Global warming--solutions.

[Leo]

work from home,saves commute and you can listen to youre music as loud as you wanT

[MountainDon]

I've had people tell me that their guns protected them--when asked if they carried them--loaded with nice fresh ammunition, safety off, at all times, they looked at me as if I had rocks in my head for suggesting such a thing.  

Carrying an unloaded gun is worse than no gun. That just doesn't make sense to me. And guns don't protect people; a thinking person behind the gun protects themselves. To me a revolver, loaded, is better than a loaded, safety on, pistol. People who "accidentally" shoot themselves or a friend most often have a pistol they think is empty. Revolver is easier to empty and check and harder to accidentally discharge. As for weight my titanium .45 revlver is lighter than most pistols.

NM has had a carry permit system in effect for a few years now. The training classes are very well run. No one with a carry permit has had it revoked for bad behavior. However I'm aware of two local cases where the presence of a person with a permitted handgun saved two other folks from the serious beating they were receiving being continued. In one case the attacker turned his attack to the gun owner and was shot dead; no charges filed. In the other the perpetrator ran off. No shots fired.

I hope I'm never in the position of being attacked (again). I do like having the choice to own and carry a handgun or long gun if I so decide.

I don't walk around with my revolver on my person at all times though. That's for when I'm out in the boonies (or heading to the boonies) 4-wheeling, hiking, exploring in lonely places. On those occasions I also usually have a lever action rifle and/or a pump shotgun in plain view in the Cherokee, although they are secreted away when the vehicle is left alone.

In the event that my home was ever the target of an invasion it would probably come as too big a surprise and the double barrel shotgun would probably stay in it's designated spot. That said tho' I recall two more cases where potential intruders were scared off by local firearm wielding home owners in the last couple years.

Being that this is a part of the wild west referred to by Glenn, it's also legal to carry a non-concealed handgun on one's person. Of course strolling down the street with a holstered gun on your belt would be an open invitation for a visit from every passing policeman.

[MountainDon]

...it is illegal not to vote in any election- State, Federal or Local Government

I heard of this somewhere and was amazed and puzzled and frightened at the same time. The thought of some of the apathetic #$@^&% voting on issues that concern me greatly is most unconcerting.

Low turnout is a problem in some elections, especially those at the more local levels. Ther last school board election here had about a 13% turnout. No waiting in poll lines tho'    Only the zealots on one side or the other turn out, plus the retired and bored. So much for representative government. But still better than some of the alternate government styles.

[fourx]

It produces a very narrow range of political options, Don, and a widespread distaste and apathy about almost every aspect of the political process. The elites hog the available media exposure and the mortgage belt is left wondering what possible use casting their vote can be.

[MountainDon]

... left wondering what possible use casting their vote can be.

The same thing can be said here... about whether or not it matters if you vote or not. Sometimes you have to choose between the lesser of two perceived evils. But, if feel, if you care, you should try to make a difference otherwise your right to complain is diminished.

[Leo]

i am presently living in a 1886 mansion all hardare still works will post here tomorrow ,.cars recieve muck attention but most houses are gas guzzlers including this one.600 a month to freeze?

[Amanda_931]

In a real situation carrying an unloaded gun is, of course, worthless.  At the time I was thinking of the unloaded gun on the top shelf of the closet to keep it out of the reach of the three-year-old.  

We've had crazy weather--Easter weekend we had several days of hard frost (18F)--killed most annuals we had put in--and some of the real farmers had a thousand tomato plants in the ground  Still don't know if some of the already leafed-out perennials will survive.   I think my asparagus has had it.  No plums, no cherries at my place, no apples, pears, or peaches, anywhere else.  Probably not strawberries either.

And the question is how much of the deciduous forest is going to survive, especially if we have a really dry summer.  Heartbreaking.

And this morning there were big wet snow flakes that melted as soon as they hit the ground.

Sometimes it's instructive to find out exactly how the people back in the 1880's used their houses in the winter (or summer in the south)  Most of the "living" in one room, serious comforters on the beds???

[MountainDon]

.  At the time I was thinking of the unloaded gun on the top shelf of the closet to keep it out of the reach of the three-year-old.  

