What do you think about with current News and Opinions?

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Something to understand what nurses think about re the Current News and their opinions!

12 hours ago, toomuchbaloney said:

I din't think we are "waging war" on the fossil fuel industry. There are no attacks, rather there's a reduction of favor.  That's not a war, it's a shift of interest accompanying an evolved understanding.

The President on his very first day in office, cancelled the Keystone XL project.  That's a pretty strong message, wouldn't you say?

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3 minutes ago, Beerman said:

There are lots of drawbacks.  You need a lot of roof space, and that space has to be facing the right direction.  Even if you have the required space, that many of them might not be aesthetically pleasing.  Like, on the front of your home, for example.  Or, you need space on your land for them. 

You also need to consider when your roof needs to be replaced if installing on an existing home.  Those panels will need to be removed.

It's expensive.  If you want to store power, expensive batteries are needed.  You're ROI will take awhile.  And, if you live where electricity is cheap, it's even less attractive.  

Then, there is the obvious.  You need sun.  We have more sun here than most places.  But places that don't have as much, or more northern areas where the sun doesn't get as high in the sky, especially in Winter, solar is less efficient. 

Wind has even more drawbacks.  Vast amounts of land are needed.  One study I read claimed just for the electricity need for the US, we would need the land area more than twice of California.  Someone here once told me they are cool looking.  Which, when I've driven through some areas in Kansas and California that have hundreds if them,  I guess I could see that.  However,  the people who live there and see them all the time, and their blinking red lights at night, don't agree it seems.  They also produce noise which is thought to cause some health problems.  I've read that in California of all places, the industry has given up on new projects because so many people hate the turbine.

EV's show some promise.   But, as of now still have some big drawbacks that most of us can't live with.

Even the biggest proponents of renewables are reluctant.  Who here has solar panels on their home, or drives a electric car?

I'm not sure what you mean by a "more stable and secure" power grid.

I believe that most of the drawbacks are overcome by investment and commitment to stepping away from fossil fuels as our primary energy sources.  

I mean that the nation has neglected that energy infrastructure and that creates instability in energy delivery and represents a national security risk for the country.  

https://www.npr.org/2016/08/22/490932307/aging-and-unstable-the-nations-electrical-grid-is-the-weakest-link

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From the 1950s to the '80s, significant power outages averaged fewer than five per year. But that's changed. In 2007, there were 76, in 2011, more than 300. And that may not be the grid's biggest problem, Bakke says. Renewable power sources have grown dramatically in recent years, but our aging electrical grid isn't capable of integrating them into our energy use, so much potential power is wasted.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/news-analysis-insecure-power-grid-leaves-us-vulnerable/story?id=48545468

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/power-hackers/

We are reminded every year that our electrical grid is old and finicky.  

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7 minutes ago, Beerman said:

The President on his very first day in office, cancelled the Keystone XL project.  That's a pretty strong message, wouldn't you say?

A strong message is not the same as a war.  Obama tried to kill that project but Trump resurrected it along with all of the legal headaches and environmental opposition that was attached to it.  The company abandoned the risky plan last Summer after Biden stood with public opinion and denied an essential permit.  

If that strong message counts as a war on petroleum products does that mean that the "legitimate political discourse" of January 6 could be considered a war on our constitution? 

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4 minutes ago, toomuchbaloney said:

A strong message is not the same as a war.  Obama tried to kill that project but Trump resurrected it along with all of the legal headaches and environmental opposition that was attached to it.  The company abandoned the risky plan last Summer after Biden stood with public opinion and denied an essential permit.  

If that strong message counts as a war on petroleum products does that mean that the "legitimate political discourse" of January 6 could be considered a war on our constitution? 

Well, fine.  A strong message was sent that the administration is not going to be friendly with the oil industry. Same effect, imo.  And, again, this was on his first day.

