In article ,
aemeijers wrote:

wrote:
(snip)
Holland would not even exist without windpower. How do you think they
were pumping out the sea 200 years ago? I don't think they had nuclear
backup!


Exactly! Solar and wind will never catch on until people relearn that it
doesn't HAVE to involve electricity. There are some things which 100 YO
technology can still do at a very low cost, albeit not as convenient and
painless as flipping a switch and firing up a motor. But if you flip
that switch and nothing happens, having the old-tech way available sure
would be nice, wouldn't it? (Like that insulated water tank up on
stilts, kept full by your windmill, for keeping that stock and that
truck garden watered, etc.) People understand greenhouses, which long
predate gas or electric heating. But for some reason, they scoff at
adding a greenhouse wall on the sunny side of their house, with suitable
shades, vents and windows to keep it cool unless needed. But that same
greenhouse can provide a lot of free heat in winter, and keep you above
freezing in a well-insulated house on a sunny winter day, even if the
furnace is not working. Electricity is extremely convenient, easy to
transport long distances, and until recently, very cheap. But there are
alternatives for some things, if you have the space and patience to
harvest the free energy close to where you need it.

And god bless the early adopters of alternative energy, say I. Maybe
photovoltaics and wind turbines aren't as efficient as we'd like them to
be, but technology evolves. The Tesla Roadster isn't a very practical
car, but the Wright Flyer wasn't a very practical airplane, either.

I'd sure as hell rather see billions of dollars poured into research
into a post-petroleum world than to see those same billions poured into
the bull**** middle east conflicts in a vain attempt to secure oil
supplies for the U.S.