a “different” kind of university,and I believe it was,it’s because of people like Al.As he would say,Solidarity Forever! My sincerest condolences to his family. How fortunate they were to have him as their own. Mike Townsend.

mike townsend Mar 16, 2009 springfield, IL

 

I was very sorry to hear about Al’s death. He was one of my favorite professors. He had the ability to actually help me understand nuclear physics! I will always remember his big smile and friendly personality. Please accept my condolences.dorene gillman campbell Mar 16, 2009 sherman, IL

Thank you, Alex, for your collegiality and friendship.

 

Jack Van Der Slik Mar 16, 2009 Port Saint Lucie, FL

 

Al was a good friend…we will miss him very much.

 John and Diane Munkirs Mar 14, 2009 Rochester, IL

 

If I were not leaving town in a few hours I would certainly be present to offer my heartfelt condolences in person. Al and I worked together on many committtees and projects during the thirty some years we were both on the faculty at UIS and I always treasured his intelligence, generosity,and good humor. I especially remember the good times we had together back in the mid-1980s when we were both on sabbatical leave at the same time and both happened to be in the San Francisco area. He was a fine person who leaves fond memories behind.

Larry Shiner Mar 13, 2009 Springfield, IL

 

 

March 17, 2009 I was a student of Dr. Casella’s and am sad to hear of his passing. I had worked with him on “Peace Talks” and through the Heartland Peace Center also. I am also a staff member of the Central Illinois Foodbank and recognized that he has also been a great supporter of our organization. He was a great man and will be missed by many.
Sincerely, Lynne Slightom    Lynne Slightom (Springfield, IL)

 

Dear Family of Alex,
I wish I could join all of you and all of Alex’s friends for his memorial service. Alex was a dear friend to all and especially to my late sister, Beckie, and late husband, Luther Skelton. I have fond memories of parties on Lowell Avenue–especially the one with Winona LaDuke! My thoughts and prayers are with all of you during this sad time of losing Alex.
Peace and Love,
Bonnie Benard Mar 13, 2009 BERKELEY, CA

 

Alex was a special man and a dear friend to me and my family. We will so miss him. As I wrote to Chris, Lara, and Niny, I’m certain Dr. Casella is up there right this minute kibitzing with Dr. Einstein. And Albert is loving every minute of it.

Lynn Lyons Mar 13, 2009 Laguna Beach, CA

I  had the pleasure of officiating the wedding of Alex and Niny at Washington Park in 2001. It was a beautiful ceremony. Alex will be greatly missed by all those who knew him. I will never forget “Casella’s Theory of ESP”.

Prairie Eigenmann Mar 13, 2009 Sherman, IL

 

Thanks, Alex, for being my friend for all these years

Tom Immel Mar 12, 2009 Springfield, IL

 

 

March 15, 2009 Susan and I are saddened to learn of Alex’s departure. I valued his leadership as dean and his advice as a colleague. He was a highly active and creative member of our campus community. He was forever launching new initiatives toward the betterment of our campus, our community, and the world. His initiatives strengthened the Environmental Studies Program and contributed to the vitality of the campus. His sense of humor also lightened the tone of sometimes difficult operational discussions. His creativity even extended to the genius of his costumes at our vaunted Halloween parties. He once appeared as the most authentic witch we had ever seen! We want to offer our deepest sympathy to his family.    Wayne and Susan Penn (Walnut Creek, CA)

 


March 15, 2009 Commiserations from the Lennon family–Michael, Donna, Stephen, Joseph and James. I worked with Alex for many years at SSU/UIS in public affairs activities–he was dean of public affairs for several years–and relish the memories of his energy, humor and commitment to the environment. He was one of the prime movers in establishing Earth Day nationwide and gave of himself generously to many worthy causes. Endlessy curious and open to new experience, he was always fun to be with. I saw him last when he came to Pennsylvania for the funeral of our friend, Ashim Basu. I’m glad he lived long enough to see President Obama elected and the nation begin to mobilize against global warming, but sorry that his laughter will not be heard again–except in memory.    michael lennon (westport, MA)

