Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Under Obama, Dark Days Seen Ahead For Fossil Fuels

Pardon me for refraining from shedding a tear for the fossil fuel industry, but the dark days for fossil fuels should have happened back in the 1970s. How long must we remain at the mercy of Middle East oil or continue to dig/drill coal/oil/natural gas just to burn it and increase CO2 emissions? I'm ready for a dramatic and intelligent change in our national energy policy and I hope that President Obama will provide that change. I'm fully aware that we can't just flip a switch and blamo! renewable energy displaces fossil fuels and we all live happily ever after. But I'm also fully aware that the petroleum and coal industries are going to whine and complain loudly while never giving up a penny of their profits for the betterment of mankind. It's completely ridiculous that we listen to their horse manure of an excuse about lost jobs or that the coal industry is the backbone of our country. These are greedy individuals who only care about their profits. And until we stop listening to them and start thinking about other ways of producing energy, this country will continue to swirl the toilet drain of myopia.

Pheeww. Thanks for letting me vent.

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Wishful Thinking

*Before adding PV, wind, or solar thermal to your residential or commercial structure, the first step is to analyze this structure's energy consumption through a professional energy audit. I'd like to see some public education on the importance of an energy audit for any structure. Remember Smokey the Bear's forest fire shtick drilled into our heads over the last few decades? How about something like, "Henry the House" desperately wanting to know how much energy he consumes and wastes throughout the day?

*With over 300 sunny days a year on the Front Range is it too much to ask for solar PV and thermal modules on every residential and commercial unit (after an energy audit of course)?


*How about affordable plug-in electric cars that go more than 100 miles on a charge with PV and wind powered recharging stations?

*Dreaming of companies large and small adopting business sustainability practices to maximize profits, reduce their carbon footprint, and enhance the lives of their employees and the communities that surround them.

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