Harry Reid Pushes Nevada As "Saudi Arabia of Geothermal Energy" 369
An anonymous reader writes "Of all the 'mainstream' forms of renewable energy, it seems that geothermal power is always left in the shadows compared to solar and wind power. However, that looks set to change with news that the US Department of Energy will fund geothermal projects in northwestern Nevada and southeast Oregon. With funds from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, the DOE has stated a 'conditional commitment' to provide a partial guarantee for a rumored $98.5 million loan to the Nevada Geothermal Power Company (NGP). According to US Senator Harry Reid, 'Northern Nevada is the Saudi Arabia of geothermal energy.'"
Re:The problem with geothermal (Score:5, Interesting)
Regardless, I am very optimistic about geothermal for meeting the energy needs of low population density areas. On top of that, geothermal heat pumps [wikipedia.org] for heating and air conditioning, while not an energy source, improve efficiency so much that in both hot and cold regions of the country, they will typically pay for themselves in 3-7 years.
Re:Yellowstone Caldera? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:5, Interesting)
It makes me wonder, if Senators bring in pork to their state to get re-elected, do you think there would be more pork in general if we repealed the direct election of senators, which some claim would give states more say in the Federal government? As is I think the fact that so much party money is on the line to keep representatives 'pure', which greatly distorts the idea of local elections.
Re:Yellowstone Caldera? (Score:1, Interesting)
This!
I don't understand for the life of me why nobody is tapping the volcanoes for geothermal!
1) IT IS HOT
2) FREE
3) YOU CAN SELL IT
4) IT WILL OUTLIVE YOU
5) You might potentially stop a future eruption if you are smart about the design of the piping system.
Apparently the people in Yellowstone would rather have a timebomb park than powerhouse and, well, STILL A PARK, WITH SOME MORE BUILDINGS AROUND...
Don't want Old Faithful to die? USE ALL THAT FREE ENERGY YOU'RE GETTING TO FAKE IT! BOY, ITS A MILLION DOLLAR IDEA!
I'm glad i'm nowhere near that thing when it goes off. At least i'll have a chance. (especially since the chamber seems to be shrinking in size in general over the many years it has popped its top)
Re:Naturally (Score:4, Interesting)
That's one of the things I always hated about politicians. They always think their state is the best
It's not a problem with politicians, it's a problem with the system. The constitution says that a senator represents a state, a congressperson a district. If you want it to be different, we need to have a body that is elected by the American people as a whole.
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:2, Interesting)
That's an interesting argument and I'm hearing more and more about that coming out of the houston area. Do you have any links you'd like to share?
Link
One of the foremost references on the Constitution. It includes letters and speeches by some of the founders about each clause. Beware the advanced language usage.
The link is direct to the clause in question with links the the writings about why the Senators are chosen the way they are. (At least in the physical text that's the way it is.)
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:3, Interesting)
Sorry about that. O_o
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:0, Interesting)
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:2, Interesting)
Some of those "Controversial" issues you state might actually have some merit, despite your leftist slant:
1) The use Department of Education is notoriously inefficient at financial planning; All US public schools must spend their entire budget each year, and cannot store money for future renovations, et al.. This is why when schools need to improve their fascilities, it ALWAYS comes as a bond issue. The reason for this "Cannot save money, MUST spend all of the yearly budget!" is presumably to curb imbezzlement of education dollars. Personally, I think this is silly, as it promotes excessive waste of education dollars, and inefficient spending of education dollars. I would much rather see the primary education system of the US enable a 3 to 5 year budgeting system, whereby school administrators can plan for expansions, rennovations, etc, and would be part and parcel with a complete financial audit at the end of every budget cycle, as the means of curbing both problems. This would keep the Department of Education busy, (nobody said all schools need to be audited simultaneously) and would reduce the number of absurdly expensive bond issues that current are needed.
2) Pulling out of the UN; I agree! this is a GREAT idea! I admit that I am an isolationist; Being an isolationist country that keeps to itself is MUCH better than being a country that exports toxic waste (both physical, and in terms of law enforcement and political treaties) to other countries en-mass. Ending the affiliation with the UN would make it INSANELY less profitable for US corporations to outsource labor, etc, and would strongly promote the rennovation of internal infrastructures that have been in decline since the 50s.
3) Social Security(TM) has become the personal piggybank of our BigGovernmentOverlords(TM) for the better part of the century now. When originally created, this was not the case. Current social security has been too heavily compromised by government hentai tentacles to ever be fixed. It DOES need to be scrapped, and re-created with proper safeguards in place. People's retirement savings are NOT the property of the US government, GOD DAMNIT.
4) Emerging research suggests that people get more than enough fluoride for proper dental health from fluoridated toothpaste and other fluoridated products (Some chewing gums, mouth washes, flossers, etc.), and that additional fluoride in drinking water can actually promote dental DISORDERS, such as Fluorosis, which in addition to making permanently weakened dental enamel, also contributes heavily to late-life osteoporosis, and certain bone cancers. Naturally, the ADA doesnt want to admit that its massive fluoridation projects might actually be DETRACTING from public health, rather than improving it. For a VERY long time, it was taboo to even mention enough criticism to SUGGEST raw research, let alone to point out that it {fluoridation) might not be a good thing to begin with. Urban centers, with access to good dental infrastructure and proper hygine products do not need fluoridation. Places like Apelachia (however you spell that), where people STILL dont have electricity--- are the kinds of places where flouridation is still needed.
