Originally Posted by
Wade
I don't think anyone said Australia is a bad place to live. From what I remember, you have a problem with Indonesians (everybody) trying to move there. Besides, why did you change the subject from global warming to nationalist chest pounding. I don't think that was his point.
Well, okay, when I wrote about Australia, it was meant to let people know that we live in our country and we are used to the life. So, under normal circumstances, no one likes to migrate to a foreign country because it has so many pitfalls. Eg. language difference, culture and traditions, new laws to remember etc. etc.. Nationalist chest pounding? I personally am fascinated by the unique environment here in Australia, so I feel that we should be careful what we do. Depends on how one reads my statement.. I wa implicating that if we consume too much, we eventually will suffer the consequences. Look, I agree that we live in this world for a short time,and many people like to enjoy life to the fullest and exposed their "bright side" and contribute their "two cents worth" to society..but we are producing too much garbage as well.
Here in the states interesting things are going on:
Some people hate hydroelectric dams, cause they want to revive the fish migration populations. Lots of lawsuits. There goes that form of clean energy.
Every time someone tries to install a wind mill around here, they get challenged in court. Lawsuit. There goes that form of clean energy. Not to mention the Audubon society claims they kill birds and some type of squirrel like animals. The only place that has been installing them is Texas. President Bush put saws are in place to support wind energy back when he was governor, environmentalist are mad though.
Tital generators, blocked by environmentalist, and home owners that don't want their view spoiled. Lawsuit.
Everytime someone proposes installing a solar chimney, they get blocked at the local government level. Not in my backyard.
Every time someone wants to burn wood, You guessed it, lawsuit. Going on in Oregon as we speak.
Garbage incineration, lawsuit. Nashville Tn is good example.
Nuclear Energy, lawsuits and marches, demonstrations, and acts of civil disobedience. Going on in Grand View Idaho.
Fusion, nobody wants to fund it. They'd rather give money to those that won't work. Or on the flip side, the energy corporations block it's funding. So, they took their research over to Europe.
Laws covering new house energy efficiency, the home builders association groups blocked that.
Well, at least you now realise that you have a social problem rather than an enviromental one. Why do the "greenies" behave in such a way. Are those people who oppose building "energy structures" still live in caves? If not, why not" Living in houses produces pollution, so why should they be hypocrites? When I was in the USA, I was warned to be careful of being sued. We had to study litigation as part of what we were doing. Being sued takes a lot of emotional energy and also makes one very discourage. Unless a person is rich and can afford legal reperesntation, it wil be a lost cause. Now, don't take it that I am critising American society..I am not. I think that in any society, there are quirks that occur and nobody seem to have any power to stop it. So, if you tell me that you have all the above situation when trying to generate "green" energy, then I feel that it is going to be a tough one to overcome. Society sometimes creates its own downfall. If you cannot generate energy by building structures, (for whatever reasons) then I am at a loss for words. I wish you good luck for the future then. I only hope the "greenies" in Australia does not create this situation.
So, the Engineer not only has to pull a energy bunny out of his azz. He also has to do it in such a way that doesn't offend someone. I mean, how do you do this? There's no magic energy solution. Energy has to be found, harvested, transported, utilized, and then disposed of. So, instead of ranting on engineers, how about proposing some solutions.