Originally Posted by
LegoSkier
Seriously? Why the fuck are we still having this discussion? You know what, fuck AGW. Sure, global warming is something we should keep an eye on and prepare for mitigating factors but it sure as fuck doesn’t matter to me as far as energy policy is concerned. The simple fact is combustion and heat engines are inherently inefficient. Combustion can never be anywhere close to 100% efficient. Second law of thermodynamics rules that and cannot be changed. Furthermore, combustion of organic fuels spews forth toxic chemicals. Want proof? Get in a sealed room with a combustion car. What will happen? You will quickly die of carbon monoxide poisoning. Now get in a room with an electric car. You will be just fine (until you yourself use up all the oxygen). Try the same thing with coal vs solar panels. Same thing will happen. We should not be burning stuff to power our civilization. Period. Not coal, not oil, not wood, dung, natural gas, or anything else. We should be directly using the primary energy sources of the planet without having to wait for other organisms to first convert those sources to stuff we can burn. That means the energy from the sun, the energy from the movement of the atmosphere, the energy from gravity, the energy from geologic movement, and the energy from atomic forces.