Special Earth Day Book Pick!

Power to Save the World: The Truth About Nuclear Energy by Gwyneth Cravens

Find out why Greenpeace founder Patrick Moore thinks the Nuclear Energy is the ecologically sound thing to do.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

A Green Economy

President Obama keeps talking about creating a “Green Economy.”
A good idea if approached rationally. Even in flat out National Defense terms, more domestic energy equals a safer and stronger America.

If you read my tech blog, you know I’m a fan of electric cars. I also understand that electricity doesn’t magically appear from the plug in the wall. It has to be generated in large amounts to support a modern economy.

Remember how all the watermelons kept claiming that we can’t drill for domestic oil because it would take “10 years” to get the oil flowing? Well, they were saying that 10 years ago and they were wrong then too. They were also wrong about the timing. There are reserves that can tapped in two to five years.

If you want to talk about ten year plus projects, you can’t find a better example than a lot of the “green” power projects such as industrial level wind and solar power. Not wanting to do them because they will take ten plus years is just as wrong as not wanting to tap domestic fossil fuel resources.

There are also some wind/solar projects that can be up and running in two to five years. Cape Wind for example, which is being blocked by the two liberal democrat Senators who don’t want their view from their mansions to have a source of clean energy in it.

The Obama plan for green energy is missing one of the most important parts of the future of America’s energy independence and economic growth, clean and plentiful Nuclear Power.

There are solid ecological reasons why the founders of Greenpeace and the Gaian movement, and other honest greens, support the expanded use of Nuclear Power.

Building Nuclear Power Plants will provide jobs, and plenty of clean and relatively inexpensive electrical power. Power that will boost the economy and make electric and plug in hybrid cars much more practical.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

Infrastrucure we should be building.

Our Dear Leader should listen to Dr. Pournelle on what kind of infrastructure the United States of America should be building.

I have to say it again: cheap energy will cause a boom. The only cheap energy I know of is nuclear. Three Hundred Billion bucks in nuclear power will do wonders for the economy. We build 100 1000 MegaWatt nuclear power plants — they will cost no more than 2 billion each and my guess is that the average cost will be closer to 1 billion each (that is the first one costs about 20 billion and the 100th costs about 800 million). The rest of the money goes to prizes and X projects to convert electricity into mobility.

Of course we won’t do that.

Just think of all the plug in hybrid cars that could be on the road with all that cheap, carbon free, clean electricity.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

democrats have to lie.

I’m watching the democrat on deck before Hillary doing what they do best, lying.

The democrats have to lie about Senator John McCain’s energy policy, because their so called “policy” doesn’t add up.

The democrats are pushing their Big Lie that Senator John McCain’s comprehensive energy policy consists of only domestic drilling.

Senator McCain’s policy isn’t just about domestic drilling. Domestic drilling is part of his comprehensive plan that also includes, clean safe nuclear energy, conservation, renewable sources such as wind, solar, and other domestic sources such as natural gas, coal and shale oil. Energy independence is the of Senator McCain’s goal. Barak H. Obama’s goal is holding American hostage to the far left.

The Obama fantasy rules out domestic drilling, shale oil, and clean safe nuclear energy.
The Obama fantasy wants to put more electric cars on the road while reducing America’s electric consumption.

Obama is hoping that those people who vote for him are ignorant on the facts and bad at math.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

Mini-Reactors in the works.

Good news for those concerned with Global Warming and American Energy independence!

Plans for smaller nuclear reactors, which can be US built, have been submitted to the NRC for approval.

These small plants, which produce no greenhouse gases, are designed to produce 45-megawatts of power with a very small footprint. The unit is less than 70 feet long and the containment vessel is only 14 feet in diameter.

These can be easily placed in remote areas that currently use diesel generators and would be useful in more urban areas, such as California and the Northeast, to reduce dependence on plants that burn coal, oil and natural gas.

Cross posted at http://urbintechnology.wordpress.com/2008/07/17/mini-reactors-in-the-works/.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

Obama’s all over the map

In the Lightgiver’s desire to be all things to all people, Barry is all over the place with, among other things, his so-called “energy policy”
First, according to USA Today, he’s for more Nuclear Power.
But when he is pandering to his Watermelon base:

In October of last year, when Obama was going all out to pander to his party’s anti-nuclear base, Obama made his position clear: “I am not a nuclear energy proponent.”
…
So Obama is against Yucca Mountain (naturally, he also voted to fund it) but demands a solution to the storage problem. He wants to make certain that the plants are safe but his own state has more plants than any other and no history of accidents. And Obama wants to spend $150 billion on developing new sources of renewable energy, but he doesn’t want to provide a single dollar to a proven, safe, reliable, and emissions free technology.

So Barak Obama is against safe, proven and green technology that can meet America’s energy needs rapidly, but is more than willing to spend money pie in the sky technologies that won’t be ready for at least ten years.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

If you are really serious about reducing carbon emissions…

…you’ll love this plan. Even if you don’t buy into the Cult of Algore theory that carbon is bad for Gaia (who seems to be thriving in spite of, or perhaps because of, increase carbon output), it is also a good plan for reducing the value of the oil under the control of dictators and reducing domestic energy costs.