Oh of course... I never thought od it that way.     A gun safe is marginally a little better... can be left loaded but locked up; still not real easy to get to tho'

Nutty weather here too. 2 weeks ago it was wonderful warm. I got a bunch of ext trim repainted. Snowflakes Thurs night / Fri AM, enough to leave a trace all over the ground and roofs. Today sunny again but only mid 60's; the solar's blowing warm air inside and the silicone's spinnuing the power meter backwards.  

Back when I was a youngster Mom would haul out the big fluffy comforters every fall. We use one, but it's polyfiber instead of down.

I had to laugh at this mornings paper. Article was about local people downsizing their homes when their family grows up and moves out. Downsized to 1700 - 1800 sq ft (from 2500+). They are super insulated tho, and 2 of the 3 examples had 3 Kw photovoltaic roof top grid-tie arrays. So that's something. (electric/gas bill for 2006 on one home was $400 net bill)

[fourx]

I shudder to think just how much the power bills are for the trendy McMansions in the newer areas of aussie cities- huge, with ducted aircon as standard, almost no eaves and black tiled roofs.
In a hot climate, this kind of design is not only expensive, it is just plain dumb.

[MountainDon]

It is the reefer A/C that is my biggest power drain. Thankfully it's seasonal; June, July, Aug.

Regarding black roofs...  A couple years ago one of my friends who works at Sandia Labs did an interesting experiment. He had opted for a white shingle roof on his home. Right next door was a black shingled roof. Using some of the labs expensive equipment they measured the surface temp of the roof and the air temp in the attic. Too bad I don't recall the exact numbers, but whereas the surface temp of the black roof was considerably higher than the white surface, the air temp in the white roofed attic was only something like 4 - 6 degrees F higher than the black attic. Both attics were well vented with large gable end vents, plus roof top "hats" with continuous soffit vents.

It was interesting that the attic temp wasn't all that much higher under the black. The secret is to vent, and vent well. I still won't go into my attic in the summer after 9 AM tho'.

[Amanda_931]

You could get people to pay you for using it as a sauna, with a slide down into a plastic wading pool or stock pond.



My house in Nashville had some fiberglass insulation up there, though.  Much nicer after it got a fan with a thermostat on it.

(Unless we go with the very expensive chiller type AC units, we get the refrigeration ones)

[glenn-k]

This guy has several solutions including making his own air and power.

Surprising how green some people try to be -or is it yellow?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=449459&in_page_id=1811

[glenn-k]

I shudder to think just how much the power bills are for the trendy McMansions in the newer areas of aussie cities- huge, with ducted aircon as standard, almost no eaves and black tiled roofs.
In a hot climate, this kind of design is not only expensive, it is just plain dumb.

How about Al and his inconvenient truth :-?

http://www.tennesseepolicy.org/main/article.php?article_id=367

[fourx]

 ..you have to laugh at the sheer two-faced nonsense spouted by some of these doomsayers.

Sick And Tired Of Being Lectured By Global Warming Hypocrites
Private jet flying, CO2 belching, bags made by slaves in China transported thousands of miles buying, bulb banning, Al Gore worshipping morons wagging their finger at me when I don't even drive a car get under my skin

Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Friday, April 27, 2007


I've had enough of it.

Ninnying fatuous self-important morons who demand that everyone else make sacrifices in the name of mother earth while they zoom around in CO2 belching private jets and lavish themselves in heated swimming pools are hypocrites but perhaps we should be grateful that their frothing absurdities are causing the man-made global warming cult to lose whatever credibility it has left.

Last week, singer Sheryl Crow demanded that we all use one square of toilet paper per bathroom visit to help save the planet. Shortly after these ridiculous comments, the Smoking Gun website uncovered documents showing Crow's touring requirements, which include three tractor trailers, four buses and six cars. I don't even drive a car, so to be lectured about what I can and can't do after I take a shit is a bit rich coming from someone whose "carbon footprint" is bigger than King Kong's treads.

