The reality of our industrial society is that we need a lot of power to keep it afloat. Certain changes may give us increases in efficiency, but it still takes a lot of energy to heat homes, forge steel, build infrastructure, transport people and whip lattes. Solar just can’t cut it. Wind, hydro and geo can, unless you don’t have wind, hydro or geo, then you’re caught in an awkward tug of war between unrealistic green expectations.
So to fill that non-green void you basically have the options of coal, natural gas and nuclear, and nuclear is the favorite whipping boy.
It just kills me to see the coal industry dump all the poisonous, radioactive waste they want while tree huggers protest nuclear power, anxiously waiting for the energy fairy to break the laws of thermodynamics.
It’s not that I don’t agree with researching and (when available/appropriate) harnessing renewable energy, it’s that I don’t think ignoring our current energy needs is an option.
Which is to say, I’m not a tree hugger, I’m a forest hugger.
-obby
