tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post50005375274457497..comments2023-10-27T03:41:13.171-07:00Comments on Warning Signs: Your Insane U.S. Energy DepartmentAlan Carubahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10901162110385985193noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-13392913649473891382010-09-28T09:18:09.997-07:002010-09-28T09:18:09.997-07:00People like Mike just keep trying to believe the e...People like Mike just keep trying to believe the electric vehicle fantasy, but it's just that ... a fantasy. For one thing, as Desertrat points out, it will take an act of God to develop a battery that can power the larger vehicles without weighing more than the payload. Maybe it will happen SOME day, but that day is not today, and we need a solution TODAY. In fact, the same thing is essentially true for passenger vehicles. The batteries that would allow us to drive our passenger vehicles the way we do today just don't exist. <br /><br />Short commutes and trips to the store in warm weather? Great .... Driving the family car 100 miles to Grandma's house in the winter? Not happening any time soon ...<br /><br />And how many people are going to be able to afford to own BOTH types of cars? If electric cars were $2000, maybe, but not when they're costing MORE than gasoline powered cars....<br /><br />Secondly, the electric vehicle proponents just keep forgetting the BIGGEST problem. Where is all this energy going to come from to CHARGE them? They just don't understand the MASSIVE amount of energy we use to move everybody, and everything around every day. If we went electric, our entire grid would have to be replaced, and that includes building millions of killowatt hours of additional generation capacity. If everyone comes home at dinner time and plugs their car in, the peak demand would be astronomical.<br /><br />It's a nice idea, and one that may play a part in our energy picture some day, much like electric golf carts replaced the gas powered ones at many golf courses. But I predict we will NEVER be able to eliminate our need for petroleum powered vehicles until they can perfect fuel cells or something better ... like fusion power maybe?<br /><br />Meanwhile, it would behoove us to face REALITY and deal with it, instead of wasting time and energy chasing a flawed technology that won't solve the basic problem. We're doing the same thing with CF light bulbs ... and it's ridiculous.Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10903448394061019454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-4122894112577234682010-09-28T07:26:38.948-07:002010-09-28T07:26:38.948-07:00Mike, electric cars are fine as basic commuter tra...Mike, electric cars are fine as basic commuter transportation. But nobody talks about things like farm tractors or work-truck payloads.<br /><br />E.g., right now a guy can carry a half-ton of gear in a pickup as work tools or equipment. What do you wind up with as a vehicle if the battery pack is near a half-ton in order to provide range and power?<br /><br />Then there's rail and semi-tractor haulage over long distances. For semis, it would not be economic for them to stop every couple of hours and spend several hours recharging.<br /><br />And one coal-fired plant equals a thousand wind units per coal unit. It would require an additional 40,000 wind units in Texas to replace existing coal-fired units. <br /><br />Looking at the demand quantity for fossil fuels, these alternative energy ideas totally fail as replacement. Augmentation? Yeah, partially...Desertrathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09860257698839313423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-40526506313194946252010-09-27T23:02:53.613-07:002010-09-27T23:02:53.613-07:00I agree the DOE (and most of the federal agencies)...I agree the DOE (and most of the federal agencies) needs to be abolished. If Obama were serious about clean, U.S.-produced energy he could end all the subsidies to coal, oil, solar, wind, etc. and instead vow that within say a 15 year period, the federal government would buy only clean, renewable, made in the U.S. energy. The buying power of the feds would lead to huge private research as companies found ways to sell energy as cheap as possible to the government (lest their competitors sell cheaper). <br /><br />Personally, I don't care whether it is U.S. made; I would just like less pollution. <br /><br />Nevertheless, Shai Agassi (look him up) is going to get our vehicles off oil since he found a way to make electric cars cheaper to run/operate than gas/diesel. The internal combustion engine will go away faster than any of us imagine.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04647390526690726844noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-60590066756678551602010-09-27T16:32:56.471-07:002010-09-27T16:32:56.471-07:00@Rich: Thank you for the link. Lots of good feedba...@Rich: Thank you for the link. Lots of good feedback on this commentary.Alan Carubahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10901162110385985193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-56670576115903711872010-09-27T16:25:35.007-07:002010-09-27T16:25:35.007-07:00Good job! I will be linking it on Friday.
You ...Good job! I will be linking it on Friday. <br /><br />You outline the whole problem with the DOE in a few short paragraphs. The fact that it was created by Jimmy is reason enough to question its value. I love the net over Chu comment. The man is completely certifiable; which means he fits in perfectly with this group. <br /><br />Now we need to figure out how much we would save if we eliminated the 16th amendment, which would eliminate the IRS (which I am told is the only thing that is paid for by the nation's withholding tax) pass a Value Added Tax, Eliminate the Commerce Department, the Department of Education and a seriously reduce the legislative authority of a bunch of agencies. <br /><br />It has been estimated by the SBA that the current cost of federal regulations to this nation is 1.76 trillion dollars. Does anyone really believe that all of these regulations are really necessary? Is there anyone who doesn't believe that we could cut them in half and save 880 billion dollars a year? That means in 15 years we would be able to pay off the entire national debt of 13 trillion and have some left over. And that is just half. How much more is it when you add state, county and city rules and regulations?Rich Kozlovichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13745960671409518147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-90942307072157455602010-09-27T10:06:20.447-07:002010-09-27T10:06:20.447-07:00Do away with ALL Czars and at least 3/4 of ALL gov...Do away with ALL Czars and at least 3/4 of ALL government agencies and the USA is back to GOOD, Obama is out of a job, but I fail to see that as a *bad* thing..TexasFredhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06412925337032937983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-56708460340685652922010-09-26T13:09:25.881-07:002010-09-26T13:09:25.881-07:00The DOE has let us down on three of the most impor...The DOE has let us down on three of the most important tasks they were charged with ... energy research, production of domestic energy, and nuclear waste disposal, all of which SHOULD have gone hand-in-hand. It's absolutely OUTRAGEOUS that after all these years, we don't lead the world in the production of clean, abundant energy. Had that same amount of money been made available to the private sector, with sizable incentives and rewards for measurable advances and innovation, our energy problems would have been solved long ago. Perhaps we haven't been patient enough. Those new toasters and washing machines may just do the trick ...<br /><br />Meanwhile, we handing our entire health care system over to a similar bunch of idiots. I hope I don't get sick anytime in the near future ....Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10903448394061019454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196554259323465442.post-18234409065796114762010-09-26T08:30:49.250-07:002010-09-26T08:30:49.250-07:00Pick your federal agency: The apparent purpose, b...Pick your federal agency: The apparent purpose, based on results, is to degrade the quality of whatever is given to their charge. (I'll exclude much of the EPA's effort.)<br /><br />Education? Energy? Health? Interior? Agriculture?<br /><br />"Where's the beef?", as the ad said.<br /><br />I note that incompetent bosses tend to appoint incompetent deputies. Power without any common sense or knowledge of reality.Desertrathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09860257698839313423noreply@blogger.com