12,000-mile trip to have seafood shelled

By Auslan Cramb, Scottish Correspondent
Last Updated: 1:28am GMT 16/11/2006

A seafood firm was accused of "environmental madness" yesterday for choosing to send langoustines on a 12,000-mile round trip to Thailand to have their shells removed.
After the shellfish is caught in Scottish waters, it will be frozen and shipped to the Far East in containers, where it will be peeled by hand and sent back to Britain to be sold as scampi in supermarkets and restaurants.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=CTRI0ATL5IPBFQFIQMGSFF4AVCBQWIV0?xml=/news/200 6/11/16/nprawn16.xml

Sometimes, it is tough for me to figure out which party is the more clueless about energy policy. The answer from the Republicans is to explore and drill more. The answer from many Democrats is that we just need to switch to any one of many readily available alternatives. It seems that neither side grasps that a HUGE conservation push will be required before any measure can work, and I have yet to see a high profile politician out there stumping for electrification.

He came to Peak Oil through some link to LATOC, has read Heinberg and has heard of Simmons. I told him about Roscoe Bartlett's conference, TOD, Energy Bulletin, etc. I'm bringing him some links tonight. Maybe he'll show up here.

Oh, this is the show:
http://www.altoonamirror.com/Life/articles.asp?articleID=6441

Before rehearsal, I had two interviews in a large city. One firm was in a brand new 17 story building in what must have been some sort of industrial yard. It was surrounded by temporary parking, and there was a low building with a health club, a restaurant/bar and some shops. After my interview, the architects gestured to where all the low rise buildings would surround the high-rise and fill out the "campus." I was intrigued because I know that chain of clubs tend to have active masters swim programs, but it seemed sort of isolated from the rest of the city. I read later that they call this development a city within the city.

My second interview was on an old street just outside the city center.  The streets were lined with mostly three story rowhouses. Across the street was a church, a small bookstore, a fortune teller and a bike shop :-). Down a few blocks were restaurants, a sub shop (I had a deliciously unhealthy gyro), a tailor(!) and lots of other shops.

Of course, what happens within the office is far more important to my decision where to work, but the in-city location was much more intriguing than the frankly suburban city-within-a-city.

Analysts fear Iraq chaos will inflame entire Middle East

BAGHDAD, Iraq - While American commanders have suggested that civil war is possible in Iraq, many leaders, experts and ordinary people in Baghdad and around the Middle East say it is already underway, and that the real worry ahead is that the conflict will destroy the flimsy Iraqi state and draw in surrounding countries.

Alan
________

1. Streetcar vs Bus Operating Cost Comparsion
    Posted by: "Bill Robb" bill937ca@yahoo.ca bill937ca

Light Rail Now has a comparsion of streetcar versus bus operating costs using comparative data provided by Portland Streetcar Inc. in Portland, Oregon.

http://www.lightrailnow.org/news/n_newslog2006q4.htm#LRT_20061112

Portland Streetcar Inc reports that  a streetcar attracts 30-50% more ridership than a bus.  Comparsions are give for a four milecirculator (like Portland Streetcar) and for an
eight mile line haul route.

In both cases the streetcar comes out ahead on a cost per passenger mile even though carrying 30% more passengers than the bus line.

Although capital costs are far higher for streetcar lines, buses have shorter economic lives (18 years in Ontario, but significantly less in the US) versus 30-40 for streetcars
with a mid-term rebuild.  Also buses generally receive hidden subsidies from public works budgets covering street paving.

All this seems to support the long time TTC [Toronto Transit] contention that buses are more suited to short feeders with moderate traffic levels and streetcars are appropriate for intense traffic on line haul routes.

Bill Robb

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6129460.stm

US researchers have outlined a relatively simple system that could deliver power to devices such as laptop computers or MP3 players without wires.

The concept exploits century-old physics and could work over distances of many metres, the researchers said.

I did an interview this week for a major publication, and I was quizzed about cellulosic ethanol. I won't reveal too many details, because I don't want to scoop the guy's story. But he asked about the amount of biomass that would be required to run a small 35 million gallon per year plant. I am detailing my calculations in an essay, but the bottom line was a requirement of the equivalent of 650,000 mature Douglas firs PER YEAR to run this small facility, which would displace about 0.016% of our annual gasoline consumption.

The conversions used were those reported by Iogen in their large-scale cellulosic ethanol trial. You could probably get by on half that much biomass with a gasification process, but it does put into perspective one of the major challenges of scaling up cellulosic ethanol. This is why I always tell people that cellulosic ethanol plants need to be located near a massive source of waste biomass - like an enormous landfill. It is not clear to me that you will be able to supply these plants by growing biomass each year.

The Chinese-language version of the website was reported to be fully accessible this week.

The press freedom group Reporters without Borders praised the bosses of Wikipedia, who they said had "always refused to go in for self-censorship".

Other internet giants have been criticised for censoring their services or complying with strict Chinese rules.

Wikipedia - which allows users to add to and edit the website's information - was becoming increasingly popular in China until it was blocked in late 2005.

China has strict laws on internet use and blocks content it deems a threat, including references to the Tiananmen Square massacre and notable dissidents.

It also blocks the BBC News website.

'Neutral view'

Critics say global internet firms such as Yahoo, Google and Microsoft have compromised their principles, justifying this by saying it was the only way to gain access to China's fast-growing market.

"The Wikipedia example proves the contrary," the Paris-based Reporters without Borders said.

"The Chinese government is pragmatic and does not want to do without foreign businesses in the internet sector. There is obviously room for negotiation for the US companies."

A Chinese-American former academic and Wikipedia specialist, Andrew Lih, reported the lifting of the block.

In his blog, he said he believed the Chinese authorities gave way because of Wikipedia's consistent argument that it "has a neutral point of view at its core, with no activist or subversive agenda to the site".

