William Sommerwerck wrote:


These are the same brain surgeons that want you to buy electric cars and
plug them into your garage every night. And how many 50" TV's would it
take to use the same energy as charging your electric car?
Yet there is plenty of energy for that.

You're not thinking this through. Where does the energy to power the car --
or an electric power plant -- come from?


Well valid question. Supposedly, there is a shortage of power in
California. So adding a million electric cars is going to do what?
Require building new power plants. I think they more or less tapped
out hydro capacity. So that leaves nuclear and coal as the only
feasible alternatives. It would take 20 years to get a new nuke
plant built (if ever). So that leaves coal. With all the new
environmental regs on coal plants, that leaves tons of toxic fly ash
to be disposed of. Where is that all going to go? There was a big
release of fly ash in Tennessee that is still an environmental
nightmare. Its an environmental shell game of shifting blame and who
has to pay on any given day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingsto...h_slurry_spill
http://www.wind-watch.org/news/2009/...wind-turbines/


The Bio fuels industry is in shambles in some parts of the country due
to dropping oil prices. many plants were abandoned or sit half
completed. Wind power and solar are feel good alternatives, but
realistically are supplemental sources of power. It won't be long until
the "no cell phone tower in my back yard" group moves on to wind mills.

http://209.85.229.132/search?q=cache....barchart.com/
ethanol/archive/1232044724CME-Weekly-Ethanol-12-Jan-2009.pdf+ethanal+plant
+shut+down+nebraska&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&clien t=firefox-a

Our local public owned utility in Nebraska is asking for a 5% or so
increase in rates next year. The reason? they did not sell enough power
last year. So, you ask the public to conserve, they do, then they charge
you more. Go figure.

http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/69798352.html

All of the materials moving through the US cost more to ship now due to
the new class 8 truck emission laws. While i don't think some
improvement was out of line, i think it has gone beyond that. Even
farm tractors and train locomotives are liable now too.
Between he cost of the new low sulpher diesel and the lower mileage
of the newer class 8 trucks, it was a double hit to the increase in
costs of transporting goods



bob