IDK that public opinion was clearly for killing the project.  https://morningconsult.com/2021/06/16/keystone-xl-pipeline-cancellation-poll/

 

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23 minutes ago, toomuchbaloney said:

I believe that most of the drawbacks are overcome by investment and commitment to stepping away from fossil fuels as our primary energy sources.  

I mean that the nation has neglected that energy infrastructure and that creates instability in energy delivery and represents a national security risk for the country.  

https://www.npr.org/2016/08/22/490932307/aging-and-unstable-the-nations-electrical-grid-is-the-weakest-link

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/news-analysis-insecure-power-grid-leaves-us-vulnerable/story?id=48545468

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/power-hackers/

We are reminded every year that our electrical grid is old and finicky.  

Of course.  Many of the drawbacks can be overcome by commitment.  But, that's the thing.  Very few of us, both citizens and political leaders on both sides of the political aisle, are committed.

As I said, I'm all for looking for alternatives.  But, in the meantime, most of us aren't willing to spend extra hours of our lives every week commuting on public transit.  We're not spending tens of thousands of dollars on solar,  we don't want a wind farm to stare at from our patios. 

I have a Ford F150, primarily to tow my relatively small camper.  The electric version coming out sounds awesome.  But I'm not camping at hotel parking lots along the I95 corridor where charging stations are plentiful (at least for the current demand).  And, to your point about our finicky electrical grid, I don't want to depend on it for my transportation needs.

So, we all still need our fossil fuels.  Let's not make things so difficult for ourselves. 

 

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43 minutes ago, Beerman said:

Well, fine.  A strong message was sent that the administration is not going to be friendly with the oil industry. Same effect, imo.  And, again, this was on his first day.

IDK that public opinion was clearly for killing the project.  https://morningconsult.com/2021/06/16/keystone-xl-pipeline-cancellation-poll/

 

A strong message was sent that the USA was not going to pipe the nastiest oil extracted in Canada through our country for refinement and export.  You may extrapolate an additional message but that's really just your belief.  

Public opinion was mixed but more people were opposed to the plan than were for it and many who were supportive didn't have all of the facts...they were swayed by "marketing" in their media.  How else do you explain why so many believed that the completed pipeline would provide thousands of American jobs?  

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29 minutes ago, Beerman said:

Of course.  Many of the drawbacks can be overcome by commitment.  But, that's the thing.  Very few of us, both citizens and political leaders on both sides of the political aisle, are committed.

As I said, I'm all for looking for alternatives.  But, in the meantime, most of us aren't willing to spend extra hours of our lives every week commuting on public transit.  We're not spending tens of thousands of dollars on solar,  we don't want a wind farm to stare at from our patios. 

I have a Ford F150, primarily to tow my relatively small camper.  The electric version coming out sounds awesome.  But I'm not camping at hotel parking lots along the I95 corridor where charging stations are plentiful (at least for the current demand).  And, to your point about our finicky electrical grid, I don't want to depend on it for my transportation needs.

So, we all still need our fossil fuels.  Let's not make things so difficult for ourselves. 

 

I guess you don't see how not investing in sustainable and renewable energy and a modern and defensible grid for the our present and future need is already making things difficult. 

Yes.  We've recently been reminded that many Americans are very intolerant to any personal inconvenience or sacrifice for a national cause. 

It's not clear to me why campers need electricity.  

Once upon a time there weren't any gas stations or interstate highways.  

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Specializes in CRNA, Finally retired.
14 hours ago, toomuchbaloney said:

Why do you think that solar energy options haven't expanded through the working class? Why do you think that the country hasn't invested in a more stable and secure power grid?

Which renewable energy source are you saying is not part of the answer?

I also use solar when I can. Lot's of Alaskans use solar in the Summer because there's just sooo much sun.  I heat with wood but I'm getting old to maintain a wood pile and when it's really cold here the wood smoke settles in the low areas. That's not ideal if a number of people all live in the same low area as the air quality suffers. We are more rustic and primitive campers.  The river is usually our fridge...or a permafrost fridge in an established camp.  

