Reply #25: Perhaps you're not paying close attention then. [View All]

[MadHound]

And that is not to slam you, but I've seen some very good solutions proffered from various members of our community. The path that I advocate is both good for corporations bottom line, the enviroment, and the ordinary American. Have Congress mandate that within five years(twice the normal time it takes for a full plant retool) all vehicles made or exported to the US are equipped with a biodiesel ready diesel engine. Yes, we can produce enough biodiesel domestically<http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/article_alge.html> using algae as the feedstock. Biodiesel is ninety percent cleaner burning than petroleum based products, prolongs engine life, and the only waste products from refining biodiesel is water and glycerin, which can be used in soap manufacture. As the above article states, it would only require 15,000 square miles of ponds to produce enough algae for our needs, and interestingly enough, this algae production can be linked to wastewater treatment plants, who use ponds growing algae as a first scrubber step in treating wastewater. In addition, the infrastructure alteration needed would be minimal.

I believe that this is a viable solution for our country, and have contacted various people including my reps concerning it. I've written about this here on DU and elsewhere, as have many others. And while yes, it does seem that many folks follow the news of the day, you forget that people can, and do multitask.

Meanwhile, many many DUers are finding their personal answers to minimize gas usage. Personally I either carpool, or if the weather is dry and not too cold, I drive this for my commute. It gets 100mpg, travels at 55-60mph, and is durable as can be.

You've been around for a relatively short while friend, I would suggest that you go dig into the archives and search for the multitude of threads on various energy solutions. Or just stick around and pay attention and you'll see that people here are discussing this problem regardless of the news cycle. Yes, I agree with you about turning off the television, but I think that your calling out the entire board of this issue is wrong, and shows how little you have been paying attention. Peace, and welcome to DU:hi: