So, what do ya think? Maybe we need alternative energy plans? How does our current approach help the planet or the poor?
18 comments:
Anonymous
said...
It's just horrible. Sickening. And while BP certainly bears an enormous amount of responsibilty for the devastation, so do each one of us who drove to work today. The US is "addicted" to oil, as even GW recognized. We really do need a better way.
"So, what do ya think? Maybe we need alternative energy plans? How does our current approach help the planet or the poor"
A direct answer for you - we do have "alternate energy plans, but the Greenies put up roadblocks. Ultimately the Greenie approach concludes with a planet devoid of mankind.
As far as helping the planet, I do not see that as an issue. Energy is to facilitate man's existence and if you help man - you help the planet.
The current approach helps the poor because it allows them a mechanism ( U.S. mail) to get their welfare checks, and whatever other government assistance they require, delivered to them. Alternatively, subsidized public transportation is also a benefit of the current energy policy, as it again it subsidizes the poor Also, through government taxation of all types of energy, it permits the poor to receive government food and housing.
Anon 5:09, your point of view amazes me and I hear it expressed in different ways again and again. Such confidence in unfettered market forces is short sighted. The point is not about what's possible, but about what is most profitable in the short term, the current way of American capitalism. The biggest return on the dollar in the shortest time, no matter what the cost to nation, environment or people. Much is possible for people willing to make sacrifices. But everything here is about big returns and cheap goods. There are ways for us to do better, be more fair and craft a more sustainable life.
I watched a documentary called "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and sadly it is not as simple as the possibility of alternative energies. The alternatives are there, but it is clear that there is a will across many groups to see these alternatives never come to fruition.
The alternatives are possible. The oil spill reminds me that our collective will is weak, selfish, and destructive.
Aren't these just the saddest pictures? Just makes you sick. And when you hear how BP was allowed to go forward with this particular well without the necessary safety studies, it makes you even sicker.
I was wondering how the far right would end up blaming everybody but those responsible for this tragedy. Thanks, Anon 8:09 PM, for explaining it so well. Maybe you can go to work for BP helping them talk their way out of this one!
"if you help man - you help the planet." Who's going to help the third generation fishermen who's way of live has been destroyed.
"There are ways for us to do better, be more fair and craft a more sustainable life."
Let's hear them. Not a poem, but real alternative that exist today -or have a real chance to exist within a few years. And while you're at it, what change can I make tomorrow that will help you realize your nirvana? Obviously, I am skeptical, but really want to know.
"Ultimately the Greenie approach concludes with a planet devoid of mankind." You've been watching too much Glen Beck ... or maybe you are Glen Beck. Such extremist rhetoric does not advance the discussion ... at all.
"Energy is to facilitate man's existence and if you help man - you help the planet. " Please, please tell me you're kidding. Did you even glance at the pictures Larry posted? I don't think that's "helping the planet."
"The current approach helps the poor because it allows them a mechanism ( U.S. mail) to get their welfare checks." Please tell me you do not occupy a church pew on Sunday. If you don't, so be it, I guess you're free to be rude and uncaring. If you do, your outlook on life is leagues away from that of Jesus, and you clearly place your politics above your Christianity.
For ANON 938 "Ultimately the Greenie approach concludes with a planet devoid of mankind." You've been watching too much Glen Beck ... or maybe you are Glen Beck. Such extremist rhetoric does not advance the discussion ... at all. NOTHING EXTREMIST ABOUT IT - THE DEVELOPMENT OF NUCLEAR POWER HAS BEEN BLOCKED FOR YEARS BY THE GREENIES OR THEIR PREDECESSORS
"Energy is to facilitate man's existence and if you help man - you help the planet. " Please, please tell me you're kidding. Did you even glance at the pictures Larry posted? I don't think that's "helping the planet." RIGHT - CLEARLY THE PICTURES PRESENT A SCENE THAT DOES NOT HELP MAN AND HENCE YOUR RANT IS IRRELEVANT
"The current approach helps the poor because it allows them a mechanism ( U.S. mail) to get their welfare checks." Please tell me you do not occupy a church pew on Sunday. If you don't, so be it, I guess you're free to be rude and uncaring. If you do, your outlook on life is leagues away from that of Jesus, and you clearly place your politics above your Christianity. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CHRISTIAN INSIGHTS(?) ARE YOU AMONG THE LIBERATION THEOLOGISTS POLITICIANS THAT FREQUENT THIS BLOG?
"'There are ways for us to do better, be more fair and craft a more sustainable life.'
Let's hear them. Not a poem, but real alternative that exist today -or have a real chance to exist within a few years."
OK, here goes --
if everyone in America who drives a vehicle drove their vehicle no more than 55 mph on the freeway, America would save more than 1 billion barrels of oil per year, which is more than all of the oil we import from the Middle East each year.
Along this line, if all Americans who owned vehicles kept their tires at the proper PSI, used the right grade of motor oil, and had regular engine tune-ups, almost 9% of savings would be realized in fuel costs. In Dallas right now, that would be saving .25 cents a gallon, or $5 on a 20-gallon fill-up. This savings is AT LEAST MORE THAN TWO TIMES the rate that ALL Coastal and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge-produced oil will save us in terms of real cost.
