From Disneyland on the Potomac another ill conceived environmental bill, the "American Clean Energy and Security Act" which will virtually guarantee that global carbon dioxide (CO2) levels increase at faster rate. In the process we will also eliminate over 3 million American jobs.
President Obama has chosen to placate his left wing base by promoting the "Waxman-Markey global warming bill" over his stated goal of creating new jobs. A
study by Charles River Associates concluded that if Obama signs off on this Congressional proposal to reduce CO2 emissions, it would have a serious impact on the availability and cost of energy. "By 2025, just 16 years from now, the cost of natural gas would rise 56%, electricity 44% and motor fuel 19%. Annual household purchasing power would annually decline by…
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The morphing of environmentalism to Malthusian disaster theory leaves me with an uneasy feeling. Environmentalists seem more concerned with halting human economic progress than protecting the environment. Elite environmentalists, like their forefather, Malthus, appear to use nature merely as an excuse to discipline less enlightened members of society.
Malthus believed we would be unable to feed ourselves as our numbers expanded. He postulated that short-term gains in living standards would inevitably be undermined as population growth outstripped food production. Malthusian population theory was eventually dismissed for its pessimism and failure to take into account technological advances in agriculture and food production.
Malthusian population disaster theory however covers more than just the limits of food production, it encompasses all of earth's natural resources - "The power of population is indefinitely greater than the…
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Some thoughts for Obama Motors to consider!
Only 20% of the energy contained in gasoline is converted to mechanical energy by a traditional
internal combustion engine. Refinements in the internal combustion engine, improved aerodynamics, more efficient drivetrains and low resistance tires could make a greater contribution to increased milage and reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) production than advanced technology such as plug-in cars.
Among the
adjustments that could help improve fuel economy are turbocharging with smaller, more efficient engines that produce the same level of power; advanced heat management and cooling systems, which reuse the heat produced by the engine for energy; weight reduction, including extensive use of high-strength steel; better aerodynamics; more efficient air conditioners, transmissions and lighting devices and increased electrification leading to full hybridization with electric motor and…
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How much confidence do we have in the science?
Researchers use the scientific method to search for cause and effect relationships. This method requires that a
hypothesis be constructed. Scientists then design an appropriate well-controlled experiment to test that hypothesis. The results must be statistically significant and reproducible in order to be considered valid. There are a number of techniques that can be used to enhance the objectivity of a study as well as increase its statistical reliability.
In prospective medical research for example, we often use double blind, placebo controlled studies so that neither the researcher nor the patient knows if they are receiving the active drug or a placebo. This eliminates observer bias. Some times we cross the patient's over, so that the same patient takes both the active…
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Despite the soaring rhetoric to the contrary, President Obama has amassed an impressive record of caving to every Democratic special interest group in America. Not once, has he stood up to the special interests. The critical question is - will he find his manhood before he gives away the national store?
We were promised shovel ready infrastructure projects by President Obama, but only a miserly 8% of the $787 billion stimulus plan was allocated to this use, and very little of that will be spent in 2009. The left of his party held sway and President Obama sheepishly, albeit with great fanfare, signed on.
With great oratorical flourish we were introduced to President Obama's choice for Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, the man who would bring real change to a failing inner-city…
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What a waste, spewing valuable carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere.
The wonders we could create with this fundamental building block of life. Worse still, government bureaucrats with their limited intellectual toolbox want to treat this incredibly useful natural material as a harmful pollutant and tax it. Imagination, have we American's lost our capacity to think and innovate? Have we become mindless automatons who only see gloom and doom and ignore the opportunities right in front of our eyes? Carbon dioxide (CO2) doesn't have to be a tax on society; there are countless ways it could be turned into useful products for the betterment of mankind. Let's examine a few:
Back to basics -it's sophomore year in high school and it's the biology class that environmental scientists seem to have slept through…
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It was all about the battery, they will say, while viewing the Chevrolet Volt on its prominent display stand -- diagonally across from the Edsel in some car museum of the future.
Obama Motors (OM), formally known as General Motors (GM) has reiterated its commitment to deliver the green
Chevrolet Volt, plug-in electric car to showrooms in November 2010 as planned. This despite the fact that President Obama's own
task force concluded that the Volt would be too expensive to be commercially viable. Industry analysts estimate the cost of the Volt will be around $40,000. As a comparison, the
price of proven green fuel-efficient vehicles such as the Prius ranges from $22,000 to $24,270 for the base model and the recently introduced, Honda Motor Co.'s Insight hybrid, $19,800…
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Coal-fired plants produce approximately 50% of the electricity in the United States and 82% of power generated carbon dioxide
emissions. If electric vehicles are charged exclusively by coal-fired electricity they produce more green house gases than a traditional gasoline-powered combustion engine car. In the future, electricity must be generated cleanly, if we expect automotive electric-drive technologies to reduce our carbon dioxide burden.
Wind and
solar will probably make a significant contribution to clean energy generation, but realistically, we cannot count on these two sources for more than 20-30% of our electricity needs in the next 20 years. Even reaching these modest goals will require a major investment in energy infrastructure and fundamental advances in technology. Nuclear power may be the only clean alternative.
In the United States…
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When the only tool you have is a hammer, the whole world looks like a nail. In other words, there is no problem that a bureaucrat can't solve, if only we would let them pass another regressive tax. That may well be the sum total of the creative thinking that has gone into the Obama
Cap-and-Trade plan. The Obama Administration proposes that companies buy a permit for each ton of carbon emitted, at an estimated cost, to start of $13 to $20 per ton. The permits could then be bought and sold. The theory behind this convoluted scheme is that it will somehow miraculously increase energy efficiency and renewable energy development.
Rather than focus on available technological solutions, let's burden hard working American consumers with another ill-conceived regressive tax! Who…
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Hydroelectricity is the most widely used form of
clean renewable energy in the world, generating over 19% of the world's electricity. It requires no fuel and produces no direct emissions or by-products. The United Nations estimates that the technically exploitable potential for
hydropower is 15 trillion kilowatt-hours per year, amounting to half of the total projected global electricity needed in 2030. In the United States, hydropower has fallen to 10% of the electricity supply mix down from14%, 20 years ago. In terms of electricity production, hydropower accounts for only 7% of America's current power needs.
Source US Department of Energy
In theory, the mechanics of a
hydropower plant