 

 

March 14, 2009 This is terrible news! Al was one of a kind. I remember asking my friends in Carbondale, as I was moving to Springfield after graduate school, who to look up in the capitol city. Al was a name that was highly recommended. We became friends and shared an ethnic background and were both scientists and involved in energy and public affairs. I knew of his work on the Springfield Energy Project as I was active with the Carbondale City Energy Division and Shawnee Solar Project. He made a tremendous contribution to not only Sangamon State University (U of IL), but also the city of Springfield. He led by example in his own home energy improvements and was a huge inspiration to not only students but also the community. He was an expert in energy and environmental affairs long before it was fashionable. I could always count on him to conduct a television interview with political speakers I had brought to Springfield. He was a great comrade and I will always remember his funny laugh. My husband was a student at SSU and remembers well Alex’s messy and very interesting and stimulating office, full of posters, quotes and books. Even his office was an education. My husband’s and my heart go out to his children, grandchildren and wife. We know the Force is with him now and he is marveling at the wonders of God’s universe, now revealed in full without human or laboratory constraints. He is now a student in the ultimate Physics class. May God Bless Him and Keep Him. The world has lost a very good man that enriched all who knew him. Godspeed Alex!    Valeri DeCastris (Rockford, IL)

 

March 14, 2009

Alex was a great colleague. We felt a strong kinship because of our shared Phildaelphia roots. My condolences to Alex’s family    Harry Berman (Springfield, IL)

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The Climate March In Washington – I purposely did not want to post this until the event was over

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People protesting in great numbers or with great effect comes and goes. There are 2 types of “marching in the street”. There is Cause Marching and there is Purpose Marching. These types of protests can draw people from all over the country and draw hundreds of thousands of people; or they can consist of 25 people and Al Sharpton Marching in front of the New York Times building. Sometimes those protests can escalate to riots. Most notably the Civil War Veteran’s protest that rankled Grant’s first Term in office and the Hay Market incident in Chicago. The Poverty March on Washington led by Martin Luther King was a more peaceful example. But the March Against Climate Change was not going to be one of those.

You could tell by the lack of activity on the internet and the preposterous claims by the organizers, that this was pretty much going to be a dud. I mean does no one think rationally about these things. The organizers thought that 10,000 people would come to DC and protest in early March? In the dead of winter? Maybe on a nice spring day but….So maybe 10,000 people came to the PowerShift09 Conference but didn’t want to freeze there butts off or maybe the conference was a bust too. Who knows? Nobody is really saying. But from the pictures and everyone’s estimates  about 2,500 people showed up in the SNOW…What?  Don’t they get the Weather Channel? All that having been said, here is how the regular media guys saw it:

 http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1882700,00.html

Going Green

Despite Snow — and Irony —

a Climate Protest Persists

By Bryan Walsh / Washington

The call rang out through Washington early on the morning of March 2: the biggest act of civil disobedience against global warming in American history would not, in fact, be snowed out.

Environmental groups, led by Greenpeace and the Rainforest Action Network, had enlisted eco-celebrities such as Robert Kennedy Jr. and Bill McKibben and registered more than 2,000 youth protesters from around the country for a march on the coal-fired Capitol Power Plant, which supplies steam and cooled water to Congress. They planned to shut down the plant by peacefully blocking the entrances, a textbook act of civil disobedience for which many expected — perhaps eagerly — to be arrested. The message was simple: the burning of coal, which accounts for some 40% of U.S. carbon emissions, “is destroying the planet through global warming,” as Kennedy put it. America needs to get off coal, which supplies nearly half the country’s electricity, if it wants to have any hope of controlling its greenhouse gas emissions, and it should start with the Capitol plant. (See the top 10 green ideas of 2008.)