At the British premiere of his movie Wild Hogs, actor John Travolta urged everyone to "do their bit" to fight global warming, warning that "We have to think about alternative methods of fuel."

I fly commercial perhaps once every two years for a brief holiday. Travolta has five private jets parked in his runway (pictured above), has produced an estimated 800 tons of carbon emissions, 100 times more than the average person in the last year, is a "serving ambassador" for the Australian airline Qantas and named his son Jett as a tribute to his love of flying. So when Travolta lectures me about "doing my bit" forgive me for taking it with a pinch of salt.

Al Gore is the messiah for the climate change fanatics and his error-strewn polemic An Inconvenient Truth, has been dispatched to every British school on orders of the Blair government, so that kids may be forcefully brainwashed into accepting that man-made global warming is as much a reality as the surveillance cameras, metal detectors and biometric scanning for lunches that they have to endure as part of their "education."

Gore's 20 room private mansion uses 20 times the national U.S. average of gas and electricity, as Gore lavishes himself in his heated swimming pool while poor people and the middle class await the onslaught of carbon taxes to eviscerate any disposable income they have left.

Gore is behind the spectacle of the Live-8 style Live Earth concerts that will take place in numerous cities around the world on July 7 to raise awareness about climate change. The performers who will be showcased at these concerts include people like Madonna, who owns at least 6 gas-guzzling cars including a Mercedes Maybach, two Range Rovers, Audi A8s and a Mini Cooper S.

According to a report, last year "Madonna flew as many as 100 technicians, dancers, backing singers, managers and family members on a 56-date world tour in private jets and commercial airliners." The singer's Confessions tour produced 440 tonnes of CO2 in four months of last year.

Other acts, including rock group Red Hot Chili Peppers, all use private jets yet are set to throw their stardom behind an effort to propagandize the notion that we are producing too many carbon emissions.

This will all be eagerly lapped up by the majority of Britons, who are zealously supportive of government programs that punish people who don't jump on the climate bandwagon. Fines for putting rubbish in the wrong colored trash can are now commonplace, as state spies roam around leafy suburbs searching through people's bins for evidence of dastardly "enviro-crimes" while tiny cameras are placed inside bean cans to catch potential villains.

The exact level of idiocy these morons embrace was underscored perfectly yesterday when throngs of them queued up outside a London supermarket from 3am to buy "eco-friendly" bags that have become the latest must-have fashion item and another ego trinket for them to grandstand and revel in the pomp that they are saving Mother Earth.

In reality, the bags were made by slaves in China and transported thousands of miles by CO2 belching jet planes. But let's not concern ourselves about that - as long as we can feel good about ourselves while wagging our finger in judgment at anyone who uses those dirty old plastic bags that's all that matters.
These kind of simpletons are also behind the move to completely criminalize the ownership of incandescent light bulbs, despite the fact that their precious "energy saving light bulbs" are loaded with toxic waste that's already banned under EU regulations. They also contain deadly Mercury which will end up in our land fills and our water supply once use of the new CFL bulbs becomes mandatory.

If you still believe in the notion of man-made global warming, then you should be very concerned about the fact that the leading proponents of the theory are all giant hypocrites espousing outlandish and radical measures to combat climate change while fearmongering about doomsday scenarios that will befall us unless we all drastically reduce our carbon footprints.

[benevolance]

The only solace we can hope for is that someone who is a billionaire like Some of these actors or big time musicians... Is that they use their wealth to fight climate change...

Singers and actors have private jets and tour buses...Tractor trailers to go on tour across america...

If a signifigant part of their earnings are used to  fund research into clean technologies... I would be okay with that....

If a decent chunk of their wealth went to planting trees to remove their carbon footprints and to remove the footprints of thousands of others I am okay with that as well

I still say trees are the best way to save the earth....We are still a long way off from eliminating fossil fuels being used to generate electricity.

Cars burn clean now so smog will go away worldwide eventually...But coal will be the worlds number one fuel for a long time as there is enough coal to power the world for 400 years.

Stabilization of the world's population...And increasing the percentage of the planet that is covered in forests will reduce the carbon dioxide levels...

So that when cleaner tech is available we will see noticeable improvements...

