Inflation

[rufus]

Gasahol would make a good bridge to another fuel source. I favor natural gas. Do a little research on Westport Engines. It sure looks like a good investment to me.

Electric vehicles are great for limited travel. Places like Denmark and Israel are great places to use that type of vehicle. But the plains of the mid west and the mountains out west need something more lasting.

I thought about a Nissan Leaf for around town use. Maybe if the cost comes down a little or my income goes up a little more.

Wind energy could be a viable alternative if it was not bound up in regulations, environmental impact studies etc. The environmentalist have transformed us from a "Can Do" nation to a "Can Sue" nation.

Twice my family's ranch in Texas has been considered for a wind farm. Guess what, they need environmental impact studies. Someone was concerned about the noise from the wind mills. Supposedly, they make a whomp whomp noise. The ranch is in Texas, and I am in Arizona so I cannot hear the noise.

There is no one there to hear the noise. The ranch house is six miles away from the road, and nobody has lived there since 1950. There is nobody there except cattle and rattle snakes. I doubt they would care.

Rufus

 

[Matthew3590]

My family has recently put in a HUGE investment to help with the studies of Cold Fusion. If we ever find the means of nuclear fusion the energy "crisis" will be solved. It produces 0 air pollution and its waste product is helium. Which we could use for nuclear fission.

 

[chickened]

Most people are surprised to learn that the country from which the United States imports the greatest amount of oil is Canada. In recent years, the United States has imported approximately 200 million barrels of crude oil annually from Canada, the Middle East is second with 160 million.

Dunkopk you are right to the extent that the middle east has the most PROVEN oil reserves partly dueto the fact that alot of exploration is done there. If the U.S. and Canada wouild put that much effort into the North Slope and the rest of that area (it is much larger than the Middle East) you will find as much oil, the problem is the big oil companies do not really want that oil... right now but it is there according to the former guy that headed up the exploration and test wells, if I can find the article I will post it.

Global warming is a rackett, a strawman and even if it were true, human caused we would have to change more than our light bulbs to effect it. When I was in school 35 years ago it was the ice-age coming back and now they expect me to believe it is getting warmer, give me a break those who buy into that theory need a better understanding of the human heart and conscience and understand what some will do to get there wealth.

 

[Dunkopf]

I think the oil reserves in the Mid East are easier to prove because they are actually pools of oil that can be measured. Our oil is mostly shale and how much is mostly speculation.

Global warming is based on hard science and is a fact. The only people that disagree with it are scientist on the payroll of those that will lose the most if the US decides to try to do something about it. If we keep experiencing weather patterns similar to what we have been it will be hard for even non science people to believe it's not happening. What the cause is can be debated. The actual fact can't be debated.

The northern crossing can be navigated year round now. The worlds glaciers are melting and some have even melted all the way. Summers are hotter in coastal areas. Winters are worse because of the extra precipitation in the atmosphere.

I think our import figures are a little higher than you quoted. The US consumes 19.8 million barrels per day. That's a lot of oil.

 

[Wifezilla]

Global warming is based on hard science and is a fact.

 

[Dunkopf]

You're right wife. I should have done a bunch of cut and paste to prove my point.

 

[rufus]

I also doubt the validity of global warming. I suspect volcanic activity has a lot more to do with the weather change than mankind. Mount Pinatubo, Mount St Helens and El Chiconal spewed out massive amounts of gases and matter into the atmosphere. Prior to the announced hole in the ozone over the south pole, two volcanos in Antartica popped off big time.

Of course, if no one was there to witness the eruptions, they never happened for the media.

Russian scientist were predicting a new ice age. That may yet happen. Time will tell.

Rufus

 

[chickened]

Regardless of the figures more does come from Canada and South America than the Middle East.

Global warming may be occurring but since we have only a fragment of time to compare to I think the jury is still out on this one. In Iceland when they drill they hit tropical decomposed vegetation... explain that one. There is a theory from creation scientist that does a very good argument about global warming and cooling. We can debate all day if it is real but what I have read on your side of the argument is there is not much we can do except maybe buy Al Gore (scientist?) curly que light bulbs which I won't get into why they are a bad idea. They thought that the world was flat at one time and that was hard fact also until innovation proved it wrong to those that would not fund the expedition which was brought about by capitalism as they were looking for a water route to India.

Middle East oil is easier/cheaper to refine and our oil is in reserves and it is easier to get it abroad than deal with the NIMBY's here in the U.S.

A few degrees warmer annually over the next 500 years I think I can live with, liberal thinking and liberal policies that wreak of moral decay will destroy a civilization faster than any natural phenomenon just look to Africa the average age in a village in some parts is 15 due to STD diseases.

Shale is where water wells get the most GPM.
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[Q9]

Quote:
There's no denying that there's some degree of warming. I actually did a massive research paper on the subject a while back - it was infuriating to research, as a lot of the data from each side were so contradictory that I had to conclude that one side or another is lying or using faulty equipment - mostly in regard to ice caps and the like. Conclusion of paper? Warming is real, definitely. But nothing particularly unusual or catastrophic. If mankind is having an impact at all, it's fairly minimal, and the warming would happen anyway. And I assure you, environmentalists were a significant source of information.

If it DOES turn out to be dangerous, all we can do is prepare. Both sides have good science on their side, but I have to conclude that the alarmists are blowing it way out of proportion. I'm sure their motives are fine, but they could really stand to tone down the end-of-the-world rhetoric.

Honestly, I think that if we must focus attention on environmental problems, it should mostly be on addressing desertification and similar problems that we can actually have an impact on.

 

[Wifezilla]

I think that giant glowing orb in the sky might have a lot more to do with global temperatures than whether or not I drive an SUV.