Criticism of a problem without providing a solution is bad math. It is only half the equation. This blog is dedicated to a better America, with an emphasis on answers.
Because of federal and state incentives, the booming solar industry in California is adding exponentially more to the economy, according to this story.
Two years into the California Solar Initiative, the taxpayers’ investment of $775 million in solar rebates has yielded $5 billion in private investment in solar projects and rapidly expanded the state’s renewable energy industry, according to the report. That’s helped create strong solar companies like solar cell maker SunPower (SPWRA) and markets for thin-film solar companies such as First Solar (FSLR). The decade-long program is on track to achieve its target of 3,000 megawatts of rooftop solar and in the first two years of the program more solar has been installed in California than in the previous 25 years.
Check out the report from the California Public Utilities Commission. According to a CPUC press release, "On average, for every $1 in incentive committed by the California Solar Initiative, an additional $6 in private funds is invested in solar technology in California."
More states need to introduce aggressive tax credits for solar, wind and other alternative energy production. And if the federal government went even higher than the 30% tax credit, we'd see huge investment by business.
As I've written before, the key to reducing our trade imbalance is curbing our energy imports. And if we curb our energy imports by creating a domestic economy based on green energy production, we will create an export boom.
Remember the huge boom to our economy from the Silicon Valley days? We can do it again, but this time the effects would truly be sustainable.
Farmer Forester Solar Power Installer Energy Efficiency Builder Wind turbine fabricator Conservation Biologist Green MBA and Entrepreneur Recycler Sustainability Systems Developer Urban Planner
The article lists schools and companies that are involved in these fields. If you want to position your career for growth, take some time to learn what industries are poised to benefit from changes in how we look at the environment and food, and how we produce and consume energy.
Soros has made tons and tons of money over the years by timing the market correctly.
Here's a fascinating column he wrote for Financial Times. As much as I enjoyed the column, I paid attention to the sidebar where he writes about what went right and wrong for his fund for 2008.
As for the welfare of the United States and capitalism in general, Soros thinks we need to keep capitalizing the banks, and that we also need to overhaul the mortgage system.
He also thinks that America will be better off by developing alternative energy sources. But to make that economically feasible, he calls for an end to cheap oil, proposing a floor price of $70 a barrel - about double today's value.
I'm glad to see the era's great economic thinkers putting their heads into this, but you have to realize that they're looking out for their own bottom lines too. His prescription calls for a lot of market meddling.
While I don't want to see my 401K continue to falter, at some point we have to ask ourselves: Is this capitalism? What ever happened to simple supply and demand?
Availability of credit surely is a great economic generator. But only when extended to people and companies that can pay it back. In the long haul that's what got us in trouble, and now all that anyone can do is scream about there not being enough credit in the system.
With the option of power-assist, this velomobile from Goblin Aero offers protection from the elements and can travel faster than a bicycle.
With a 35 c.c. Honda motor for power-assist, the standard gearing allows the Aero to go 30 mph on flat roadways. Optional lower gearing allows easier travel up extreme grades, but limits speed to 20 mph. The gas tank holds .28 gallons and is good for 30-40 miles.
As equipped above, the Goblin Aero runs $6,445, or nearly 50% more than the Yugo cost when it came out.
Looking at this human-powered psuedo-bike, I had to chuckle at the made-for-the-U.S.A. marketing message that appeared in this story.
Popular in Europe for years, this is the first time that such vehicles have been designed and manufactured to accommodate larger American citizens.
According to this BBC news article, the reason for so many stocks tanking and companies laying off workers is an overriding sense of global pessimism.
Wow, that's some reporting.
Personally, I think this is a great time to be unemployed. All the workers are worried about losing their jobs. Management fears the loss of bonuses.
Me, I've got the soft glow of the Internet and a warm cup of chicken noodle soup.
Not to mention the hope that this economic malaise will result in a new wave of job generation, ones that are focused on energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions and a host of things that are positive for the world.
As with all times of great disruption and change, there exists plentiful opportunity. Identify who you want to be, and how you want to live, and make it so.
"An optimist is someone who looks for the opportunity in every difficulty. A pessimist is someone who looks for the difficulty in every opportunity." - Anonymous.
This is a pretty instructive animation of a low-impact wind turbine in action. About 3/4 through the video, it begins to show how wind speed affects electricity output.
This really shows that wind turbines are most effective when you have sustained, forceful winds. In low-wind areas, these probably aren't worth the time or investment.
From California comes a new car design that relies solely on alternative energy.
The car would go 155 mph, do zero to 60 in four seconds and cost about $170,000.
Solar cells on its skin would charge the battery in 1.5 hours and after reaching speed-here's where I become skeptical-a set of strategically placed mini wind turbines would recharge the battery, enabling the car to go 200 miles, or about an hour if you're gunning it around a racetrack.
