SteveK9, October 11 at 3:20 pm
“The answer to elimination of fossil fuel use is nuclear energy.”

Yet another can of worms.

Look at it this way;
1.  Switchgrass provide carbon sequestration through roughly 2 - 3 crops annually.
2.  Trees, we might say, as fuel, could be 20 -100 years old.
3.  Oil; 200M years old, and
4.  Coal; 300M years

Now, bear in mind that, at present, humans are still in the practice of releasing all of these categories of fuel SIMULTANEOUSLY, releasing both sequestered carbon AND heat theoretically beyond the capacity for the atmosphere to re-sequester the carbon and dissipate the heat.

On top of all that, we now have the release of heat from radioactive elements that were, in effect, sequestered back during the formation of our solar system. So unless we are able to somehow prove that all this heat is being efficiently radiated out into space, which is doubtful, how is it that nuclear energy is going to do anything but further add to the problem?

I think the larger issue we should be asking ourselves is how do we discipline ourselves to utilize these gifts of nature without arrogantly assuming that we have the right to them? Maybe that was the test all along; not to use them, but to choose not to.

ABOUT LAWYERS

An interpretation (found here) of some further lines from Shakespeare’s Henry VI

DICK:The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.

JACK CADE: Nay, that I mean to do. Is not this a lamentable thing, that of the skin of an innocent lamb should be made parchment? that parchment, being scribbled o’er, should undo a man? Some say the bee stings: but I say, ‘tis the bee’s wax; for I did but seal once to a thing, and I was never mine own man since ...

To understand what Cade is saying here, you have to know that documents of the time were likely parchment and sealed with wax. 

So when he says “Some say the bees stings; but I say, ‘tis the bee’s wax” he’s making an ironic comment somewhat akin to “Some men rob you with a six-gun and some with a fountain pen”.

(Meaning, beware of lawyers bearing fountain pens. ;^)

MeHere, October 9 at 1:46 am
Yes, smaller social units require less rule ...... and any government seeking more
power will be all too willing to convince its population into becoming increasingly
more specialized in order to then require more government.

The forces behind big government don’t want people becoming self actualized or
even self sufficient. Why else would they seize control of the water running off
your roof or suggesting that growing vegetables in your back yard would require
a permit and inspection process? All by design .... by a group of sociopaths.

=============

And if they don’t remove that FUCKING pop up ad for Quill, I’m going to quit TD.

Attn: Bob Scheer, I will NEVER buy anything the ad for which is so blatantly annoying. Wake the @#$%&*! up. How many GD complaints do you need before it sinks in?

BR549:

Yes. We need to reduce and become smaller in every way. But that’s exactly what
the economic/political system is against. You’ll never hear a political or business
leader rooting for less is more.

MeHere and Prosefight,

Reducing consumption could be greatly enhanced by not having to waste energy
traveling so much, commuting to work, and spending so much time away from
the very social connections within the family and immediate community that we’ve
spent the last four decades trying to run away from.

The answers lie in getting reconnected with smaller communities and keeping
them small enough to remain functional.

prosefight:

Thanks for your excellent comments and good links.

There’s no question that the answer to the energy problem is to reduce
consumption. The number of products and services that don’t serve basic needs,
use enormous amounts of energy, and end up as environmental debris, cannot
continue if we want to achieve some degree of energy balance and economic
sanity. The green industry, whether more or less legitimate, will not achieve that
necessary balance. We simply cannot have or do whatever we want for the simple reason that nature is clearly unforgiving. This is a topic that needs much more thinking and discussion than what is presently getting.

I have always thought that we americans would not see the light, until we could not see any more light, of course.

instead of concentrating our entire effort on the developement and ditribution of all alternate (green) energy technologies, we are going to do what I have always feared, drill, dig, pump, strip mine, and rape the earth of any and all fossil fuels that it holds. Then and only then will we wake from our petroleum nighmare.

But by then it will be too late to change. Right now we are collectively riding that bomb with Slim Pickens all the way to gound zero screaming “YEE HAW!”

