Quote:
Originally Posted by microbet
People talk about renewable energy a lot because it's actually one of the easiest problems to fix.
There's a LOT LOT LOT of energy wasted and people don't want to do anything about it because saving energy is a much harder business than building renewables and people really don't want to hear that they use too much energy, buy too much crap, throw too much away, and ---- here's where I lose almost everyone ---- eat too many cows, pigs and fish. (I don't think poultry is *that* bad environmentally)
Status. Conspicuous consumption. We're a bunch of monkeys at our core.
I live in the oilpatch of northern Alberta. Today I was sitting in a diner with my wife, watching the traffic go by. I'd bet that 75% of the vehicles going by were "rig rockets", massive 4x4 trucks lifted and chromed up to the tits. I'd bet that only a small fraction of them leave pavement, or haul a load bigger than a washing machine, more than once or twice a year.
I'm always trying my hardest to do more with less (I basically treat it as a game), but it's tough to be optimistic about our future when faced with such overwhelming ignorance. My outlook is vastly in the minority.
As a species, we're going to suck out every ounce of easy energy from the planet, and we're going to do it as quickly as we can. Why? It seems to me the answer to that is, "**** you, that's why.". Waste is our hallmark, and we won't change it until there's nothing left to waste.
On the upside, I get to feel superior while the world burns... at least I've got that going for me.