First, implement Dr. Pournelle’s plan:

I have to say it again: cheap energy will cause a boom. The only cheap energy I know of is nuclear. Three Hundred Billion bucks in nuclear power will do wonders for the economy. We build 100 1000 MegaWatt nuclear power plants — they will cost no more than 2 billion each and my guess is that the average cost will be closer to 1 billion each (that is the first one costs about 20 billion and the 100th costs about 800 million). The rest of the money goes to prizes and X projects to convert electricity into mobility.

The next step is already being worked on by automobile manufacturers, decent electric cars.
I see a lot of money to be made from an electric mini-van that has a 100 to 150 mile range. There are a lot of soccer moms out there who do the majority of their driving with a 25 mile range of home. That is a lot of V-6 engines that can be taken off the road.

All those city buses that currently run on diesel can be converted to electric power with plenty of clean, cheap Nuclear power.

Cut back on heating homes with oil and natural gas. Why use that expensive option when there is plenty of low cost, carbon neutral, electricity generated by clean, safe Nuclear Power?

Come on people! The French generate 80% of their electric power from Nuclear Power and even they can manage to do it safely!

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

Sunday Morning Quotes

Five years ago we were told that increased refinery and oil pumping capability in the US would do no good because it would take five years for those to affect gas pump prices. Query: if we had greatly increased supply over the past five years, would not oil be at about $75/bbl, still high, but not headed to $200? And if we do nothing to increase supply now, where will oil go? … We are in a time of national emergency, but it does not affect the politicians, who continue business as usual.
— Dr. Pournelle, HT to Mr. Reynolds

Nukes are out, coal is filthy, wind power destroys Ted Kennedy’s view, and solar leads to “environment fears.” Do they just want us all to freeze in the dark? Pretty much, I’d say …
— Glenn Reynolds

Gun Control? It’s the best thing you can do for crooks and gangsters. I want you to have nothing. If I’m a bad guy, I’m always gonna have a gun. Safety locks? You pull the trigger with a lock on, and I’ll pull the trigger. We’ll see who wins.
— Sammy “The Bull” Gravano,VANITY FAIR 9/1999 page 165

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

Straight talk common sense from Senator McCain

Senator McCain has called for a rational step toward making America more energy independent by calling for the construction of 45 new Nuclear power plants.

This should also greatly please anyone who is firmly committed to the reduction of carbon emissions.

McCain said the 104 nuclear reactors currently operating around the country produce about 20 percent of the nation’s annual electricity needs.

“Every year, these reactors alone spare the atmosphere from the equivalent of nearly all auto emissions in America.”

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin

McCain talks sense, Obama spouts leftist rhetoric

According to the Washington Post:

Sen. John McCain called yesterday for an end to the federal ban on offshore oil drilling, offering an aggressive response to high gasoline prices…

The move is aimed at easing voter anger over rising energy prices by freeing states to open vast stretches of the country’s coastline to oil exploration. In a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, nearly 80 percent said soaring prices at the pump are causing them financial hardship, the highest in surveys this decade.

“We must embark on a national mission to eliminate our dependence on foreign oil,” McCain told reporters yesterday. In a speech today, he plans to add that “we have untapped oil reserves of at least 21 billion barrels in the United States. But a broad federal moratorium stands in the way of energy exploration and production. . . . It is time for the federal government to lift these restrictions.”

The US used to produce most of its oil need domestically, but the Carter era “windfall profit” taxes put an end to that. A failed government policy that the Second Coming of Jimmy Carter, i.e. Barak H. Obama, wants to repeat.

What Senator McCain is calling for is just common sense. The market price should start to drop once the feds decide that drilling for oil ten miles closer to shore than the Communist Chinese oil platforms (which are currently 60 miles off the coast of Florida) is OK.

Of course, the democrat response, made by Obama, is the typical Fear Mongering that they excel in. They spout the lie that McCain is “trying to drill our way out of the problem.”

They know this isn’t true, but will push that lie anyway. Drilling is only part of the solution. Proven, industrial scale, domestic energy solutions, such as Nuclear Power, is also needed. Increasing the use of clean, safe, Nuclear energy is something else that democrats oppose out of irrational fear.

The Washington Post article points out that Senator McCain does not share their irrational fear:

McCain backs federal subsidies for building more nuclear power plants, which he considers the best way to reduce U.S. carbon dioxide emissions.

Let’s be honest here, if you buy into the Cult of Algore theory of Carbon Emissions causing widespread Global Warming”, and you oppose Nuclear Power, you are either, woefully ignorant, in denial, or a hypocrite of the first order. Probably a combination of all three.

In addition to Nuclear, other alternate sources of energy should be explored, including biofuels (that doesn’t use food as a source), solar, hydrogen, and others. What we don’t need is the democrat head in the sand solution to our immediate problems. The democrat leadership may not care if their policies (or lack there of) have a serious negative effect on the US economy, but the rest of America should.

All Original material is copyright © Mark Urbin