I don’t get why the Gulf Stream isn’t being explored as a potential generator of electricity.

The decision to cut funding for tidal and wave power came only weeks after the Interior Department suggested that wave power could emerge as the leading offshore energy source in the Northwest and at a time when efforts to develop tidal power in Puget Sound are attracting national and international attention.

May 2009

May 1962

We deal now not with things of this world alone, but with the illimitable distances and as yet unfathomed mysteries of the universe.
We are reaching out for a new and boundless frontier.
We speak in strange terms: of harnessing the cosmic energy; of making winds and tides work for us; of creating unheard synthetic materials to supplement or even replace our old standard basics; of purifying sea water for our drink; of mining ocean floors for new fields of wealth and food; of disease preventatives to expand life into the hundred of years; of controlling the weather for a more equitable distribution of heat and cold, of rain and shine; of space ships to the moon

General Douglas MacArthur‘s Farewell Speech
Given to the Corps of Cadets at West Point
May 12, 1962

Why is Obama picking winners and losers in the green spectrum anyway?

Three* words: I won.

*(c) BidenMath

My 1991 Toyota Camry still runs fine, so why would I want to buy a new car and pay interest when for just a few dollars, I can keep my already paid for car running.

TruthToBeTold on June 1, 2009 at 1:25 PM

Great! That makes two of us!

But there are some — including Rush, who I otherwise like — who take pride in being uber-consumers, just to poke a finger in the eyes of people who are environmentally responsible (I know, he’s really aiming at the petty tyrants in the environmental “movement”; but he forgets that millions of concerned RATIONAL Americans are actually listening, while the wackos are not — and a fair number of his listeners have adopted the same ‘screw the environment’ attitude).

BTW, if you look closely you’ll see that I said WHEN you go to get a new car — not that you should. Building a car is a HUGE energy consumer and pollution generator, in addition to being expensive. My ’95 Dodge full-size van is “only” 14 years old (my previous vehicle was a ’66 Mustang, still running strong when a guy crossed the center line and hit me head on), and I expect to drive it for at least another 3-5 years. I carpool with Mrs. Regular a lot of the time, so I don’t rack up a lot of miles any more anyway.

Why is the govt even funding this crap. If its makes business sense, then business would fund this crap.

Why is Obama picking winners and losers in the green spectrum anyway? After Interior’s assessment of wave technology’s potential, it doesn’t look like the administration had any scientific reason to make the cuts while increasing solar and wind funding. Could it be that the solar and wind lobbies have more of an influence than the White House wants to admit? When politicians pick winners and losers, the best way to figure out the decision is to follow the money.

Doesn’t this just figure.

Let’s see:

Wind – Sporadic and unpredictable, therefore difficult to harness its energy for electricity.

Tides – Constant and very predictable, therefore much easier to harness its energy for electricity.

So who do the feds give more funding to? You guessed it.

(shakes head).

Also the only one, I presume.

Wave power ranks above solar but below wind in terms of idiocy. By all means let´s explore it but let us at least be honest: we will never get more than a few percent of our energy needs from all these sources combined and we will pay dearly for those and I´m sick and tired of hearing about them.

It looks like the American voters picked a real loser for a President.

izoneguy on June 1, 2009 at 11:41 AM

I love you.

We shouldn’t be using electricity for our lights anyway. Nor even petroleum based oil. We should go back to what our ancestors used: whale oil.
rbj on June 1, 2009 at 12:06 PM

I suggest we use snake oil. Not only is there a vast supply of it issuing from D.C., but it doesn’t have to be paid for until my grandkids are of working age!

____________

Slight change of subject: it pisses me off that Americans are at such polar extremes on the subject of energy. I frankly have no idea whether we have 100 years’ worth of fossil fuels or 100,000 years’ — but there is SOME limit. And I’m not all panicky about it if we have to create some pollution to give the world a much higher standard of living; but its obvious that less pollution is better than more. There are lengths to which we can and should go to avoid wasting resources and creating unnecessary pollution. Turn off the damn lights when you leave a room. Combine trips. When you replace your car, consider whether the small SUV will work in your life instead of the Hummer, or maybe even drive a car. Get a programmable thermostat. Give those compact fluorescent lights a try (I like them fine, and not only do they last a LOT longer but I also save a few bucks on my power bill). And yeah, make sure your tires are aired up. The idea that that’s going to meet all our energy needs is ridiculous, but to borrow from Poor Richard, “a kilowatt saved is a kilowatt generated.”

If we conservatives voluntarily demonstrated greater common-sense responsibility where the environment and our energy resources are concerned, we’d be in a much better position to argue our case for building new nuclear power plants and increasing drilling, and fighting back some of the overboard environmental policies.

Just one more example of the Messiah’s breathtaking lack of ability to lead.

n0doz on June 1, 2009 at 12:26 PM

More like an example of how he rules.

Why is Obama picking winners and losers in the green spectrum anyway?

I think the better question is how is he picking the winners and losers.

I envision he has a big wheel of fortune board and this time the needle didn’t land on wave technology. Who knows, next year may have a different outcome.

The tidal generators, built by an Irish company, are 50 feet tall and can spin either way depending on the direction of the tides. The units will be submerged, with 80 feet of clearance from their tops to the water’s surface. They’ll be placed outside of shipping channels and ferry routes.

The pilot plant is expected to produce one megawatt of electricity, or enough to power about 700 homes. If the pilot plant proves successful, the utility would consider installing a project that powered 10,000 homes.

This is why it is an overall stupid idea. Just because this administration has no problem backing other stupid ideas, doesn’t mean they should be pounded for backing away from this one.

The $30M they are proposing is $30M too much.

With Obama, I wish 4 years would be over. Foolishness, but not of the young. for the first time in my adult life, I’m embarrased by my government. Something’s got to give.

We should go back to what our ancestors used: whale oil. Whales reproduce, and we can use environmentally friendly sailing ships. And just think how many people can be employed in the whale oil industry.

rbj on June 1, 2009 at 12:06 PM

For that matter, why not human fat? There’s certainly an abundance of that around. We can just set up free liposuction clinics in major cities, collect all the “butter” and fuel our cars, homes, and factories with it.

Heck, Michael Moore alone could light a large subdivision for about a year.