As it turned out, the action may have been almost too successful. On Feb. 26, just a few days before the protest, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate majority leader Harry Reid called for the 103-year-old plant to switch from coal to cleaner-burning natural gas, a move long pushed for by environmentalists but blocked by representatives from coal-heavy states. Protesters claimed an early victory. “Getting the plant to switch shows the power of popular pressure,” said Steven Biel, the director of Greenpeace’s global-warming campaign. But there was no doubt that by responding before the protesters hit the streets of the capital, Congress was simply moving one set of goalposts off the field.

coal_protest_0302.jpg

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This is how the organizers saw it. Please note that they only list three media sources. I call that a “big whup”

http://www.capitolclimateaction.org/

UNPRECEDENTED PROTEST

March 3rd, 2009

Yesterday thousands of people came together to offer an unprecedented example of mass protest and civil disobedience for the climate.

More than 2500 activists, many willing to risk arrest, successfully blockaded all five entrances to the Capitol Power Plant for more than four hours.

As impressive as that is, this action wasn’t just about this one coal-fired powerplant. The scale and the commitment of the participants was the biggest example yet of the kind of public support necessary to solve the climate crisis.

We aren’t going to stop global warming by just changing lightbulbs and driving hybrid cars. The only real solution is to come together and demand unprecedented change through unprecedented action.

And that’s exactly what happened yesterday.

Take a look at the media coverage of the action:

From the AP: Thousands rally for legislation on climate change

In Time Magazine: Despite Snow — and Irony — a Climate Protest Persists

On Alternet: Thousands Storm Capitol Hill in Largest Protest Against Global Warming

Victory: this is how to stop global warming

March 2nd, 2009

More amazing images from the largest mass civil disobedience for the climate in U.S. history where thousands of activists shut down the Capitol Power Plant. The only way we’re going to solve the climate crisis is by coming together and taking action. Like this:

dcmarch.jpg

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Either way it looks sooooo cold. The only way to get warm was to go back to your hotel room and suck power.

“God has a sense of humor,” said protester Rhody Streeter, of Louisville, Ky., referring to the weather.

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Power Shift 09 And The Climate Change March In Washington – I hope this all goes well

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I am not sure how many youth focused websites have gotten the word however. More on the Youth Environmentalist Movement and their medium:

http://www.futuremajority.com/

  Sarah Burris’s blog

“The Republican party isn’t exactly Internet savvy”

Bloguette Meghan McCain had an interesting article in the Daily Beast yesterday that addresses the techless nature of the GOP.

During the campaign season the only youth outreach I could find coming out of the McCain campaign was Meghan and her friends that traveled with the campaign and reported on the goings on.

Since this seems to be the week of children of the GOP coming out to tell all it is fitting Meghan wanted to talk about her experience as well. She says that the whole idea of the blog and project about being on the trail “was met with confusion and resistance” to begin with. “A few people even asked me what’s a blog.”

For the record, what you’re reading right now…. is a blog.

She also said that she got the idea that people thought she was wasting her time, “The Republican party isn’t exactly Internet savvy,” she says.

I would argue that there are many people in the GOP that are very tech savvy. The College Republicans developed a nice little social network site that no one really uses, if you’re a frequent reader of FM you know we know all about that site. And there are a hand full of remarkable tech savvy guys (sadly they’re all men) who do some good work for a party that has little to no support for them. Meghan’s lament isn’t an isolated one.

“Unless the GOP evolves as the party that can successfully utilize the Web, we’ll continue to lose influence. I think nothing confirms this fact to be more true than this recent election. I don’t claim to be an expert on mobilizing voters, but a significant number of the readers on mccainblogette.com, my blog, were between the ages of 18 and 30, a key demographic that either party would want. Many of the established Republican strategists told me that young people would not visit my web site.”

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Though I am not sure that the Hip Hoppers are on board either:

http://hiphopcaucus.org/

Full Events Calendar »

 

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It kills me to point out that the Illinois Math and Science Academy page hasn’t been updated since September 2008. What? Did school start or something?:

http://lorax.wordpress.com/

McCain and Obama: Energy Voting History

Posted by syntaxflute on Friday, September 26, 2008

 Watching the presidential debate has pulled my vote in different directions – but I am weary of falling victim to the theatrical allure of words and public speaking when the position comes down to action.  If you are interested in the green words the candidates have buzzed about in oration, have a bit of fun.