I don't think we are "waging war" on the fossil fuel industry. There are no attacks, rather there's a reduction of favor.  That's not a war, it's a shift of interest accompanying an evolved understanding.

I think that there could be a varied and sustainable renewable energy plan for this country.  We should invest in that. 

Amen.  The fossil fuel industries are free to invest in greener energy and they already are.  But European oil companies spend about 70% of their budgets on alternatives while our investments are much smaller.  We can do much better.  It took global warming for my friends in Orange County California to finally put solar cells on their roof because they needed to add air conditioning to the house but now they are almost energy independent.  There are no reasons not to require it in all new buildings in sun belts since the technology has evolved.  It's not a war on fossil fuels but it's just time for them to adapt to a new century and they have the money and the resources to do it.

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42 minutes ago, toomuchbaloney said:

I guess you don't see how not investing in sustainable and renewable energy and a modern and defensible grid for the our present and future need is already making things difficult. 

Yes.  We've recently been reminded that many Americans are very intolerant to any personal inconvenience or sacrifice for a national cause. 

It's not clear to me why campers need electricity.  

Once upon a time there weren't any gas stations or interstate highways.  

The inconveniences I mentioned aren't exactly minor.  I've noticed you haven't shared your experience with your solar powered home and electric vehicle.  How about mass transit?  Wouldn't you moving to a bigger city be best for the national cause?

I don't need electricity to camp.  I choose to have a small amount, and it usually comes from batteries.  That wasn't the point.  Even if I have nothing but a sleeping bag, if I'm in a EV, I still need to charge it to get home.

Fr il m what I gather, you like to go off the beaten path a bit in Alaska.  Am I wrong?  Do you do this in a gas or electric vehicle?

I've mentioned more than once I'm for other sources of energy.  But, they shouldnt be forced on us by way of it being more difficult to use fossil fuels.

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18 minutes ago, Beerman said:

The inconveniences I mentioned aren't exactly minor.  I've noticed you haven't shared your experience with your solar powered home and electric vehicle.  How about mass transit?  Wouldn't you moving to a bigger city be best for the national cause?

I don't need electricity to camp.  I choose to have a small amount, and it usually comes from batteries.  That wasn't the point.  Even if I have nothing but a sleeping bag, if I'm in a EV, I still need to charge it to get home.

Fr il m what I gather, you like to go off the beaten path a bit in Alaska.  Am I wrong?  Do you do this in a gas or electric vehicle?

I've mentioned more than once I'm for other sources of energy.  But, they shouldnt be forced on us by way of it being more difficult to use fossil fuels.

Why do I need to share personal experiences with alternative energy when we are talking about national strategies to reduce dependence upon an unsustainable and dirty energy source? 

Yes, I drive a gasoline powered truck or snowgo or  ATV or boat to get into the bush.  Sometimes I go off the beaten path by snow shoe or by bicycle or by dog team.  Again, what does that have to do with a national strategy for renewable energy sources? My favorite off grid camping site is less than 50 miles from my cabin.  My friends easily travels to and from Fairbanks to that campground in his electric/hybrid vehicle without issue. Since I'm a retiree on a fixed income I won't be investing in an electric vehicle without assistance from our government to make that affordable. 

Who is forcing alternative energy options on you or your neighbors and how is it more difficult for you to utilize fossil fuels today?

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11 minutes ago, subee said:

There are no reasons not to require it in all new buildings in sun belts since the technology has evolved. 

Yes, there is.  Cost and inefficiency.

Of all places, don't you think sunny liberal Southern California would already require it if it was possibile?

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2 minutes ago, Beerman said:

Yes, there is.  Cost and inefficiency.

Of all places, don't you think sunny liberal Southern California would already require it if it was possibile?

Why isn't it possible?

There is movement in a number of states and cities to require solar energy collection devices on new construction.  We start with baby steps.  

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