The Oil Drum

"..only give us useless electric power"

Useless HOW!?

How, Cliff? Useless because people can safely post unbacked assertions on their electric computers, again and again? You just listed COUNTLESS the ways we use electricity in your MASSBLOCK of text yesterday. You seem to mean 'Doomed'.. but it's surely not useless.

If the grid is down (as you predict), but you have some electric tools, vehicles, refrigeration, communications.. and some local generation capacity.. does it not stand to reason that you would be using those tools to get to work solving the various problems you've got before you? Beyond that, Generators, Motors and PV panels all have track records that attest to their endurance FAR beyond ICE equipment, which means the effort put into making them was not likely wasted.

Passive Solar is great, as is direct solar heating, solar refrigeration, etc, and they do get mentioned from time to time here, but I haven't seen any suggestions for ways that Passive Solar could help us directly with transportation, save that it leaves fuel that 'would' have been in a furnace possibly available for a truck.. but that is 'Negawatts'. As I said, it's great, but it doesn't actually move the truck or the bus, while this 'USELESS' electricity CAN.

I don't actually object to your business aspirations, and don't necessarily agree with those who snark at you about consulting. I think that's fine. But your comments are getting down to 'junk' status as long as you insist on casting these broadsides and not sticking around to reinforce your point. It's become entirely trollish.

Bob