Gasoline!

[Colorado Sun]

I believe there is no greater tragedy as a result of the bifurcation of America than the modern commonly held belief that we cannot do anything as a nation, people or society anymore.

We never feel better that when we are one! Although 9/11 was insane, the single mindedness of a morning nation was soothing an reassuring.

I am never prouder to bleed red, white and blue when we do something together. WW2, The Moon etc, etc, etc....

This why my heart is literally breaking at the utter cluster-fuck we seemed to have spawned from rising energy prices. It was one thing when the environment was an actual important issue before 9/11 but it did raise complex issues of individualism, manifest destiny, our image as a non-society-society and of course business and our need to for our economy to grow.......but this one seems like a slam dunk! All we need is a little bit of leadership. Just a tiny bit. Someone to say that a New Energy Contract with America is about working people, nutty middle east countries, the environment, global technology leadership, jobs and national security. I do not think we have seen a more bi-partisan issue since Pearl Harbor and still our leaders in Washington are lost.

The airplane, the assembly line, a cross country railroad, polio, the concept of company stock, labor unions, religious freedom, porn with good lighting....These are all things we did together. Can we not try to create a sensible car that runs on something that we grow in Iowa instead of something we have to destroy governments for in Iraq?

Can there please just be three legs of the table??? The left, the right and the stuff we do together? Can there not be that?!?!?!

-Sun

[ShyGirl]

You bring a tear to my eye, Sun. Nice dream, nice dream.....

[Ansbacher Bremen]

Sun ... are you worried about high gas prices? Convert that monster SUV into a restaurant. You can always move to Canada ... our dollar should be on par with yours by the end of the year if not sooner. What is it you need most? Gas? or OJ?

[Rowsdower]

Relying on corn to make fuel doesn't seem environmentally sound or economically feasible from what I've read. But if it fucked over Max Power, I'd be 100% for it.

[TANEYTOWN]

It's sad, as both partys have sold us down the river . Maybe some day they will get that oil is not the way to go!

[mikemc]

The ideas are out there. It just that they always seems to be viewed as a novelty news story to close the show rather than a serious topic. You know, the School District that uses the same used fry grease that is making our kids fat and lethargic to run their buses. Or the weird guy in your neighborhood who doesn't flush his toilet, has a can crusher on his garage wall, drives a Hybrid with Earth Day stickers on it, but has a brilliant idea that could make your car run on water.

Forget about the politicians! Money drives politics, Oil has money, Oil wins.

It will take a change in mindset by you and me to get us there. If the mindset is that we want to drive something other than a fossil fuel burning vehicle and are willing to pay for it, they will be made. The entraprenurial spirit will take it from there.

Excuse me now, I gotta go jump in my SUV and drive 100 miles by myself to get to work.

[monkeyboy]

I feel kinda trapped in the whole thing. When the weather's nice I try to ride my bike to work 3 times a week or so, but outside of that I don't know what to do. Sometimes I need my car for my job during the day. I'd LOVE to fight back by not driving anywhere anymore, but unfortunately our society has created this necessary evil for us to have transportation. I suppose I could ride my bike nearly everywhere I go, but I don't feel like I have the time for that. It's sad. There's pretty much very little I can do to stick it to the man!

[Colorado Sun]

I feel kinda trapped in the whole thing. When the weather's nice I try to ride my bike to work 3 times a week or so, but outside of that I don't know what to do. Sometimes I need my car for my job during the day. I'd LOVE to fight back by not driving anywhere anymore, but unfortunately our society has created this necessary evil for us to have transportation. I suppose I could ride my bike nearly everywhere I go, but I don't feel like I have the time for that. It's sad. There's pretty much very little I can do to stick it to the man!

Especially in the west Monkey.....Long distances and no public transportation. I know that you can appreciate this......I live two blocks off of Colfax and I work right on Colfax. - THE longest street in American and THE east/west thoroughfare through Denver........There is no bus that goes from my house to my work!

-Sun

[Rowsdower]

My fleet averages 35+ mpg. Good things. I'm presently trying to sell the old motorbike and get an old Miata that gets 'only' 30 mpg. Which could lower the fleets overall mpg. But I'd use it more, so not really. I hear it contributes less smug to the atmosphere than the Toyota Pious so I can live with my conscience. Plus I can't afford a Toyota Pious or a Honda Hindsight. Plus those are butt ugly and have automatic transmissions.

[whiskey devil]

[Rowsdower]

OK I admit I'm contributing to the smug problem with my statments.

[Esquire]

Coming from a mechanical engineer working in the "Research and Environmental Dept" at one of the largest power companies in the country - the technology is here. It's a matter of money, publics support, and infrastructure.

Without getting into politics - because they've been covered - here are my thoughts:

Recently (as in the past 3-6 months), there have been vast improvements in the production of combustible Ethanol that produces 10x the energy it takes to manufacture it. In comparison, that ratio for gasoline is less than one. This was a huge technological breakthrough - and probably the very beginning of breakthroughs. Once the demand is there, the research will skyrocket.

Corn is a pretty constant crop. It has its good and bad years, but rarely (read: never) does it have absolutely drastic years. Not only this, but corn can be grown in most non-extreme environments around the world.

Corn is not the only source of ethanol - only the most efficient. Technically, ethanol can be extracted from practically any organic substance. Another great source: potatoes.

Hybrid vehicles are great - but they're only a temporary solution. They'll really just delay the inevitable and give automakers an excuse not to produce cars that run off of alternative fuels.

Alternative fuels will never take off unless a small, but decent-sized, group of people prove that they are willing to buy new cars and go out of their way to get their fuel.

Most importantly. Ethanol is not the most ideal alternative fuel - on the big scale. But for right now, it's the most realistic.

I guess that's it for now.

[Max Power]

Ethanol is all over the place where I am... obviously. My gas has a small amount in it. There is also E85 in a lot of locals.. outside of the cornbelt I am sure it is harder to find.
thus I conclude, Iowa is where the answers are. Iowans will pave the brave new road for all to follow. And when the ants come it will be us to tame them.

[ironman]

Wake up people!!!We have been sold out! they only way is to really retrain ourselves to stop using so much damn gas.

E85 is a joke until the politicians stop taking money from the oil lobby for campaigns. Just like Hybrids are actually more expensive to own than conventional cars. "Sounds better in a song than when there's hell to pay".

Unfortunately hell is $3.00 a gallon.

[Rowsdower]

Man, it's funny seeing my supposed free market friends saying things like "we've been sold out". By whom? Such hysteria here when our gas reaches half that of our European bretheren. Whatever... it'll work out. Where there's a will there's a way. Rising oil prices have been a long time coming. Greens should be happy too if they can overcome their blind rage against Bushitler and blaming it all on the man who pees in their drink when they're not looking. This is just the kick in the ass that technology and the free(r) markets on the planet need.

I'm with Max that Iowa will lead us into battle while San Fransciscans choke on their own smug.... I also propose vehicles that are like rickshaws and powered by meth-anol-- basically two meth heads that you whip with a leather whip. Meth is cheap and each meth head should last for at least a few weeks before needing food or water. Tuk-tuks are way cool too. I would love to see these as cabs in every major city. They use little gas and are good things!