When a major disaster happens, our elected representatives seem rather determined to defend the status quo.

Here is President Obama saying that we need to stick with nuclear power.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3jJ2O8vghs

Germany, on the other hand, shut down their nuclear plants in light of this tragedy in Japan.

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/03/german-solar-energy-may-get-a-boost-from-japans-nuclear-disaster

Meanwhile, it seems that the US solution to our energy needs is to rename coal "clean coal".

:::face in hands, shaking head:::

It would impossible for Germany to shutdown their Nuclear Plants, why? 31% of their electricity comes from Nuclear Reactors about the same as Japan. As of 2009, Germany produces 127 TWh (Terra Watt/hours) from nuclear. Tell how is it possible for them shut their reactors down without plunging the country into darkness and severely curtailing their industrial output.

There are credible sources and sources publishing incredibly incorrect information to promote their selfish goals.

The fact is nuclear will be part of the energy solution and the nuclear technology has progressed so that one doesn't need to build massive plants like the GE Mark One built over 10 years ago.

Thorium reactors are in the works which essentially eliminates 95% of risks associated with nuclear.

with We are different from other countries. We seem to take sound bites and expert analysis by the so called pundits selfish and unprincipled analysis (if you call it that) seriously with a semblance of analysis or fact finding on our own. If we find fact, logic or rationale, we willfully suspend all of it.

Different indeed.

It's called Solar.

Fact 1) Spain now has the largest solar power station in the world. It's energy production is equal to that of nuclear power. Mind you, the technology is still in it's infancy.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jul/13/spain-solar-power

Fact 2) The closer a nation is to the equator, the more potential solar energy has for that nation.

Fact 3) Spain is located at 40 degrees N Latitude.

Fact 4) 40 degrees N Latitude cuts through north of the Mason Dixon line in the United States, through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Colorado, and northern California.

Fact 5) Obama put in a measely 2 billion into solar in the Recovery Act, and proposed 15 billion a year for the next decade. Who knows if he'll get it.

http://www.bionomicfuel.com/solar-energy-in-the-us-obama-is-spending-huge/

Fact 6) Despite that 74% of the American people are opposed to it, the oil industry gets 53 billion dollars in subsides, despite in the last decade they made nearly a trillion dollars in profit.

http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2011/03/03/americans-oil-subsidies/

Moving to solar power in a big way could be revenue neutral. Just take oil subsidies away and put them into solar. Secondly, it would provide us with the most renewable and safest energy available. Thirdly, it would be a major economic boom for the deep south and southwest, which they certainly could use right now.

-- Modified on 3/19/2011 8:31:04 PM

HYPOCRITE !!!

So what the hell would you do, and do us a favor and if you actually respond, respond with something that will work TODAY, no 50 years from now...

Come on AF, fess up. You actually just copied and pasted this from somewhere else, you didn't really think this up by yourself, did you?

If you did actually pen this yourself, then kudos to you. This is most likely the most intelligent and well written post you have ever made here. Maybe there is hope for you after all.

with solar panels, still would not produce adequate electricity. Long term energy solution would require many sources.

This is exactly the problem with all pigeon holed fanatics, to them; there is only one best solution, theirs. Practicality is not for them and that's what is wrong with every aspect of our society.

That makes us different. Add unreliable biassed information sources to the debate, that makes it even better.

Germany did not shut down their reactors. On the other hand, EU is taking initiative to inspect all reactors 10 years or older. NRC is going to do the same.

Suppose, the map for Sunshine, includes large deserts like the Sahara, Gobi, Thar, etc. deserts cover 35% of earths surface, some partially inhabited. If you subtract the desert area, available sunshine sharply decrease. Next argument one can generate in the desert and connect it the grid. Not cost effective for two fundamental reasons: (1) transmission loss, (2) solar panels of today is not built to withstand the extreme temperature variations of a real desert.

Follow up argument, they are installed in Mojave. Answer: Mojave is classified as a sub-tropical and the temperature variation is manageable unlike deserts like Sahara, Gobi and Thar. Yes, there are camel herders in these areas but they don't seem to need a lot of electricity or other forms of energy at th moment.

Unfettered, irrational criticism of anything and everything is unproductive and destructive.