For decades, our state and federal governments have failed to make the infrastructure investments and developments to sustain our economic growth. California has been experiencing rolling brown outs, and now they declare a water shortage. Is CA now a 3rd world nation, struggling to provide water and electricity to its citizens? The southeastern states have been suffering a drought, as their infrastructure is now strained.

Now, due to environmental policy and litigation, the US has failed to develop domestic sources of petroleum, as well as the ability to refine it. We now import both oil and gasoline. The trade deficit has now gone through the roof, due to all the energy we import from all over the world. In its place, no state, nor the federal government, have provided a feasible alternative. Only now are we racing to develop ethanol plants, which have caused food prices to shoot through the roof. Hybrid, REEV and EV production is years away from substantial numbers.

As for natural gas imports, fortunately, wind turbines are being installed at a very accelerated rate, as well as large scale solar thermal plants. On the consumption side, compact fluorescent bulbs have the potential to reduce electricity needs by the equivalent of 80 electric plants, which will allow us to use less foreign natural gas. This, of course, will eventually be offset by EV use, but that will lead to less imports of foreign petroleum and gasoline.

Unemployment jumped 1/2%, from 5% to 5.5% in the last month alone. Expect the increasing costs of energy to raise unemployment further, and sink the weak economy. Already, the Democrat led Senate attempted a cap and trade scheme, by which they determine which industries continue to operate, increasing costs to all consumers by adding taxes and fees on the use of fossil fuels. This scheme was so bad, even the Dem controlled Senate couldn't pass it. Sen. Boxer has created yet another bill so bad it failed miserably. Rest assured, Dems will try this and other measures to "fix" our economy, but it is too little too late. There are no quick fixes, only the build-out of renewable energy plants and the rapid adoption of carbonless vehicles will change things, and that will take years, perhaps a couple decades.

The next president / congress will inherit an economy 40 years in the making. If they do the right things, it will take the US 15 - 20 years to get back on track. If they do the wrong things, the US will fall into a deep depression.

Mr. Hendler ascribes our current bad situation mostly to the "dems" with deeply flawed laws such as carbon caps. He says that California is on the verge of becoming a third-world "nation" unable to supply its people with electricity and water.

A couple of things. Which party has been in control of the white house for 28 (arguably 36 if you count Clinton as Republican-lite), of the last forty years? Who ripped up the alternative fuels programs instituted by Jimmy Carter. The same guy who ripped the solar collectors off the White House. The late, sainted Ronald Reagan.

As for California, the Democrats have held the governorship there for five years in the last forty.

So cast blame where it belongs...at the feet of the party which is currently feeding $26 billion in rebates to "Big Oil" during a period of unheralded profits, while the President threatens to veto any move to turn those funds over to alternative fuels.

And the water problem in California is directly related to the shrinking snow packs in the Northeast. A symptom of global warming that the Republican party has deemed, until recently, a fairy tale.

Let's get serious, fund safe nuclear energy, sequester carbon, fund people who are innovating non-food based bio-fuels and stop blaming those out of power for not doing anything about fuel supplies.

This is just ridiculous.

Read more closely, I don't lay blame on any party, just bad policies. Currently, it is the Dems who are trying to prescribe more bad policies to compound the current crisis, not the Reps. As for the "subsidies", those were intended to help oil companies recover from Hurricane Katrina, and if you take them away, gas prices will rise further. ALL taxes pass through to consumers - ALL of them.

Germany is currently reducing subsidies to renewable energy companies, as it realizes that its built out an industry with expensive solutions. Had they allowed consumers to have rebates, they would have selected the cheapest / best solutions for themselves.

Government interference in markets just hurt consumers and economies. Now that fossil fuels are expensive, and raise security concerns, consumers will turn to alternatives on their own - those alternatives that best suit their needs.

I'm sorry, I do not agree.


Our government uses our funds all the time for study and advancement of technologies--though usually for weapons/military use first, then we get the scraps later. The US used to "put their back into" all kinds of technologies and solved problems at a rapid pace. The Panama canal, Hoover Dam, the Atom Bomb, putting a man on the moon... all were extensive engineering projects, way "beyond their time."

Why not put that same money and muscle behind renewable energy processes? Could you imagine what could be accomplished in as little as 10 years with the relative funds of the Manhattan project behind such an endeavor? THAT would make me proud to be an American. Other countries have modern engineering marvels they can be so proud of--England and France have the Chunnel. Brazil has their sugarcane ethanol project. Germany has their solar subsidies. Iceland has their geothermal. Japan has trains capable of 360mph....

The government has its hands in business all the time, so it's not a matter of free commercial choice to drive consumers. Farmers are getting paid by the government right now to waste our food on fuel that doesn't work!

My second career will be in energy, I know it. Either in energy production or electric motor technology, not sure. I'll be starting that degree in a few years--I am that excited about it (I just hope a 43 year old engineer can get hired with no experience... hmm...)

I am just wanting something American again to be proud of. Something to show the world--"Look what we did." (and not something we did 60 years ago...)

Our government uses our funds all the time for study and advancement of technologies--though usually for weapons/military use first, then we get the scraps later. The US used to "put their back into" all kinds of technologies and solved problems at a rapid pace. The Panama canal, Hoover Dam, the Atom Bomb, putting a man on the moon... all were extensive engineering projects, way "beyond their time."

