High oil prices are the "Achillies heel" of our economy... (debt, buying)

[texdav]

ell lo at how oil prices have dropped ;do yu really thni thsi economic move happening is good?It just shows that the markets decide on deamnd and then drop or rise.Like any other we see now.

[Themanwithnoname]

History Of 'New Energy' Invention Suppression Cases

I don't know the dude/site, Just googled for some statistics.

It's been something I've noticed through the years happening here and there. Read about it being larger also.

Can't really blame them, it's good business. Just bad for us and bad for the environment.

[M3 Mitch]

Originally Posted by Themanwithnoname

History Of 'New Energy' Invention Suppression Cases

I don't know the dude/site, Just googled for some statistics.

It's been something I've noticed through the years happening here and there. Read about it being larger also.

Can't really blame them, it's good business. Just bad for us and bad for the environment.

Most of the "inventions" quoted on that site - particularly the "Joe cell" - sound like nonsense to me.

The actual hell of it is, that even at $4 per gallon, at least for me in my cash bought fully depreciated and self-maintained Scirocco, getting 36 to 38 MPG, a gasoline powered car is damn hard to beat in terms of practicality, convenience, and economy.

It is possible to run a car on volatile gasses driven off from wood, this has been done by Mother Earth News fairly recently, and was done in Germany in the 40's when petroleum was very hard to come by...it can be done but it's more work than even making minimum wage and just buying commercial gasoline.

Things that take over their respective markets, like cars displacing horses, Diesel locomotives replacing steam, and jet airliners replacing recip driven props - are not conspiracies, they are just better ways to do the job.

Something that I do wonder why it's not being pushed harder here in the US is the Fischer-Tropf process of making synthetic petroleum from coal, there are all the environmental problems of mining the coal of course, and the process does make some by-products that no specific use springs to mind immediately, but it could provide at least some possibility of energy independence for the US.

[roadrat]

Personally I think Nuclear power is the way to go, Here in the north we could use electric heat instead of oil, this would save hundreds of million barrels of oil. We need to start building new modern plants with spent rod processing plants in key locations and reopen Yuca mountain.
America is going to have to learn to live with less and less oil or be prepared to fight worldwar 3 to keep and hold onto the worlds diminishing supply.
here are some links to pocket plants.
Backyard reactors? Firms shrink the nukes. - CSMonitor.com
BNF helps build 'pocket' reactor in South Africa - Telegraph


bill

[Philip T]

Originally Posted by roadrat

Personally I think Nuclear power is the way to go, Here in the north we could use electric heat instead of oil, this would save hundreds of million barrels of oil. We need to start building new modern plants with spent rod processing plants in key locations and reopen Yuca mountain.
America is going to have to learn to live with less and less oil or be prepared to fight worldwar 3 to keep and hold onto the worlds diminishing supply.
here are some links to pocket plants.
Backyard reactors? Firms shrink the nukes. - CSMonitor.com
BNF helps build 'pocket' reactor in South Africa - Telegraph


bill

Well, to start with, we agree that burning Oil for heat probably is not such a bright idea at this point.

But did you notice the dates on those stories?

First was 2008 -- to be done by . . . 2012? Nukes from Japan, of all places . . . considering.

How is that going?

Second was 2000 -- 11 years ago. How is that going?

Since then, and after watching the Fukey Nukey in Japan -- Most of US and a lot of the world have figured out that planning on crapping on "someone else" -- likely our kids or grandchildren -- in the future to clean up our mess aint such a good idea.

Even if just for self-interest, we might want the kids alive and happy to pay our Social Security or wipe our butts in the old age home, yunno.

Besides -- Lewiston? Maine? You could have Wind coming out your ears.

Wind Energy Resource Atlas of the United States

Yunno, it would be cheaper, cleaner and faster for the rest of US to come up and "super insulate" your housing, and put in Wind than it would be put in Nukes and dump the mess on the rest of US.

[claycassden]

The U.S. is already participating towards this new developmental project underway in France: ITER - the way to new energy

Fusion Energy is the future (also see the 2009 film Moon set in the future when the world is powered by fusion energy)

"Fusion power is believed to have significant safety advantages over current power stations based on nuclear fission. Fusion only takes place under very limited and controlled circumstances (by comparison fission, including catastrophic failure, only requires that there is sufficient fuel within a small enough space). For this reason, a failure of precise control or cessation of fueling quickly shuts down fusion power reactions. There is no possibility of runaway heat build-up or large-scale release of radioactivity, little or no atmospheric pollution, the power source comprises light elements in small quantities which are easily obtained and largely harmless to life, the waste products are short-lived in terms of radioactivity, and there is little overlap with nuclear weapons technology."

[Three Wolves In Snow]

Originally Posted by Philip T

...grid-powered roadway system...

I really liked your post. You got humor.

I have not heard of this grid powered roadway system...would you care to elaborate how it works, in laymen's terms? What would it mean for, say, me, from the time I go to buy the car to the time I get out of the car after driving about 1000 miles?

What would I, the consumer of this grid powered roadway system, be experiencing?

By this I mean, what are your estimates on car prices?

What are the estimates on "fueling" this car and how many "miles per gallon" would I get?

How much would it cost me to "refuel" the car?

Would these cars be death traps? I have never understood the catchiness of those Mini Coopers. Ok, sure, perhaps they save on fuel but you get in to ONE car accident, you're kinda wiped out. Don't look much safer than a sardine tin can, to me.

What about maintenance?

And would we have to reteach all the mechanics out there?

Electric...my first thought was California brown outs...does that even come in to play with grid powered roadway systems? If there is a hurricane or earthquake...do you rely solely on back up generators and if so, what fuels the backup generators?

These are real questions because I really do not know what this is you speak of but am interested in hearing more.

[Mistertee]

Not only is it a problem for our economy, it puts us in a weak position when we deal with the problems in the Middle East. The only solution is energy independence. We need to follow Brazils lead and Americans need to adjust to the new realities. Drive smaller, slower cars. Convert our fuel completely to solar, electric, hybrid, hydrogen, etc and improve the tech as we go along. IF we remain focused and start such a step in this country , the rest of the world will follow. We will put ourselves in a position to sell our tech to other nations. Thin about that?

[Philip T]

Originally Posted by Mistertee

Not only is it a problem for our economy, it puts us in a weak position when we deal with the problems in the Middle East. The only solution is energy independence. We need to follow Brazils lead and Americans need to adjust to the new realities. Drive smaller, slower cars. Convert our fuel completely to solar, electric, hybrid, hydrogen, etc and improve the tech as we go along. IF we remain focused and start such a step in this country , the rest of the world will follow. We will put ourselves in a position to sell our tech to other nations. Thin about that?

You got it, Mistertee.

In doing so, we could lead the world off Oil.

A good leader leads from the front, and by example.

When was the last time you seen THAT in America?

(ps, for some candy for the motor-heads -- electric does not have to be slower -- electric can go MUCH faster than an internal combustion engine).

[HeyHolliday!]

China and India will force the USA to change its oil addiction. Another billion drivers on the road will definitely up the price of gas.

However I see oil being the main fuel for our automobiles for a long time. Its easy to produce and its relatively cheap compared to other fuel sources.

In Hawaii, we have the highest gas prices in the USA when compared to other states and one trend I've noticed is more people driving mopeds, motorcycles, and smaller Japanese vehicles. You think with gas being in between $4 to $8(depending on what island your on) people would be up in arms but gas prices is a topic I've never even heard from locals.

People adjust according to the price, so if you want European style transportation then you better expect European gas prices.