Now, this is, so far, just dealing with how we Americans run our vehicles. I could go on and talk about what we could do with our physical houses (and if you do energy-conserving improvements, you can even get tax credits), in-house energy use, and other life points.
The beauty about ALL of these points I've mentioned is that ANY individual who does them can benefit from them IMMEDIATELY. Even if the nation doesn't lower its driving speed or keep its tires inflated, I CAN...and I CAN SAVE $$ PLUS HAVE A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE.
Anon 2:00 - Thanks! I appreciate your response. Efficient living and efficient driving are excellent ways to reduce our dependence on oil. I'm fine with that. But we still need oil. The thrust of Larry's (many) post(s)is that we must find alternatives to oil. Your response, while very good, doesn't address that.
What you noted is in accordance with arguments that the new technologies and alternatives to oil are not here - yet. In the mean time, better efficiency is a goal we should all support.
Many of the ideas like reducing the inflow of oil into our energy system, or reclassifying coal (which currently supplies 50% of our electicity) as a pollutant and prohibiting it as an energy source, will both put people out of jobs and increase the cost of electricity.
Headlines today indicate that Obama rethought his decision to place a moratorium on drilling in the gulf. He observed the economic implications - and anticipated voter reaction - and reversed his position. Now if only the rest of you would be so enlightened.
Efficiencies will come. They've been making a difference all along. We just don't notice.
Anon 349 Now I will return the favor and spell it out for you. You wouldn't recognize logic if it hit you in the face. Your mind is full of socialist garbage pumped into your little brain by the lefty thought police
As our Rabbi says: "We read in our sacred text: "When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down. Are trees of the field human to withdraw before you into the besieged city? Only trees that you know do no yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siege works against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been reduced." Deuteronomy 20:19-20.
A rabbinic reading of this text teaches us that everything we own belongs to God. Even in emergencies, we are prohibited from thoughtlessly wasting and destroying resources around us.
It is our obligation as members of the faith community to set an example of stewardship and caring for the earth's resources."
18 comments:
It's just horrible. Sickening. And while BP certainly bears an enormous amount of responsibilty for the devastation, so do each one of us who drove to work today. The US is "addicted" to oil, as even GW recognized. We really do need a better way.
If alternative energy were possible at this point, the private sector would have already been on to it.
"So, what do ya think? Maybe we need alternative energy plans? How does our current approach help the planet or the poor"
A direct answer for you - we do have "alternate energy plans, but the Greenies put up roadblocks. Ultimately the Greenie approach concludes with a planet devoid of mankind.
As far as helping the planet, I do not see that as an issue. Energy is to facilitate man's existence and if you help man - you help the planet.
The current approach helps the poor because it allows them a mechanism ( U.S. mail) to get their welfare checks, and whatever other government assistance they require, delivered to them. Alternatively, subsidized public transportation is also a benefit of the current energy policy, as it again it subsidizes the poor Also, through government taxation of all types of energy, it permits the poor to receive government food and housing.
Anon 5:09, your point of view amazes me and I hear it expressed in different ways again and again. Such confidence in unfettered market forces is short sighted. The point is not about what's possible, but about what is most profitable in the short term, the current way of American capitalism. The biggest return on the dollar in the shortest time, no matter what the cost to nation, environment or people. Much is possible for people willing to make sacrifices. But everything here is about big returns and cheap goods. There are ways for us to do better, be more fair and craft a more sustainable life.
I watched a documentary called "Who Killed the Electric Car?" and sadly it is not as simple as the possibility of alternative energies. The alternatives are there, but it is clear that there is a will across many groups to see these alternatives never come to fruition.
The alternatives are possible. The oil spill reminds me that our collective will is weak, selfish, and destructive.
Aren't these just the saddest pictures? Just makes you sick. And when you hear how BP was allowed to go forward with this particular well without the necessary safety studies, it makes you even sicker.
I was wondering how the far right would end up blaming everybody but those responsible for this tragedy. Thanks, Anon 8:09 PM, for explaining it so well. Maybe you can go to work for BP helping them talk their way out of this one!
"if you help man - you help the planet." Who's going to help the third generation fishermen who's way of live has been destroyed.
How do you live with yourself? Despicable.
"There are ways for us to do better, be more fair and craft a more sustainable life."
Let's hear them. Not a poem, but real alternative that exist today -or have a real chance to exist within a few years. And while you're at it, what change can I make tomorrow that will help you realize your nirvana? Obviously, I am skeptical, but really want to know.
Anon 8:09:
"Ultimately the Greenie approach concludes with a planet devoid of mankind." You've been watching too much Glen Beck ... or maybe you are Glen Beck. Such extremist rhetoric does not advance the discussion ... at all.
"Energy is to facilitate man's existence and if you help man - you help the planet. " Please, please tell me you're kidding. Did you even glance at the pictures Larry posted? I don't think that's "helping the planet."
