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Sadly, justsouno, very true.
Which is one reason why I am all for TERM LIMITS! Let them go back to their REAL jobs at home before their brains are re-wired into thinking they can be career politicians!!!
posted by
JanesOpinion
on February 13, 2006 at 5:51 PM
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Jane's there isn't a politician who won't put his winning ajenda before
any issue at all. If the country complains about the oil prices, not getting enought easily enough and are not too interested in converting several alternatives into fuel, fine with the politicians. They only want their seat back. Sad, sad situation.
posted by
Justi
on February 13, 2006 at 1:51 PM
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Amen Corbin, we could live with so much less.
Am I not right in thinking that the world's second richest man, Warren Buffett, lives in the same home that he has owned for decades, and lives relatively very simply?? I could be wrong but yes, buying more will not satisfy, it will just make us lust for ever more toys and trinkets.
I just don't think it would be that difficult to integrate some of these changes into American life -- windmills and such. If everyone used them, the price would drop dramatically.
And I am all for the newer and tons safer nuclear technology being developed. I believe its time has definitely come!
As always, thanks for stopping by and sharing your opinion!
posted by
JanesOpinion
on February 11, 2006 at 11:10 AM
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Janes....
An excellent post...
All politicians in this country...ALL.....have been giving lip service to these problems for decades....while talking out of the other side of their collective mouth regarding "Environmental" issues.
Californians bemoan their high energy costs and stop the use of windmills because of a few dead birds.......Windmills off of the North Atlantic coast is stopped because it might spoil the view of a few rich families.......even though they'll be so far out you can't see them.......
France gets 95% of their electricity from Nuclear power...without any problems, yet we brought the entire industry to a screeching halt over one accident? Today's technology is far safer that that of the 70's......
But the American people are to blame, too....the SUV's and 4x4 Pickups guzzle way more gas than we need to be using........GM and the other automakers wouldn't be making them....if we weren't purchasing them.
The addiction to oil is a part of our addiction to the bigger, better, more expensive things in life........when we could actually live with much less.....
posted by
Corbin_Dallas
on February 11, 2006 at 7:02 AM
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Omni,
Your comment hit the nail on the head. We are almost all guilty of doing things such as that. My family uses solar energy for a variety of things both at home and on our farm. We are not set up to run the big energy guzzling applicances like the air conditioners and such. But we do our part to try and make it better for the planet. We use the solar power for some of the smaller electrical stuff we use. We save a little energy from fossil fuels that way.
posted by
sarooster
on February 11, 2006 at 6:49 AM
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Omni,
thanks for visiting. And yes, actually, I do plan my errands in such a way to save on gas. I group them all into one trip and/or run my errands on my way home from work. And in the summer, when the weather is nice, I ride my bike to the store or the farmer's market. But sadly, I do have to commute a ways to work which still keeps me most reliant on oil.
Thanks for stopping and commenting!
posted by
JanesOpinion
on February 10, 2006 at 8:15 PM
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Thanks Offbeats, and hey! Enjoy your weekend at home!!
posted by
JanesOpinion
on February 10, 2006 at 8:13 PM
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And sarooster, I appreciate YOUR point!
I realize that a company can make obscene gross profits, but their net is far less. Very important to keep in mind. But still, I wish this country was more open to alternative energy. I think we could capitalize on it and boost profits while helping our economy. (oops, the Republican coming out in me!)
posted by
JanesOpinion
on February 10, 2006 at 8:13 PM
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Thanks Doc.
posted by
JanesOpinion
on February 10, 2006 at 8:11 PM
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Will it ever change? Not anytime soon
The only way it will change is when technology builds devices that can be powered by something else of when science really comes up with a viable alternative energy source.
It's not that people don't want to save oil - they do. They really do. They just don't want it to interfere with their life style. The citizens of the US for the most part like to put the responsibility on everyone else to solve their problems.
There are two sets of words that seem to get used interchangeably when in reality they have very distinct meanings. The first set is NEED and WANT. Most people don't NEED to drive as much as they do.
Do you plan your errand trips so that you have a route that makes sense? Do you make a special trip to the grocery store for one item that really could wait until tomorrow? Do you and your family ever walk anywhere?
I know a lot of people actually do those things but so many many more us will fire up the SUV that gets 3 gallons per mile and drive 3 blocks to the store for one item.
posted by
Omni
on February 10, 2006 at 7:40 PM
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Janes
This is a good post. You have brought to the surface many interesting points.
Good reading and food for thought!
posted by
Offy
on February 10, 2006 at 7:30 PM
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Janes, you make a good point or points.
I always challenge anyone who makes the case for profits using aggregate numbers to check out just what percentage of profit companies such as Exxon make. You might be surprised. They make vast sums of revenue and vast sums of profit. But the percentage of profit is not nearly as high for some of these energy companies as others. I had a guy attack me verbally at my work because of this. My wife works for a large energy company. They made a 3.8% profit. It was still a large amount of money. I pointed out to this guy who attacked me that the bank he uses posted a profit of 22.8%. Now, who's gouging the people.
We are dependent on oil and that is not going to change easily. We would need massive investment in alternative forms of energy to even make a dent in our energy consumption. That would require billions of dollars in tax incentives to the large energy companies. They surely won't do it on their own.
At any rate, it was a good post and I enjoyed reading it.
posted by
sarooster
on February 10, 2006 at 7:26 PM
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Good, Thought Provoking Post
posted by
Dr_JPT
on February 10, 2006 at 7:22 PM
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