What IS and what SHOULD BE isn't always the same thing. We should have been taking steps long ago to allow American oil companies to go and find our own supplies. We have resources off the NC coasts. The fishermen are begging to have them drill. We should go anywhere we can find it.

Unfortunately, we've waited too long and now we are over a barrel...literally.

No.

What we should be doing is moving AWAY from a resource that causes global pollution AND global conflict.

We need to start phasing out oil consumption. Immediately. And we shouldn't promote the drilling of new areas in or around the US when we simply don't need it.

That doesn't help. We're still using a limited resource that must be refined... and then refined again... to get the product we use today.

Also, searching for coal is enviromentally destructive, unhealthy and alltogether dirty. Now we're just polluting our country more.

We. Need. To. Move. On.

As soon as a reasonable and profitable alternative is found, you can bet we will. Until then, the oil must flow. There is no other way.

I'm with ya, bro...I'm right there with you.

Two weeks ago I attended the DESC Energy confrence in DC http://www.desc.dla.mil/dcm/DCMPage.asp?PageID=805.

The US Navy had a hydrogen powered car on display and I took the opportunity to ask the Naval Engineer some questions about the car and possible supplies of hydrogen.

It's range was about 200 miles. It used gaseous hydrogen (not liquid). It costs more to fill with hydrogen then gasoline (that could change obviously). Has an estimated mass production cost of around $60K-$80K per car. (The one on display was $240K to build.)

I asked about hydrogen supplies for millions of potential hydrogen powered cars. He believed that nuclear power plants was the only viable answer but couldn't handle the demand. He told me 300 nuclear power plants couldn't keep up with that kind of demand (he could be wrong). Taking hydrogen from water is far too energy intensive. He didn't believe hydrogen would ever take the place of gasoline as a fuel source for private vehicles in the near future. I've always believed hydrogen was the answer to gasoline. I had to change my opinion after talking with that Naval Engineer. It's a small part of the answer perhaps but the volume of hydrogen needed to power say 10 million cars is simply not available.

I do believe nuclear power can and will someday provide the majority electricity generation needs instead of fossil fuels. It's the best option for several reasons IMO.


Very early in the Bush Administration he asked for and got $15 Billion to be invested in hydrogen technology.

Until there is a cheap way to produce hydrogen, it is not economically viable. We need to invest in many different alternative energies right now, that are viable. Wind and solar are both viable, although more expensive than fossil fuels, they would be competitive in some areas if you take the corporate welfare away from current energy producers.

The one fuel that is totally overlooked though is biodiesel. Biomass is also overlooked for energy, since this would DECREASE the dependence of the people on energy companies.

Germany will have at least 20% of it's electricity generated from solar panels by 2020. Spain already has 25% of it's power from wind, Brazil has become energy independent through the use of Ethanol, but now it is looking to biodiesel.

WHY? Why are they now looking at biodiesel?



Brazil's Biodiesel Rush

The world's top ethanol producer has designs on becoming No. 1 in biodiesel production, too.

Now the country's left-leaning administration is moving ahead with a program that will make a blend of biodiesel—made from vegetable oils and ethanol—mandatory in the national fuel supply by 2008, with the expressed purpose of creating sources of income for many small family farmers in the poor, drought-plagued northeastern region of the otherwise fertile agricultural powerhouse. Officials associated with the massive soy crushing industry in the center-south, however, say the project is doomed without the scale of production that only it can provide to meet future output goals, but so far the government has not come up with the necessary tax breaks to make biodiesel production from soybean oil an attractive investment.


http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=380

Gee, why can't we do that?