The car, dubbed the Formula AE, is being designed by Rory Handel and Maxx Bricklinas from Beverly Hills, California. Read how the car will use alternative energy here.
Renewable energy sources are gaining enough traction to account for the biggest piece of the pie when it comes to gains in U.S. electrical output.
General electrical capacity increased by 2.3% in 2007, according to Electrical Power Annual 2007. Total 2007 electrical capacity was boosted to 4,157 million megawatt-hours, up from 4,065 MWh in 2006.
Net summer capacity increased by 8,673 MW, with wind power accounting for 5,186 MW.
Renewable energy remains but a drop in the bucket, however. Renewables generate 105 million MWh annually, just 2.5 % of total electrical capacity.
The Obama administration needs to put more money into this sector. Reducing energy costs - and doing it more cleanly - will be a bellweather issue this century. We need to get a head start on the world so we can export the technology.
The high cost of most alternative energy ideas is a major hurdle to adoption by the masses.
A Seattle-area inventor has a wind turbine that he thinks could be produced and sold for less than $500, according to this story.
His prototype cost only $100 to build.
The turbine would not create a lot of electricity, but perhaps as much as 40 kilowatt hours a month. That's enough to offset the amount of high-efficiency bulbs used in some households.
"It's not going to power the whole house," inventor Chad Maglaque told the Seattle Times. "But it's about doing every little bit."
According to the article, he's entered his wind-turbine idea in Google's "Project 10 to the 100th" contest, which, to celebrate the company's 10th birthday, will award $10 million to five innovative ideas that seek, in simple terms, to change the world.
As ordinary Americans hunker down and forgo new car purchases, new home purchases and even steak at the restaurant, the executives at Citibank see no need to scale back on planned purchases.
Of course, Citibank has received $45 billion in bailout money so far, so why worry.
Citibank recently went ahead with the purchase of a $50 million Dassault Falcon 7X luxury jet, according to this story.
The plane seats up to 12 in a plush interior with leather seats, sofas and a customizable entertainment center.
Granted, Citigroup had placed the order two years ago, well before the current meltdown, but sometimes it makes more sense to give up the deposit and do the right thing.
After all, Citigroup already has two 10-year-old Dassaults, which it is now trying to unload for $27 million each.
What gets me are some of the apologistic comments on the story, which seem to have been placed by trolls (no attempt made to correct faulty grammar):
Poster bsmbdt wrote: Im sorry, but doesnt spending $50M on a jet put that very $50M into the economy? I mean the Jet maker , pays their employees and taxes, and hires employees and vendors, etc. CITI also pays taxes, and then hires pilots , mechanics, and staff, not to menton the maintenance folks, etc. Now each of those folks went and bought food, gas, clothing, heat for their houses/apartments, some bought houses, others condos, and cars, etc. etc. etc. Im sorry but have we become so clueless that we cant think through what buying a $50M aircraft does for plain old people like you and me? Are we that dense now that all we can do is knee jerk react?
I can think of better ways for Citigroup to spend OUR bailout money. Make loans available to small businesses and regular folk.
slcraigre wrote: You've got to be kidding? Has the Post now dranl the Kool-Aide too? That Jet was ordered years ago. It took 1000s of hours of manpower and hundreds of companies making parts to produce it. You want all those employess and companies to give back that money? What has happened to your journalistic integrity? If CITI had a contract with you for ad space would you let them just cancel on a whim?
Actually, newspaper ad contracts get broken all the time. And the newspaper rarely does anything about it because it wants the advertiser to return when there actually is money to spend. At the very worst, an advertiser that pulls back might have to eat a deposit, but in 99% of cases print advertising is not paid for until it publishes.
Clairesolt wrote: All this scandal mongering about airplanes and carpetsa just tells me that out journalissts can't understand multi billion business. If I have a credit card balance or mortgagr or car loan, that does not mean that the bank can follow me around the grocery store and comment on what I buy. Oh look! She is buying filet, Shouldn't we write in her contract that she can onlly have hot dogs?
No, the bank can't follow you around. But if you can't pay back your credit card balance or you are late with a payment, it can dramatically increase the interest rate, effectively putting you in the hotdog-eating crowd. It can impose a credit limit. How do you think Citigroup makes its money? By being a nice lender?
What it boils down to is this: Citigroup has accepted help from we, the taxpayers. In fact, in its $45 billion bailout, it has claimed approximately $150 for every man, woman or child in the United States. And since the government doesn't actually have the bailout money, but is instead printing more money or borrowing it, we are paying for this through increased interest on government debt, or decreased personal purchasing power because of dillution of dollar value.
I'd rather that Citigroup not have taken delivery of the new jet, and also sold their old jets. If they have somewhere to fly, get in line with the rest of us at Southwest.
Here's what Citigroup got. Fast-forward to about 2 minutes to see pictures of the lush interior.
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