Past Action predicts present – 50 McCain No votes for energy policies and Obama’s short voting term as Senator. 

the significance in voting

the significance in voting

But when it comes down to it, policy and action are the skeleton of a candidate.  Each offers an Energy Plan – Obama’s ‘New Energy for America’ vs. McCain’s Lexington Project.  Obama’s backbone policy: eliminate foreign oil, 1 million hybrid cars by 2015, and a cap and trade program cutting CO2 emissions by 2050.  McCain in short: increase off-shore drilling, open domestic natural gas, cap and trade system, construct nuclear plants, a clean car challenge. Refer to the policies and note the time lines and numerical promise as measure of policy strength. 

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You would think Solve Climate would be on board with it too. Well not exactly:

 http://solveclimate.com/

February 20, 2009

Reid Plans Climate Change Legislation by End of Summer (AP)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says the energy legislation expected to be taken up in the coming weeks will be limited largely to promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Transportation Secretary Eyes Taxing Miles Driven (AP)

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says he is considering taxing motorists based on how many miles they drive rather than how much gasoline they burn. A few governors are also floating the idea.

Scientists Map CO2 Emissions with Google Earth (AFP)

A team of U.S. scientists unveils an interactive Google Earth map showing carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels across the United States.

Cost of Solar Fell 27% in Past Decade (San Francisco Chronicle)

The cost of installing solar panels on homes and businesses fell 27.6 percent from 1998 to 2008, according to a new study from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that questions some of the conventional wisdom about solar’s price.

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These folks basically live in Washington. You would think they would be excited:

http://theusconstitution.org/blog.warming/

Oh Boy Oh Boy Oh Boy

Last night, the NY Times offered hope that the long-awaited endangerment for CO2 finding may soon be near:

Lisa P. Jackson, the new E.P.A. administrator, said in an interview that she had asked her staff to review the latest scientific evidence and prepare the documentation for a so-called endangerment finding. Ms. Jackson said she had not decided to issue such a finding but she pointedly noted that the second anniversary of the Supreme Court decision, Massachusetts v. E.P.A., is April 2, and there is the wide expectation that she will act by then.

The article also notes that the endangerment finding “would set off one of the most extensive regulatory rule makings in history,” which may in turn “accelerate the progress of energy and climate change legislation in Congress.” This, of course, is exactly what we have argued should happen, if the Obama Administration is to succeed in bringing about its desired cap-and-trade bill in the near future.

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These folks can be forgiven for not attending. They are in India attending there own conference:

http://www.whatswiththeclimate.org/

Gayatari Pariwar offer full-fledged support to IYCN

Kabir / 19 February 2009 / News

Shirdi/ Kabir Arora

The Divine India Youth Association, working under the leadership of Gayatari Pariwar (a Spiritual Organization), offered support to the Indian Youth Climate Network, at a recent conference in Shirdi. Members of the organization pledged to promote eco-friendliness at all of their religious gatherings. Proposals included the use of paper-bags instead of plastic ones, investment in solar powered energy systems, the replacement of plastic cups with traditional clay cups, and the promotion of organic farming as not only an ecological solution but a spiritual pathway as well.

At their gathering at Shirdi, two IYCN members displayed many of the small changes we can all make. People showed keen interest in the IYCN campaign.

Gayatari Pariwar was founded by Shri Ram Sharma Acharya and is now based in Shanti Kunj, Haridwar.

Yes, They Could. So They Did.

Kartikeya Singh / 14 February 2009 / Commentary, News

February 15, 2009

Climate Solutions Road Tour Launch, Chennai, January 3, 2009

Thomas Friedman, New York Times:  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/opinion/15friedman.html

So I am attending the Energy and Resources Institute climate conference in New Delhi, and during the afternoon session two young American women — along with one of their mothers — proposition me.

“Hey, Mr. Friedman,” they say, “would you like to take a little spin around New Delhi in our car?”