As for the other items, No-- I am against those things. GLobal warming is not a farce, it is easily demonstrated experimentally in a greenhouse. Getting rid of alcohol was proven to be unconstitutional, and caused horrible problems in the prohibition era; (much like what is happening now with the "War on drugs"...) and I don't think I need to explain why increased oil well production is NOT a good thing.
As for violent overthrow of the "legitimately elected" government; I think there is a rather nice quote there.. Goes something like this:
The tree of liberty needs to be watered, from time to time, with the blood of tyrants.
Last I checked, our two party system does not constitute a true democratic election, since our choices are pre-screened by established political groups with deeply rooted agendas. Sounds like as good a time as any to do some "watering."
Re:Las Vegas... (Score:3, Interesting)
Prostitution is illegal in Clark County, NV, where Las Vegas is located.
And yet there are billboard advertisements for it in Vegas.
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:3, Interesting)
All US public schools must spend their entire budget each year, and cannot store money for future renovations, et al.. This is why when schools need to improve their fascilities, it ALWAYS comes as a bond issue. The reason for this "Cannot save money, MUST spend all of the yearly budget!" is presumably to curb imbezzlement of education dollars
This is the same for all government organisations and its got nothing to do with embezzlement - its simply the idea that you are given a bucket of money to spend on education and its your job as an administrator to take that money and turn it into education. Now the idea that this hinders capital projects it quite frankly retarded. How about instead of paying it up front from one year's budget they pay it over several years from current and future budgets. What you say? That is how its actually done? No shit. If this cannot be done it is because they dont have enough money to build new facilities and maintain current ones rather than budget inflexibility.
I would much rather see the primary education system of the US enable a 3 to 5 year budgeting system, whereby school administrators can plan for expansions, rennovations, etc, and would be part and parcel with a complete financial audit at the end of every budget cycle, as the means of curbing both problems.
This basically already happens.
Ending the affiliation with the UN would make it INSANELY less profitable for US corporations to outsource labor, etc, and would strongly promote the rennovation of internal infrastructures that have been in decline since the 50s.
Are you thinking of the WTO? That's not really related to the UN... Not to mention that world trade is a big boon for the US overall, and a return to isolationism would probably destroy the economy.
Social Security(TM) has become the personal piggybank of our BigGovernmentOverlords(TM) for the better part of the century now. When originally created, this was not the case. Current social security has been too heavily compromised by government hentai tentacles to ever be fixed. It DOES need to be scrapped, and re-created with proper safeguards in place. People's retirement savings are NOT the property of the US government, GOD DAMNIT.
The government borrows money from the fund and pays interest on its loan. I dont particularly think this is the best way of going about things but its better paying interest to American ppl then to pay it to someone else.
Naturally, the ADA doesnt want to admit that its massive fluoridation projects might actually be DETRACTING from public health, rather than improving it. For a VERY long time, it was taboo to even mention enough criticism to SUGGEST raw research, let alone to point out that it {fluoridation) might not be a good thing to begin with.
Not a dentist so I cannot comment on what the research says but since the ADA doesn't have any interest in maintaining the fluoridation of water other than for public heath I cannot imagine they would really give a shit if it was stopped based on research.
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:2, Interesting)
The pork, especially on giant new power plants (or nuke waste dumps) gets spent on giant corporations in that state. The replacement of direct election of senators by the old way, election by the state's legislature, would just hide the bribery and patronage under that less direct election.
If you're against democracy, you're against direct election of senators.
If you want more democracy, you want the Senate to make the filibuster extremely rare, instead of the current Republican practice of filibustering every single Democratic bill, which changes the Constitution's majority (50%+1) requirement into a forced supermajority of 60+.
And if you want real democracy, instead of people in small states like Wyoming having something like 70 times the voting power in the Senate (and therefore in the Electoral College for president) of big states like California.
There's a lot we can change to make Congress more democratic, more of a legitimate republic. Giving up our power to vote for our senators is a giant change backwards into the 1800s.
Re:The problem with geothermal (Score:4, Interesting)
Federally funded Nevada geothermal plant sponsored by Harry Reid triggers ... earthquakes ...
Not completely a joke.
High pressure injection of liquids into faults makes them act as hydraulic jacks with piston cross-sections measurable in square miles, pushing the faults open. If the faults are under even slight crosswise stress that cause earthquakes. (This was first discovered in Denver when the Rocky Mountain Arsenal used a deep injection well to attempt disposing of chemical warfare waste, later researched and documented.)
Doing it with a liquid that can boil when the rocks are hot means you have less control over the process once the liquid is in place and being expanded by the heat. (IMHO there's also a possibility of activating a volcano.)
While setting off quakes in northwestern Nevada probably won't bother the faults in San Francisco or Yosemite, it wouldn't be all that friendly to the people within a few tens of miles of the site.
Lying Senator (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Naturally (Score:3, Interesting)
So what? Every state/district/neighborhood deserves to have people fighting for it. The USA is such a large stretch of land with such a diverse bunch of people/communities, that for many problems there isn't just one solution that's "best for the country."
Re:According to US Senator Harry Reid ... (Score:3, Interesting)
And of course, you are also making a lot of shit up. I can't believe anyone modded you informative--more like a troll.