Electricity increased costs and possible shortages loom. 

US electricity apparently comes from 57% coal, 17% natural gas, 20% nuclear, and 6% coal we googled to find.

‘Fracked’ gas looks to help keep the price of electricity down.

Nuclear Energy and the Iran Affair by Andrew McKillop paints a scary picture.

http://www.energypulse.net/centers/article/article_display.cfm?a_id=2339

No requested response to

‘Protection of the public from possible large-scale solar generation of electricity scam, we feel,
is within EPRI’s charter.

The Electric Power Research Institute, Inc. (EPRI) conducts research and development relating
to the generation, delivery and use of electricity for the benefit of the public.

EPRI brings together its scientists and engineers as well as experts from academia and industry
to help address challenges in electricity, including reliability, efficiency, health, safety and the
environment.

Focus can then be directed at energy efficiency which does work.

I ask that you acknowledge receipt of this email.

I ask that you send me a copy of your instructions to Mr Shumard by close of
business Friday October 8, 2010.

Or your reasons for not assigning Mr Shumard the task by the same date.’

received so far.

http://home.comcast.net/~bpayne37/eprishumard/howard/howard.htm#howard

I have a GREAT idea!

Let’s do the fracking on the properties bordering Cheney’s land. See how much he
likes it.

Good now if we want to stay away from red sludge we can move to Wyoming!

Thanks for the article.  D. Sirota’s states that the “nation learned harrowing
environmental lessons from the GE/Hudson River affair”, well…. the nation
should have learned lessons but there are no indications that it has. Moreover,
according to an in-depth article in Harper’s a while back, the Hudson cleanup
was a fiasco in terms of the things that were promised but were never
accomplished. In the meantime, the average person thinks it was cleaned up.

The other danger in that area is the Indian Point Nuclear Plant, one of the 5
oldest in the nation.  The NRA continues to allow its operation in an area that
has a high population density at present. No new nuclear plants would be
licensed to operate in that site today. There have been continuous campaigns
for years organized by residents of various counties to have it closed. There are
often small radioactive leaks into the river. Some of the emergency plans put
out by local government officials are simply laughable—not too different from
those in the 50’s to protect citizens from nuclear attacks.

And now there’s fracking in NY State and it is located near the watersheds that
supply water to NY City. Apparently, Obama had opposed delaying this
operation until further data could be assessed.

The problem with killing is more killing.  First “them,” then “you,” then “us”, then “me.”

First comes building the spread of nonviolent actions.  Greenpeace does a lot with very limited membership and financial support.  Donate time, money, ideas.  Get connected. Hope comes from working with others on what you believe is worth the struggle.

There are hundreds of groups struggling against huge problems all over the map.  They need all the help they can get. Look them up. They’re all over the place online.

It was either FRONTLINE/POV or 60 MINUTES that did a great expose on “fracking” in Wyoming. Entire families were sickened and homes destroyed. In one instance a water well actually blew up and burned when chemicals and gas from the lunatic process leaked into the drill shaft.

      This SIROTA report is hopefull and we can only pray regulation is strengthened and expanded with serious oversight. Do you doubt the Boehner thugs will kill it if they gain power?

      I no longer know what to say about a Government or an Industry that knowingly continues to allow the introduction of carcinogens and poison into the American Ecological Environment. It is willing premeditated murder. People die slow and tragic deaths. Futures and families are destroyed.

      As in the cases of a Health System that denies care that would save a life for the sake of profit, a Monsanto that openly destroys families and communities with the help of police state tactics and the Federal Judiciary, or open above-the-law political and financial violation of the Nations law without consequence, who speaks for “We the people—.”?

      It ain’t gonna stop. America is falling into permanent ruin. Social disintegration is rampant and her people are destitute. There is no Government in Washington. 

      In the past people would smile at the Shakespeare quote: “First, we kill all the lawyers.” These days, I don’t hear anybody laughing.