The Panama Canal and Hoover Dam weren't that techincally challenging - it's old tech, just on a greater scale. The Atom Bomb was one of those military projects you decry. Putting a man on the moon was the definitive engineering achievement, but not beyond its time. If you want to marvel at modern development efforts, then embrace Nanosolar, which has created solar panels that produces electricity for cheaper than $1 / W installed. How about Skysails, which is developing sailing kites to reduce, and eventually eliminate the fuel burned by cargo ships. There are plenty of VC funded enterprises that are developing feasible techs today, so we should allow the government to suck up all our resources on the government's energy priorities - just read up on the Tokamak to see how foolish the government is.


Why not put that same money and muscle behind renewable energy processes? Could you imagine what could be accomplished in as little as 10 years with the relative funds of the Manhattan project behind such an endeavor? THAT would make me proud to be an American. Other countries have modern engineering marvels they can be so proud of--England and France have the Chunnel. Brazil has their sugarcane ethanol project. Germany has their solar subsidies. Iceland has their geothermal. Japan has trains capable of 360mph....

Again, Germany is lowering their FIT, because Nanosolar has dropped the floor on solar tech by developing for the American free market. Again, read up on the Tokamak to see how the federal government has no idea what techs to pursue.


The government has its hands in business all the time, so it's not a matter of free commercial choice to drive consumers. Farmers are getting paid by the government right now to waste our food on fuel that doesn't work!

Displacing foreign oil with ethanol is not a waste, as it keeps US dollars at home.


My second career will be in energy, I know it. Either in energy production or electric motor technology, not sure. I'll be starting that degree in a few years--I am that excited about it (I just hope a 43 year old engineer can get hired with no experience... hmm...)

Good luck.


I am just wanting something American again to be proud of. Something to show the world--"Look what we did." (and not something we did 60 years ago...)

Be proud of Nanosolar, Tesla Motors, Fisker Automotive, Aptera and countless other companies leading the world in their respective niche.

Also, be proud of Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites for finally creating a feasible space vehicle that can be re-used. Be proud of Space-X, for developing launch vehicles outside of the military industrial complex.

When you see all the things created outside the government dole, why would you ever steer money to the government to develop new techs?

Aside from those mentioned by Jason,

Here's the news that make local residents of Carlsbad, California really really proud:

http://www.todayslocalnews.com/?sect=tln&p=5293

And this San Diego based company also makes me proud:
http://www.biomassmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=1696

And this:
http://www.afstrinity.com/


Although not one of these are purely local (investors are all over the globe), but yet, they are locally headquartered and doing the research locally. I hope no one discourages them to move their commecial scaled operations to China. It is a matter of national security. Our government should protect such companies from going over there and letting our $ stay home.

Those are all remarkable achievements to be sure! I am excited about all those companies--some I am familiar with (Nanosolar is very impressive, I've heard of Skysails--that is a clever idea, almost so simple you wonder why no one has done it before, but very clever).


I am just waiting for the results. Where has Nanosolar shipped? I heard they just started shipping in the last few months or so--where are they going? When am I going to be able to buy some of that $1 a watt material and throw it up on my roof? Since the stuff is so cheap, wouldn't it be a good idea to put some on the Volt, or any other EV?

Don't get me wrong, we are moving forward. I just think we could move forward so much faster with wise use of government funds which are so often going to the wrong places anyway.

I will be googling Tokamak here directly--had not heard of that project.

Don't get me wrong, we are moving forward. I just think we could move forward so much faster with wise use of government funds which are so often going to the wrong places anyway.

Deanwvu,

Where do you think that "government funds" come from? The government produces nothing, for every dollar it takes out, it must take two from you and I (two may be an exaggeration but is used as an example). That is a highly inefficient process. If the government wasn't taking 30% of my pay check to, as you note, spend my money in the wrong places anyways, I could spend that money in support of products, companies and causes that I think deserve it. Instead, not only is the 30% of money they are taking from me wasted, they squander the wealth of future generations with deficit spending. I do not want to put any of these people who do not seem to be able to balance a check book as I am required to every week, in charge of choosing or supporting future technologies. Why would you?

I know where government money comes from.


Nothing you say is invalid, for certain. I have no problem with cutting taxes AND expenditures--in the area of the war industry at least. We spend all our money fighting over oil when we could've spent LESS towards technology to use less oil.


Either way works for me. If you can find a way to let our leaders know how to get our money back in our pockets so WE can fix the world, or how to put that money to GOOD use, you let me know!

Either way works for me. If you can find a way to let our leaders know how to get our money back in our pockets so WE can fix the world, or how to put that money to GOOD use, you let me know!

First we have to get rid of the misconception that we elect the government to "lead" us, if we want to put the money back in our pockets or have it put to good use. If you elect someone to "lead" you, then how they use your money is up to them. We should elect people to represent our interests. The government should be focused on protecting us from each other and from threats outside this country, not from ourselves. Government should focus on providing a stable basis (i.e. a common sound currency) for the citizenry to engage in economic activity, it should not attempt to act as a guarantor of business.