Oh, I say, I’ve heard that line before. Ah, they say, but you haven’t seen this car before. It’s a plug-in electric car that is also powered by rooftop solar panels — and the two young women, recent Yale grads, had just driven it all over India in a “climate caravan” to highlight the solutions to global warming being developed by Indian companies, communities, campuses and innovators, as well as to inspire others to take action. (more…)

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They publish Hansen and he doesn’t even mention it. Whoa:

http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/009432.html

Climate Change Demands a Transformative Change in Direction

WorldChanging Team
February 16, 2009 11:38 AM
Article Photoby James Hansen

Over a year ago I wrote to Prime Minister Brown asking him to place a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants in Britain. I have asked the same of Angela Merkel, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd and other world leaders. The reason is this – coal is the single greatest threat to civilization and all life on our planet.

Our global climate is nearing tipping points. Changes are beginning to appear, and there is a potential for explosive changes with effects that would be irreversible – if we do not rapidly slow fossil fuel emissions over the next few decades.

Tipping points are fed by amplifying feedbacks. As Arctic sea ice melts, the darker ocean absorbs more sunlight and speeds melting. As tundra melts, methane a strong greenhouse gas, is released, causing more warming. As species are pressured and exterminated by shifting climate zones, ecosystems can collapse, destroying more species. The public, buffeted by day-to-day weather fluctuations and economic turmoil, has little time or training to analyze decadal changes. How can they be expected to evaluate and filter out advice emanating from special economic interests? How can they distinguish top-notch science and pseudoscience – the words sound the same?

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I Just Love These People – There are so many generational stereotypes out there

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But these young folks are so cool:

http://itsgettinghotinhere.org/

Musings on CGI-U vs. Power Shift ‘09

Published by Morgan, February 19th, 2009 global warming 0 Comments

CLINTON CGI-ULast weekend, 1000 students convened in Austin Texas for the Clinton Global Initiative University for a conference geared towards solving the world’s big problems and empowering students to take action.

In 8 days, 10,000 young people will be in DC for Power Shift 2009 for a conference to demand action on climate change from our leaders and empowering students to push for change.

There is a fundamental difference between these two events:

At Power Shift we will hold our elected officials accountable to do their part in solving climate change. We know that we are all working together to solve one really big (and multi-faceted) problem. And we’re not leaving until they listen to us.

Clinton Global Initiative inspires individuals and small groups to solve a wide range of problems, and highlight the projects that are closest to a set of ideals: Do what you can to make the world a better place, and make this part of your life.’ CGI-U is top down, and Power Shift is bottom up.

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They run around with some cool folks:

http://blogs.williams.edu/sustainability/

January 20, 2009

On December 24th, the College began the experiment of setting back temperatures and turning off equipment in many buildings until just before the beginning of Winter Study on January 5th. This effort appears to have saved nearly $90,000 and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 287 metric tonnes, over 1 % of our annual total.

The financial savings were split evenly between electricity and heating oil. Fifty-five percent of the energy savings came from heating. We often think of electricity as having the most utilities impact, due to the visible lighting and plug load in a building. However, in colder climates like ours, heat energy accounts for a larger portion of both emissions and spending on energy.

We can’t report on heating savings per building due to a current lack of steam metering, but we do have real-time metering of electricity by building. From those meters, we learned, not surprisingly, that large, energy-intensive buildings saved the most electricity: Paresky (34,500 kWh), Sawyer (26,874 kWh), Chandler (20,274 kWh), Bronfman (15,124 kWh), Greylock Dining (15,124 kWh), and Jesup (14,202 kWh). On average building electricity use was down 40%; electricity use in dorms was down 47%.

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http://climatedenial.org/

Guest blogger Roman Krznaric argues for a revolution in empathy to tackle climate change.

‘We seem to be suffering from an empathy deficit – our ability to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes, to see the world through those who are different from us.’ – Barack Obama

Occasionally – just occasionally – a mainstream politician says something that is both original and useful. This is the case with Barack Obama’s views on empathy. In a thousand speeches, and in his book The Audacity of Hope, he has put cultivating empathy – learning to see the world from the perspective of others – at the centre of his moral and political vision.