Until then through forests will absorb and convert the excess carbon into Oxygen.

Increasing the forest cover of the earth by even 5% would make a massive impact on carbon levels in the atmosphere.

We will eventually be able to make synthetic fuels out of waste like Sewage, pig manure, compost...So recycling will not only reduce landfills it will create cleaner fuels for us to burn...

We are already seeing small improvements in the way we recycle these wastes into useable fuels...

I have read several articles about how the sky will fall when peak oil is a distant memory in the rear view mirror....economies will collapse people will lose their jobs their homes...everything will crumble...

I do not believe the naysayers....All the tech that the government has been sitting on...The ingenuity of humanity...We will fufill our petroleum needs from our wastes...And truly start to harness the power of the sun for electricity. The world will change as oil runs out and the climate gets warmer...But oil will start to run out...And our carbon emissions will start to drop dramatically as we start replacing the energy used from oil with solar and wind energy.


Remember... every minute enough sun shines on the earth to power the world for 26 years... We are not even collecting one tenth of one percent here...

As for Smog auto emissions and carbon levels in America... Simply removing all the SUV's Making 40 miles per gallon required in all passenger cars...Offering incentives for buying cars with 60 miles to the gallon...We could cut fuel burned in new cars by 50%...And remember 40% of all the emissions from oil come from autos....So that is a 20% reduction in carbon emissions in the USA... That would make Even Al Gore Happy

The key to saving the world is reduction in consumption...We cannot keep going as per usual waiting for technology to save us...Cutting our fuel used in half means half the pollution...It reduces inflation meaning stability in world economies.. It eliminates dependency on foreign oil...

It makes the peak oil doomsday predictions obsolete like the Y2K doomsday predictions...

BTW I think the doomsday predictions are awesome...If they wake people up and scare them into demanding we spend time effort and money on alternatives for cleaner energy... Demanding we drive efficient vehicles...Cutting the amount of fuel we spend in autos in half....Demanding our electricity come from something other than oil gas and coal

[John_C]

Rant on fourx .....   But next time don't sugar coat it  [smiley=thumbsup.gif]

[MountainDon]

I read that Ms Crowe has since stated her "one square of toilet paper" remark was a joke.      Ha.  Is so, it was a crappy one.

[Sassy]

I posted this article in another thread - I thought this guy had done some great research, although the initial prototype & research was very expensive, it sounded to me to be a viable option that people could be looking into.

The Prophet of Garbage
Joseph Longo's Plasma Converter turns our most vile and toxic trash into clean energy—and promises to make a relic of the landfill


http://www.popsci.com/popsci/science/873aae7bf86c0110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html

[benevolance]

Sassy

I remember reading the article...great stuff as per usual...

What makes me have hope is the fact that in cities like London...90% of human sewage is recycled and turned into useful things

In other parts of the world we reuse none of it or very little.

We have these water shortages...And we are needing nutrients for our soils...And energy....Recycling 100% of human waste is a way to prevent dirty water from getting dumped into the water table and oceans...It is a way to boost and replenish existing fresh water supplies...we can extract useful nutrients from it and we can generate massive amounts of Methane from it to use as a fuel or to generate clean electricity...

Muslims may not like this but I think we should all hope that the world doubles it's pork intake...

Pig Manure is loaded with Methane and it converts easily into clean synthetic Diesel.... For every pig we can extract 1 gallon of Diesel per year....Currently that equals billions of gallons....Not enough to power the world... maybe only enough for a few percent of our energy needs...But if 3 or 4% of the world's  dirty sulphur laden diesel was replaced with clean synthetic Pig manure diesel it would make a huge impact....

We do not have the capacity as of yet to completely replace the system of generating electricity and for better or worse for the next couple generations fossil fuels are a must for the world... But the answer for saving the planet and cleaning it up are a combination of achievable goals....like recycling 90% of the world's sewage...Making use of that water...and the energy that is trapped inside of it...

