David, exactly. Given the large amount of upfront energy needed for an investment in wind and solar that would come anywhere near the energy we now consume, it is hard to imagine anything other than a tyrannical government as being able to appropriate that energy. If we were going to replace fossil fuels with alternatives it needed to happen when we had excess. It is not just the energy for the solar panels and windmills but also for the infrastructure to fix the grid and "tank" up electric vehicles. Even investing in more public transport will be a hard sell but I think that would be far more doable than a Manhattan project on solar panels and windmills.

oxidated,
Wind energy returns energy invested in months not years, allowing all energy for 50% growth in new wind to be derived from just those turbines installed 6 months ago. It's happening now, before we have the electric vehicles. Funding in the US budget for grid upgrades.