Energy

Energy is pretty expensive, but that may be a good thing.  If it were cheap people would misuse energy.  We would be more careless about running our dryers too long, turning our air conditioning too low, leaving lights and fans on when we leave the room.  Conservation would be only for tree huggers.  

Conservation is not a dirty word, it is the smart way to handle the issue of energy use.  We depend too much on foreign oils and it costs us dearly, we need to find a way to conserve energy and make it "hip" so that young people learn the value of conservation as well.

Jimmy Cardigan had it right, as president he could have thrown conservation out the window, let taxpayers pay the light bill-not Jimmy's problem!  It is very honorable that he chose the more conservative roads to follow and led his team down that road as well.  As a child, in upstate New York, I remember my mother buying us warm pajamas and slippers, we had layers of warm blankets on our beds, and she insisted that we put on a sweatshirt and keep the thermostat down. She was a smart lady!

I firmly believe in the benefits of alternative fuels.  If I were to win the lottery I would donate, invest, and do whatever in support the development of renewable energy and biofuels.  I did a research paper on the feasibility of solar energy in America and through the research discovered that it, at least at this point, is not very feasible-it is too expensive.  I would invest in research to make the solar panels more affordable and durable.  

I feel that wind energy is a missed value in this area.  We could build wind turbines in rural farm lands, along highways, maybe even out in the gulf where it isn't seen by tourists.  Then of course, biofuels.  What a great way to reuse our waste!!! What a great way to reduce our dependence on foreign oils!!!! What a reduction of CO2 in the environment!!! (the amount of CO2 from the exhaust of biofuels are not any higher than the plant would've produced through natural decomposition).  

The steps that I could take tomorrow to reduce my carbon footprint is to put up a clothesline instead of using my dryer.  Most days that could be done, unless it is raining there is no excuse for not taking advantage of the climate to dry our clothes.  In the next five years, I will need to buy a car (I use the bus system now to reduce my carbon footprint-I have access to a car if I need to go off the bus route or if it is later than the bus runs, but generally I use the bus whenever possible).  When I buy my car it will be a hybrid so that I wont need to burn petroleum as much.