I am inclined to praise him because I believe we should view the problem of tackling climate change not as an environmental issue, or one concerning technology or social justice or markets, but primarily as a problem of empathy. We must learn to see the individuals behind the newspaper headlines about climate change, and imagine ourselves into the uniqueness of their lives, developing an understanding of their most important experiences, beliefs, fears and hopes.Sound far-fetched, wishy-washy or a little too sandals-and-carrot-juice for your liking? Let me explain myself.

The big question facing us is this: How can we close the gap between knowledge and action on climate change? Millions of people in rich countries know about the damaging effects of climate change and their own greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, yet relatively few are willing to make substantive changes to how they live. They might change a few light bulbs but they do not cut back on flying abroad for their holidays nor do they want to pay higher taxes to confront global warming.

So far economic, moral or other arguments have not been enough to spur sufficient action. This is because a fundamental approach has been missing: empathy.

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 http://www.coal-is-dirty.com/

Dr. James Hansen Calls for Civil Disobedience at Capitol Coal Plant on March 2

New Video of Noted Scientist Call for Join Capitol Climate Action

18 Feb 09

 

hansen image.jpg

Dr. James Hansen, the internationally recoginized climatologist has released a public service announcment, calling on all of us to join the Capitol Climate Action, the largest civil disobedience against global warming in U.S. history.

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http://www.desmogblog.com/

18 February 09

Obama, Canada’s government

not worth its salt on global warming [pic]

Tags: , , , , , , ,

This full page ad by the grassroots group Avaaz appeared on page A3 of the Washington Post today in advance of Obama’s trip to Canada scheduled for tomorrow. (click to enlarge)

obama-canada-global-warming-avaaz

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Our Energy Future – What does the omniscient Web say

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The Web, like the Great Oz himself, knows all and sees all. He can give the Scarecrow a brain:

 http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11580723

Energy

The future of energy

Jun 19th 2008
From The Economist print edition

A fundamental change is coming sooner than you might think

Instead of bullying and scaring people, the prophets of energy technology are attempting to seduce them. They promise a world where, at one level, things will have changed beyond recognition, but at another will have stayed comfortably the same, and may even have got better.

This time it’s serious

Alternative energy sounds like a cop-out. Windmills and solar cells hardly seem like ways of producing enough electricity to power a busy, self-interested world, as furnaces and steam-turbines now do. Battery-powered cars, meanwhile, are slightly comic: more like milk-floats than Maseratis. But the proponents of the new alternatives are serious. Though many are interested in environmental benefits, their main motive is money. They are investing their cash in ideas that they think will make them large amounts more. And for the alternatives to do that, they need to be both as cheap as (or cheaper than) and as easy to use as (or easier than) what they are replacing.

For oil replacements, cheap suddenly looks less of a problem. The biofuels or batteries that will power cars in the alternative future should beat petrol at today’s prices. Of course, today’s prices are not tomorrow’s. The price of oil may fall; but so will the price of biofuels, as innovation improves crops, manufacturing processes and fuels.

Electrical energy, meanwhile, will remain cheaper than petrol energy in almost any foreseeable future, and tomorrow’s electric cars will be as easy to fill with juice from a socket as today’s are with petrol from a pump. Unlike cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells, of the sort launched by Honda this week, battery cars do not need new pipes to deliver their energy. The existing grid, tweaked and smartened to make better use of its power stations, should be infrastructure enough. What matters is the nature of those power stations.

The price is right

They, too, are more and more likely to be alternative. Wind power is taking on natural gas, which has risen in price in sympathy with oil. Wind is closing in on the price of coal, as well. Solar energy is a few years behind, but the most modern systems already promise wind-like prices. Indeed, both industries are so successful that manufacturers cannot keep up, and supply bottlenecks are forcing prices higher than they otherwise would be. It would help if coal—the cheapest fuel for making electricity—were taxed to pay for the climate-changing effects of the carbon dioxide produced when it burns, but even without such a tax, some ambitious entrepreneurs are already talking of alternatives that are cheaper than coal.