"The current approach helps the poor because it allows them a mechanism ( U.S. mail) to get their welfare checks." Please tell me you do not occupy a church pew on Sunday. If you don't, so be it, I guess you're free to be rude and uncaring. If you do, your outlook on life is leagues away from that of Jesus, and you clearly place your politics above your Christianity.
For ANON 938
"Ultimately the Greenie approach concludes with a planet devoid of mankind." You've been watching too much Glen Beck ... or maybe you are Glen Beck. Such extremist rhetoric does not advance the discussion ... at all.
NOTHING EXTREMIST ABOUT IT - THE DEVELOPMENT OF NUCLEAR POWER HAS BEEN BLOCKED FOR YEARS BY THE GREENIES OR THEIR PREDECESSORS
"Energy is to facilitate man's existence and if you help man - you help the planet. " Please, please tell me you're kidding. Did you even glance at the pictures Larry posted? I don't think that's "helping the planet."
RIGHT - CLEARLY THE PICTURES PRESENT A SCENE THAT DOES NOT HELP MAN AND HENCE YOUR RANT IS IRRELEVANT
"The current approach helps the poor because it allows them a mechanism ( U.S. mail) to get their welfare checks." Please tell me you do not occupy a church pew on Sunday. If you don't, so be it, I guess you're free to be rude and uncaring. If you do, your outlook on life is leagues away from that of Jesus, and you clearly place your politics above your Christianity.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CHRISTIAN INSIGHTS(?) ARE YOU AMONG THE LIBERATION THEOLOGISTS POLITICIANS THAT FREQUENT THIS BLOG?
"'There are ways for us to do better, be more fair and craft a more sustainable life.'
Let's hear them. Not a poem, but real alternative that exist today -or have a real chance to exist within a few years."
OK, here goes --
if everyone in America who drives a vehicle drove their vehicle no more than 55 mph on the freeway, America would save more than 1 billion barrels of oil per year, which is more than all of the oil we import from the Middle East each year.
Along this line, if all Americans who owned vehicles kept their tires at the proper PSI, used the right grade of motor oil, and had regular engine tune-ups, almost 9% of savings would be realized in fuel costs. In Dallas right now, that would be saving .25 cents a gallon, or $5 on a 20-gallon fill-up. This savings is AT LEAST MORE THAN TWO TIMES the rate that ALL Coastal and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge-produced oil will save us in terms of real cost.
Now, this is, so far, just dealing with how we Americans run our vehicles. I could go on and talk about what we could do with our physical houses (and if you do energy-conserving improvements, you can even get tax credits), in-house energy use, and other life points.
The beauty about ALL of these points I've mentioned is that ANY individual who does them can benefit from them IMMEDIATELY. Even if the nation doesn't lower its driving speed or keep its tires inflated, I CAN...and I CAN SAVE $$ PLUS HAVE A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE.
Best regards.
Anon 200 pm
Your savings suggestions are among my favorites propose by President Obama
Anon 2:00 - Thanks! I appreciate your response. Efficient living and efficient driving are excellent ways to reduce our dependence on oil. I'm fine with that. But we still need oil. The thrust of Larry's (many) post(s)is that we must find alternatives to oil. Your response, while very good, doesn't address that.
What you noted is in accordance with arguments that the new technologies and alternatives to oil are not here - yet. In the mean time, better efficiency is a goal we should all support.
Many of the ideas like reducing the inflow of oil into our energy system, or reclassifying coal (which currently supplies 50% of our electicity) as a pollutant and prohibiting it as an energy source, will both put people out of jobs and increase the cost of electricity.
Headlines today indicate that Obama rethought his decision to place a moratorium on drilling in the gulf. He observed the economic implications - and anticipated voter reaction - and reversed his position. Now if only the rest of you would be so enlightened.
Efficiencies will come. They've been making a difference all along. We just don't notice.
Anon 1:19:
I can't argue with the logic.
(Let me spell it out for you: because there is none.)
So what do we do with all that crude?
We're number 1 in oil consumption: http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/ene_oil_con-energy-oil-consumption
We're number 3 in population: http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/peo_pop-people-population
Yet we give away more than any other nation: http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/eco_eco_aid_don-economy-economic-aid-donor
Because we produce more by far than any other nation: http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/eco_gdp-economy-gdp
Seems like we put the oil to pretty good use. Which country's consumption/production/foriegn aid mix do you prefer over ours?
Anon 349 Now I will return the favor and spell it out for you. You wouldn't recognize logic if it hit you in the face. Your mind is full of socialist garbage pumped into your little brain by the lefty thought police
http://blog.al.com/living-times/2010/06/lifepoints_were_commanded_to_p.html
As our Rabbi says:
"We read in our sacred text: "When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down. Are trees of the field human to withdraw before you into the besieged city? Only trees that you know do no yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siege works against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been reduced." Deuteronomy 20:19-20.
A rabbinic reading of this text teaches us that everything we own belongs to God. Even in emergencies, we are prohibited from thoughtlessly wasting and destroying resources around us.
It is our obligation as members of the faith community to set an example of stewardship and caring for the earth's resources."
these pictures make me so sad ... and so angry . . . evidence of the "good" deregulation idea . . . UGH
Attention - CNN is giving updates on dead and injured birds and sea turtles!!
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