So, after the rainbow crusade the next most important article of the woke faith is the climate change crusade. And the real-world consequence that this delusion engenders is the energy crisis that we are currently suffering under.
Starting in Europe but now picking up steam here in America, the Left is attempting to criminalize the use of hydrocarbon fuels. And especially they’re trying to take them away from private citizens. So even though the bulk of electrical generation is powered by natural gas in this country, the federal government and states like California are legislating against the use of gasoline powered cars and other equipment like lawn mowers and at the same time, against the use of natural gas for cooking and eventually home heating.
And indicating to the oil companies that they are going to be phased out has had the predictable effect of curtailing their efforts to keep the price of gas and oil stable. Instead, this plan has unleashed the OPEC cartel’s efforts to maximize their profits in the short term and ignore Washington’s pleas to help it along with making the transition quiet so that it becomes a fait accompli. And even though the adoption of electric vehicles is already becoming a nightmare for the power grid in California, the feds have doubled down on making this all happen by 2030.
First a word on the technical aspects of this plan. As a chemical engineer I can say categorically this is a stupid and wrong-headed plan. Charging electric cars from a grid that is basically powered using fossil fuels is incredibly wasteful. Over a third of the energy that even reaches the grid is wasted as heat during transmission. That’s not even taking into consideration the difference in efficiency between the internal combustion engine versus the combination of the turbine electric generators and the battery charging and discharging efficiency. It’s absurd. And they call it “green.”
So how does this end up? Well, you know the drill. Let me throw out some scenarios and I’ll make my guess and then you follow up on the poll. Here goes.
The worst-case scenario is that this whole thing is accomplished. The people of the United States act like good little sheep and just acquiesce in this whole stupid plan. And in order to compensate for all the inefficiencies and fallacies in the plan we all end up losing a whole lot of freedom and affluence. With much more expensive electricity and with the supply insufficient to allow everyone to recharge their cars every day, trains and busses will become the mandated form of transportation for ordinary people. So, forget about auto trips and vacations. Probably car ownership will become too expensive for anybody not in the upper middle class. Even home heating will become a real problem. Expect that people will walk around their homes in coats and hats in the winter and insulation will become a matter of life and death. And enjoy living in the desert southwest without air-conditioning. And the cost of food will also increase drastically and the variety of foods will go away. No more fresh fruits in the winter except for the very well off. The peasants will make do with whatever can last from the fall. No more meat. Unless you consider crickets meat.
The middle scenario is a much slower rollout and the realization that nuclear power plants can be sold to the climate zealots as “green energy.” Having a reliable and economical high density power source could ameliorate some of the sins that battery cars create and leaves open the scenario where hydrogen fuel for cars is affordable. And likewise, affordable energy could prevent the other problems like expensive food and home heating
The best-case scenario would be the American people revolting against the stupidity of the green agenda and voting for a combination of fossil fuels in the here and now and research into long term energy solutions like nuclear and other more exotic sources like geothermal.
For once I’m not guessing that the middle scenario will occur. I think the American people are sheep that will be led to the slaughter. I’m guessing we’ll get the whole green agenda and we’ll be eating bugs and taking the train in the future. The ultimate humiliation for a once free people.
Leave your guess below.