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Please read the rest of the article for the pessimism that I cut out. He can also give the Lion courage:

http://www.energyfuturecoalition.org/editorsblog/Coalition-and-Partners-Launch-Rebuilding-America

Coalition and Partners Launch Rebuilding America

Submitted by jana on February 2nd, 2009

The Energy Future Coalition, in concert with a diverse cross-section of partners, recently submitted a plan to Congress to use building retrofit programs to put people back to work while reducing the U.S.’s energy footprint.  The building sector consumes 70% of electricity and emits 40% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.  Implementing energy efficiency retrofits presents an opportunity to create good jobs that not only reduce our environmental impact, but also create long-term energy savings for schools, homes, and businesses.

The plan would target retrofitting 4 million homes over the next two years.  Over the long-term, the plan recommends improving the efficiency of 50 million existing structures by 2020, creating 200,000 jobs. Energy efficiency is much cheaper than building new power plants and should be the first option for meeting energy demand.

Learn more >non

News Clip: Efficiency in Troubled Waters, Grist Magazine

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Please visit their amazing website. I couldn’t post it all. He can give the Tin Man lubricants that do not contain fossil fuels and a big old thumpin heart:

http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/technology/future-energy/

Free Energy Forums

Post New Topic

 

16Feb

Solar Energy “Power Towers” for California

Solar Power Towers California We mostly talk about solar panels that convert sunlight into electricity. But we can utilize sunlight by using another technology known as concentrating solar technology. In this technology reflective mirrors are used to concentrate light onto a liquid to make steam. This steam then converts energy into electricity with the help of conventional turbines. Deserts are best places to avail this technology. One important aspect is, its air-cooling process conserves water, an important consideration for desert projects. Concentrating solar technology is to be utilized in California which has a directive to generate 33 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2020. 8 Comments

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But can he get Dorothy home to Kansas? I think the answer is yes:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/agenda/energy_and_environment/

ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

The energy challenges our country faces are severe and have gone unaddressed for far too long. Our addiction to foreign oil doesn’t just undermine our national security and wreak havoc on our environment — it cripples our economy and strains the budgets of working families all across America. President Obama and Vice President Biden have a comprehensive plan to invest in alternative and renewable energy, end our addiction to foreign oil, address the global climate crisis and create millions of new jobs.

The Obama-Biden comprehensive New Energy for America plan will:

  • Help create five million new jobs by strategically investing $150 billion over the next ten years to catalyze private efforts to build a clean energy future.
  • Within 10 years save more oil than we currently import from the Middle East and Venezuela combined.
  • Put 1 million Plug-In Hybrid cars — cars that can get up to 150 miles per gallon — on the road by 2015, cars that we will work to make sure are built here in America.
  • Ensure 10 percent of our electricity comes from renewable sources by 2012, and 25 percent by 2025.
  • Implement an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050.

Energy Plan Overview

Provide Short-term Relief to American Families

  • Crack Down on Excessive Energy Speculation.
  • Swap Oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to Cut Prices.

Eliminate Our Current Imports from the Middle East and Venezuela within 10 Years

  • Increase Fuel Economy Standards.
  • Get 1 Million Plug-In Hybrid Cars on the Road by 2015.
  • Create a New $7,000 Tax Credit for Purchasing Advanced Vehicles.
  • Establish a National Low Carbon Fuel Standard.
  • A “Use it or Lose It” Approach to Existing Oil and Gas Leases.
  • Promote the Responsible Domestic Production of Oil and Natural Gas.

Create Millions of New Green Jobs

  • Ensure 10 percent of Our Electricity Comes from Renewable Sources by 2012, and 25 percent by 2025.
  • Deploy the Cheapest, Cleanest, Fastest Energy Source – Energy Efficiency.
  • Weatherize One Million Homes Annually.
  • Develop and Deploy Clean Coal Technology.
  • Prioritize the Construction of the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline.

Reduce our Greenhouse Gas Emissions 80 Percent by 2050

  • Implement an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050.
  • Make the U.S. a Leader on Climate Change.

itsgettinghotinhere.org

kansas.jpg

Actually Kansas…..

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