Like turning our landfills into energy and cleaning up the toxic chemicals

Using clean sources for fuel such as pig manure

Couple those things with a meaningful reduction in consumption (doubling the average MPG for cars in North America)....Increasing forest cover on the earth....Start phasing out out of date coal and oil fired electric plants with clean technology (solar, wind, Garbage electrical generation like Sassy has mentioned)

Combining several smaller reasonable goals towards one big goal is a way we can turn the corner and see the world clean and green

For my part I am growing as much food as possible and driving a car that gets 60 miles to the gallon...And no it is not a prius either....We should not have to spend 30,000 dollars to save money or the world... I am loving the great mileage with the price of fuel these days!

I am a poor, simplistic... something or other... Surely people with more money and time can do even more than me... If I can drive a car that gets 60 miles to the gallon everyone can...

took my saturn that I paid $900 for and spent $1200 on it and now I have a cheap car that will outperform a Prius on the racetrack...And outdistance it in fuel economy

I wish more people would make smart decisions and the Yukon Denali's would become extinct

[fourx]

 I am loving the great mileage with the price of fuel these days, as well, Benevolance, because unleaded fuel here is $1.35 a litre in aussie dollars- I run our car on LPG ( aka propane, I think you call it?) at 64 cents per litre- and growing much of your own food is something far more people should be doing, particularly if you have a 12 month growing period.

[benevolance]

Well

Propane used to be a fraction of the cost...those days are long gone... It makes no sense to convert a car anymore to propane in North America...Simply because the car has 20% less power on propane...So if the cost of Propane is not 30-40% that of Gasoline it is senseless to bother with it.

We have had a spike in Gasoline prices recently here in the South...Gas has risen almost a Dollar a Gallon and Propane has dropped 10 cents a gallon making it worthwhile for now...

Propane is still about $1.90 a gallon here..And 2 years ago it was $1.50 or less...This time last year it was $2.00 a gallon...

Gasoline is $2.60 a gallon here.... So there is a little bit of savings... but due to the reduced BTU output of propane versus gasoline...The savings are negliable

Clean cheap energy generation means that more houses are heated with Electricity not propane, Natural Gas or Heating oil (diesel).....One of the most effective ways to clean the environment here in North America is eliminate fossil fuels being used for home heating... And replacing the heat source with Electricity...

Of course if there was a clear shifting trend where Electricity was overtaking Gas oil and propane for home heating...The price of these fuels would drop dramatically to try and lure new home builders to install gas oil or propane heat

A lot of places across america rely on Propane heat and it was installed a decade or more ago when propane was much much less expensive than Heating oil....It was about 1/3rd the cost of gasoline

Now there are these homes out there using these fuels for heat and they are super expensive...

I just looked on the Department of Energy website and in 5 years propane has more than doubled in price...From 87 cents per gallon as high as $1.95 per gallon

[MountainDon]

Pennsylvania State University.  Hydrogen from waste; including human   ... These should be installed all over Washington; no end of sh** there.  

http://live.psu.edu/story/11709

[Amanda_931]

Gore may have chosen his place in Belle Meade for one kind of zoning issue--it is also his office, with apparently multiple staffers.

But Belle Meade does not allow, say, solar panels.  And I think some more possible helps.

[benevolance]

I am not a big ethanol guy when Butanol is a much more effective solution...Same process basically as Ethanol...Only more BTU's of energy derived from it and a signifigant amount of hydrogen created from the process..

But here is more on the Ethanol front....Sorghum

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070502/ap_on_sc/sorghum_power;_ylt=AlNw2ulLgicV08v8QkX_AZbQOrgF

[benevolance]

Don

There is not enough biomass to completely power the world from this source...But suppose we replaced 25% of oil and gas with clean hydrogen...

Massively huge step[ in solving our growing energy crisis

And if this helps clean sewage and treat wastewater...It will solve a lot of problems worldwide for poor developing nations whose sewage and waste water run off into the water table polluting their drinking water or if it runs into the oceans killing fish etc...

Increasing clean drinking water for the world is a good thing...And if it is cheap, easy and produces hydrogen to boot it is a winner all around.

The implimentation of this kind of idea could create a paradigm shift for poor countries that have no energy for their own use...No clean drinking water and rampant health problems from sewage and waste...