Vi,
I know there are no simple solutions.
If I were running the govt. right now I'd be working on a program to occupy foreclosed homes with renters who's rent would work toward down payments should they choose to buy in time. The key is getting rid of the glut at a time we actually need the housing, but don't have a vehicle to fill these homes and selling them all is totally depressing the market and construction.
If I were the President I'd stop adding fuel to the strategic reserve, and I'd consider releasing some of it to at least stabilize prices. Bush was just asked about it, and he won't back down.
We do need to look at NIMBY and change at least a bit. New refineries, oil drilling, and perhaps nuclear plants may be needed, but the emphasis really ought to be reducing energy usage. There's not a doubt in my mind that cars can go further on a gallon of gas if the petroleum interests permit the engineers to build the cars, or modify the engines. That's the tip of the iceberg. In the act of making the standard T-12 flourescents and incandescent bulbs illegal we can greatly cut our energy used in lighting. Appliances should all be equipped with energy saving motors, and the inefficient models eliminated, things like top loading washing machines that use far more power and water should no longer be sold. Insulation requirements should be higher in new construction to reduce both cooling and heating loads.
Of course we should also be working on solar, wind, etc. To my way of thinking there should be a Manhattan Project approach to Fusion, that's the answer to clean power for the future. Some say it cannot be sustained, it's simply too hot, perhaps they're correct, but if true, can it be pulsed and can we get more power out than it takes to make it happen. I believe it can but it can't be proven, or disproven if it's not being researched.
We need to become the worlds technological leader in reducing pollution, lowering CO2 emissions and raising the planets ability to deal with it. I believe this is a tremendous business opportunity that we've fought rather than embracing, it's time to embrace it.
In short, if we did what we could to clean the planet, lower our energy use, make our cars more efficient, etc we probably wouldn't need to build the new refineries, power plants, etc. that Bush is calling for. As for ANWR and drilling in other places, we cannot take a NIMBY approach to everything, finding ways to safely and cleanly develop oil production is something we also need to do at least until other alternative to petroleum are properly in place.
I'm a boater and know of at least a few cases where boats have been ruined by bio fuels because they virtually melted certain types of gaskets and even fuel tanks. I'm not saying they don't work, they do, but they don't work in vehicles that were not intended to use them and we need to be careful not to use them without letting consumers know they're being used. I don't know that older cars will have similar problems as boats, but they certainly could.
Gary |
