We in the United States consume more energy btu's than any other nation on earth, and it appears that our energy consumption will continue to grow. On the one hand we berate nations like Brazil and Indonesia for cutting down the rain forests, but on the other hand we continue to consume a dispropotional proportion of the world's energy resources. In the emerging global economy, and in our role as the remaining world superpower, we should do our best to set an example for the world that we can do the kinds of things that promote long-term solutions. Wind power generation, more investment in solar energy, more localized power generation to reduce the need for long run power lines, superconductor research, smaller, more fuel-effecient cars, better public transportation, etc. are all the kinds of things that will help us become more effecient in our use of energy, and cast us in a better light as a leader in the global economy. President Bush's proposal to continue relying on fossil fuel energy in the face of a scientific consensus that our emissions contribute to global warming is like maintaining a high-fat diet after a diagnosis of heart disease.
Life can be just as good with less fat and with less coal and oil.
It seems strange to me, and a very narrow viewpoint, that Vice President Cheney and his energy commision can declare that alternative sources and conservation are not sufficient to ease the energy crisis that they are selling to the citizens of the United States. Texas, there would be a huge reduction in the amount of conventional power generation needed. Many office buildings could have literally hundreds of square meters of PV panels. The benefits multiply when you consider that during the day when a homeowner is at work, the power being generated but not used can go out onto the grid to supply someone who does need it. It just makes sense . . .