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10 comments on The Bullroarer - Friday 4 July 2008
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10 comments on The Bullroarer - Friday 4 July 2008
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GAIA Host Collective
What do you have against centralised electricity provision Gav?
I think that the way forward lies with a mixture of both big and small solutions. You seem a little quick to write off the magnitude of accomplishment that can arise from collectivism.
Read my veiws on the solar rebate on that thread. Without a centralised grid system, the kind of advanced society we have would be all but non-existent. Rooftop solar panels are nice for the few who can really afford them (even before the means test) but I seriously doubt it will ever amount to the kind of generation needed to turn the wheels of industry. Hence, individualist solutions can reduce the demand for big electricity generation but never replace it.
Don't forget that we are both individualistic AND colllective by nature. Human beings all working together toward commom, bigger goals is what brought us forward from the stone age.
I'm not opposed to centralised energy provision - I just want people to be free to be independent / self sufficient if they so desire - I'm sure that centralised CSP, geothermal and wind plants will eventually provide a lot (more than half) of our energy needs and I don't have a problem with that (in fact I advocate the construction of all 3 continuously).
As for collectivism, I'm a libertarian, so its in my nature to be dubious about it.
I'm not particularly dogmatic about it though and seem to have an unnaturally large number of (virtual) socialist and anarcho-communist acquaintances :-)
As for the cost of solar, look at that graph I posted again. PV will be price competitive with coal in Australia within a decade.
Do you really object to people being able to generate their own power for the same price they pay for getting it from the grid ?