Oil is ANTI-PROGRESS!?!

Leon, you've outdone yourself. Just when I thought you couldn't say something sillier, you prove me wrong.

OIL is ALL about progess. Oil completely fuels our civilization. Oil took us out of the 19th century in a hurry. Oil has elevated the life of every man woman and child in the industrial world.

If for no other reason, we don't ride horses anymore. Horses are ill tempered big stupid animals, but the real issue is their by product. Talk about harmful emissions! Horses did their "business" where they stood, or walked. (still do) The amount of horse manure on city streets, along with the accompanying flies and other insects, played a big part in the disease problems of the era.

Oil is indeed progress. And you have no answer for it's replacement. Wind and solar ain't gonna do it. And there is no whizzbang new science fiction fuel out there either.

Bio-fuels, forget it. Besides the obvious stupidity of using food for fuel, there is simply no way to make enough of it, or make it without using more energy than it produces or without unbelievable amounts of water per gallon of fuel produced.

Bio-fuels are nothing new. Rudolf Diesel developed his engine in the late 1800's to run on vegetable oil, or whale oil. Obviously we don't do that now, because it's not cost effective for mass markets. Sure there are guys who buy up old Mercedes and other diesel powered cars, that go and recycle restaurant cooking oil. But those are one offs.

As for ethanol, Henry Ford, who grew up on a farm, played with the idea as he was developing his new automobile. I'm talking late 1890's early 1900's. Back then gasoline was expensive, rather poor grade, and not easy to get. For safety most supplies were kept outside of populated areas. Ethanol was actually a better fuel, but even at the turn of the last century, when cars were still little more than a curiosity, Ford, and others realized bio-fuels were a non-starter. The scale of production was impossible. Still is.

Oil is the engine of democracy. It has made everyones life better. It's not evil. It's not all that unclean of a power source. And only really stupid people think it is.

This ought to be mind-bending. 

Whine away.

David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive

Unfortunately, the lesson of our generation is that a lot of baby boomers wrongly thought they were smarter and better than anyone who came before. They thought they'd bring love and peace to the world. They were smug and self righteous. And they were dead wrong.

By all means, keep up the search for alternative energy. But in the real world, oil is one of the cheapest and most abundant sources of energy. Oil would be a lot cheaper if the envirowackos would stop blocking new drilling and new refineries and roll back silly regulations. But even as things are, no one has improved on oil.

We're resisting a commitment to these alternative energy sources because at the moment, we cannot afford them. When and if something better than oil comes along, there won't be a need to twist people's arms to adopt it. They'll gladly embrace it.

When you put the clowns in charge, don't be surprised when a circus breaks out.

Leon fails to understand that his "viable" alternatives to oil will invariably lead to the deaths of tens or hundreds of millions, or possibly billions, of people who won't be able to share in his "progress" and enjoy the benefits of his “viable” alternatives to oil.

I would love for Leon, or any other proponent to "viable" alternative energy sources, to go to Africa, for example, and explain to them why they need to stop growing grain for food and use it instead to make "viable" ethanol. I would love to see him explain to them that this policy is actually beneficial to them in the long run, except, of course, to the millions who will starve to death in the process. Buy, hay, you can’t make an omelet unless you’re willing to break a few eggs. Right, Leon?

Hay Leon, in case you don’t know it, we don't eat oil. We DO, however, eat grain. It's foolish beyond belief to burn our food instead if eating it. You may save oil by burning your food supply, but not for long as you'll starve to death in the process. So, tell me, just how "progressive" is that idea again?

Syrius,

Get off your high horse, the lack of O2 at that altitude is starving your brain cells.

If you’re so smart, then tell me of an alternative replacement to oil that is as abundant, efficient, cost effective and generally useful to mankind than oil. Which alternative replacement to oil does mankind have today that will not lead to a massive decrease in the production of staple food crops and will not raise costs of manufacturing so high that people can't afford even the basic necessities of life like housing, clean water, and clothing?

I want just one example. Can you provide it? I don’t think you can. As you are well aware, every alternative to date can not match the incredibly useful properties of oil, nor can they be used in so many products and in so many helpful ways as oil has provided us over the last 100 years.

Until you can come up with a real world VIABLE alternative to oil that doesn't cause more problems that it creates, I suggest you keep looking as you definitely haven found one yet. Good luck on your search though.

"This is choice!!!"

Yes, it is, and do you know why? It's ”choice” because it demonstrates the fact that you can't refute any of my arguments and that's driving you nuts. I’ve given you examples of the harm that can, and will be, caused by your “viable alternatives” to oil. You’ve seen the folly of a mandate to replace oil with alternatives like ethanol and the harm that mandate will cause. It’s contrary to what you’ve been led to believe and it‘s counter to your political beliefs as well. A damn conservative just showed you how wrong you are. That’s really bothering you, isn’t it?

You can’t refute the fact that oil is necessary to provide the massive amounts of energy that is required to produce the food and additional resources which is necessary to support the large number of people on this planet and that your vaunted “alternative” sources are actually harmful to everybody. Your “solution” to the oil “problem” can very well kill hundreds of millions of the very people you wish to save. Because you can‘t refute this simple observation, and because it‘s contrary to your beliefs, you resort to insulting and demeaning posts in order to get me to stop making similar observations.

Your reactions are not indicative of someone with high intelligence. As a matter of fact, they’re down right childish. Contrary to some people’s beliefs, childish behavior is hardly intelligent; it’s actually quite the opposite.

B...

He is right in his post.

"Never murder your opponent when he is committing suicide." ~ W. Churchill

botg: Ha! I like it. :)

And a tip of the QueenMum's hat for the link.

I am the exotic Queen Mum, and I approved this message.