Crisis of Confidence: the climate edition

On July 15, 1979, Carter said in his “Crisis of Confidence” speech:

“The energy crisis is real. It is worldwide. It is a clear and present danger to our nation. These are facts and we simply must face them … I am tonight setting a clear goal for the energy policy of the United States…. I will soon submit legislation to Congress calling for the creation of this nation’s first solar bank, which will help us achieve the crucial goal of 20% of our energy coming from solar power by the year 2000… To give us energy security, I am asking for the most massive peacetime commitment of funds and resources in our nation’s history to develop America’s own alternative sources of fuel — from coal, from oil shale, from plant products for gasohol, from unconventional gas, from the sun… I will urge Congress to create an energy mobilization board which … will have the responsibility and authority to cut through the red tape, the delays, and the endless roadblocks to completing key energy projects. We will protect our environment…. I’m proposing a bold conservation program to involve every state, county, and city and every average American in our energy battle. This effort will permit you to build conservation into your homes and your lives at a cost you can afford…. Every act of energy conservation like this is more than just common sense — I tell you it is an act of patriotism.” 

When the Reagan administration removed the solar panels in 1986, Reagan’s Chief of Staff commented that, “he felt the equipment was just a joke.” 

I've Got Sunshine

When you consider that more energy is emitted from the sun and hits the Earth in one hour than all of mankind utilizes in an entire year, some very interesting questions come up. If the technology to capture a sizeable portion of this energy exists and we have the means to do so economically, then why hasn’t the planet transitioned to solar power yet?

And the universe speaks

Yesterday, I took some time off from work to go to the bank to work out financing deals. Apparently, asking for a loan to finance car repairs just isn't enough money to bother with writing a loan application, so David and I put some other debts and the purchase price of a commuter car all together, and suddenly we were on the way to the approval process. After we left the bank, we picked up Charlotte and then drove to test drive the smart car. I really like it, and it'll be coming home with us in a couple months. We're buying it from a tennis friend of David's, and even though it is practically new (Jim has only had it for a few months), it already has a nickname and a personality (Jim corrected me when I referred to the girl as a "she." Apparently it's a "he" and his name is The Bruiser).

I was driving home, thinking that perhaps buying a small commuter car wasn't exactly wise just as we are heading into the snowy season, when I'll need to drive the jeep more often any way. We had just filled up the gas tank in Roanoke, and were ignoring the 3.99 we paid per gallon, figuring it was just anticipatory price gouging because of Hurricane Ike. As I drove past the gas station in New Castle, I almost had to pull over: regular gasoline had already climbed to $4.85, with midgrade at $5.15.

If this is what happens when a hurricane hits on the other side of the country, what is going to happen when we all start using home heating oil?

Suddenly, the timing of a purchase of a 45 MPG commuter car didn't seem silly at all.

Graeme spent the night at a friend's house, his first-ever sleepover, and a much anticipated event. I spoke with the friend's mother this morning, and discovered Graeme had informed her he would be staying "the whole weekend." Uh, no.

We picked Graeme up, despite his best efforts to convince us it was fine to leave him, and the boys and David are heading to Old Salem Days while I make up the time I was out. There is a demo by Ethan's karate school. Ethan isn't on the demonstration team as yet, but he did manage to get a new stripe on Friday.

Listening to the experts

[A]s long as oil remains a key part of our energy portfolio, we will never achieve energy independence," said Michael Greenstone, an economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. If McCain is elected, the emphasis would be on drilling and nuclear power, while an Obama administration would be more inclined to push for alternative energy. Edward Snyder, dean of the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business, said the emphasis on drilling sounded "jingoistic," and taxing imported oil, although politically unpopular, would do far more to curb usage.

i want one.

check out the cool new technology being used in the solar car races. i want one. And while we're on the topics of wish lists, bankable solar power for the house would be nice, too.

Why the fuss?

While we (David, the boys and I) were at my parents' house on Sunday evening, the price of gasoline came up, along with a bunch of other real-life price issues. I mentioned that I remember when there was an outrage when gas hit fifty cents a gallon. My mother laughed, saying that I had not been alive when gas was that low. [Actually, when I was born, gas was thirty-five cents a gallon¹, with many stations selling at far less in the gas wars. Minimum wage went up to $1.30 that year ² and a loaf of bread was twenty-five cents ³] While it might seem like ancient history, it is not, though I think the prices we are seeing today are with us to stay.

According to the AAA Fuel Gauge, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas today is $4.026. This is lower, but not really different from last month's average of $4.069. The gas prices in my area aren't far behind, having an average of $3.948 a gallon. Just a year ago, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge, that same gallon of gas was just above $2.68. Virginia was actually higher than the national average last year, with $2.824 a gallon. Back then we were all complaining loudly, decrying the effects and some even scoffing at the possibilities of three-dollars-a-gallon at the pump. Unemployment was 4.6 percent and minimum wage was $5.85.

Today, in accordance with the Fair Minimum Wage Act passed a year ago, the minimum wage is going up to $6.55. Even at last year's levels, that still leaves a full-time minimum wage earner below the poverty line. Given the real cost of energy and food these days, the increase has to be a beacon of hope in turbulent economic waters. I'm not expecting to see a reversal, but the reality is that this increase is likely going to help keep people from facing homelessness. The unemployment rate is up (5.2 percent for May 2008), the stock market is down, and the headlines on the front page of the financial section read like lyrics to a country song.

the facts are clear

Clean energy isn’t pie in the sky – the Germans created 250,000 jobs in less time than it will take for John McCain and Big Oil to drill for oil offshore -- and bring it to market. Failing to invest in new energy means we will continue to fall behind in the competitive race for new jobs and manufacturing.That’s not the road to smart energy independence; it’s a backwards formula for more Exxon dependence.

Ten years to wait for off-shore drilling to come to fruition or a plan that makes a difference in mere weeks? The answer seems obvious, to me. If Obama's plan makes enough sense that environmentalists from all walks of life and with many divergent causes support it, it will be the first time that they can agree on a direction. Now that's what I call progress.