"In the end, I believe consensus among the authorities determined the benefits of Wikipedia far outweigh the risks."

There was no immediate official word from the Chinese authorities on the lifting of the block.

...And at a very basic level, people are beginning to wonder exactly how our society is going to heat its houses and grow and transport its food in about 20 years or so.

Twenty years? Who cares, right? You scoff at such a time frame? For perspective, just understand that about 50% of all the petroleum ever consumed by mankind has been consumed since 1984. That is, people have been watching Tom Cruise movies and listening to Madonna sing for a longer time than it took to burn 500 billion barrels of petroleum. Talk about Nero fiddling? And about 90% of all the petroleum that has ever been consumed by mankind has been consumed since 1958. So 90% of the world's oil consumption has occurred in the time since the Beatles were a warm-up act in Liverpool. Does this not give you some sense of the rapidity of the developing energy storm?

Yes, it does.

Just wanted to briefly say that Leanan is amazingly on top of the PO + GW issues with all these great links to read--I give Big Kudos to her.

The problem for me is trying to keep pace with the rapid and crucial updates occurring on EnergyBulletin, LATOC, and TOD, and I am a very fast reader.  When it rains, it pours!

Bob Shaw in Phx,Az  Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?
 

You would have thought the easy money had been made on the short side in the plung from $78 to $60, but no, it seems funds reckon they can push it lower.

Why? I maintain that they see falling demand off the back of a US major slow down/recession in Q4, and Q1 and Q2 of 2007 and so feel there is more room on the short side. You may well see sub $50 in the period between now and Easter. That yield  curve is getting more and more inverted - at the least I reckon you will get sub 1% GDP in 2 of the next 3 quarters. Problem is we have no model to predict what this does to demand.

We had better be up for the brickbats that will come our way if oil does go sub $50 - we really need to take a closer look at what demand is going to do.

http://www.bobparsons.com/WhyIPOPulled.html

http://tarana.org.uk/mshop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=8

http://www.sociopathic.net/index.htm

First one, guy thinks the market is wishy washy,  Second one space music to the nines.  The Last one, well are we them or are they those other guys?

http://dan-ur.blogspot.com
Charles.

The guys at CERA selling short?

SAT - you were a day out! (still the best forecast I ever heard).  The way things look, a 3 day moving average could = $57.

The contributor formerly known as Wolfie.

This paper from the Lowy Institute (Think tank) came to light at the same time the Australian Treasurer began pushing this line

http://www.lowyinstitute.org/PublicationGet.asp?i=508

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/international-effort-to-open-up-oil-trade/2006/11/12/11632664130 71.html

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/a-golden-opportunity-to-shine-on-the-international-stage/2006/11 /12/1163266413074.html

It I thought was quite a coincidence.

I believe food and water supplies are inextricably and  tightly linked to PO + GW.  Now Australia has to import grains to meet contracts:
-----------------------
Wheat imports loom as drought bites

AUSTRALIA will import grain to offset a national wheat shortage due to crop failure and for the first time in 10 years faces buying wheat on the international market to honour massive export contracts.

"The drought has had a very, very serious impact on our winter crop," the Minister for Trade, Warren Truss, said yesterday in Tokyo.

There will be no exportable surplus from grain growers in the eastern states and much of the West Australian wheat crop was earmarked for export, he said.

"It is actually cheaper to bring wheat or other grain, probably maize, from other parts of the world to the east coast than it is to shift grain from the west coast to the east," Mr Truss said.
-----------------------------
Thus, the required embedded energy of feeding the world is getting progressively worse.

Bob Shaw in Phx,Az  Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?

Petro-Canada looking to sell interests in five oilsands properties

The proposed sale of the non-core Petro-Canada oilsands properties comes amid soaring costs to develop such mega-projects because of rising prices for steel, machinery and labour in a superheated Alberta energy economy.

Earlier this fall, Talisman Energy (TSX:TLM) put all its oilsands holdings up for sale in a move that could fetch more than $1 billion as the company moves to focus on core oil and gas operations and pare down unnecessary properties.

The noise in the system speaks again, do you hear the heartbeat of the gaia system group think, listen to the noise.

http://dan-ur.blogspot.com

The Nuke winter is here in a few years the half life of UR is Iran's issue.   Can we wait to long to do the right thing?  Is the king here abouts to tell us, Khebab what do you think e.mail me, I need a graphical downloadable spreadsheet of Peak UR.

Charles.
HG Author at Large.

Zimbabwe's crisis is worse than the situation in Darfur.  Please read the entire link called Dead at 34!  North America in 2056?  I have no idea, but I sure hope it is not like this.

Bob Shaw in Phx,Az  Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?

A truly vast array of criss-crossing continental powerlines is in the works and current regulatory rules will be mostly swept away as  we resist the march to Olduvai Gorge.  Here is the link but I posted and hi-lited the relevant info for the Asphalt Wonderland below, but I encourage all to read the whole article:
---------------------------------------
Electrical line maze on the way

Utilities planning vast array to trim power crunch

To meet the nation's fast-growing demand for electricity, utilities are planning to string thousands of miles of high-voltage power lines across the United States in a building frenzy that could mar some the country's most precious open spaces.

In a study released in August, the Energy Department identified "critical congestion areas" from New York to Northern Virginia, and in Southern California. "Congestion areas of concern" are New England, Phoenix, Seattle and San Francisco.

The pathways already have helped spur several power line plans in the West. Arizona Public Service is spearheading development of two, roughly 1,000-mile, 500,000-volt transmission lines from Wyoming coal and wind sources to Phoenix, where population growth is projected to boost power demand 60 percent by 2020. Eventually, the $2.5 billion project could link to Southern California.
-------------------------------------
Bob Shaw in Phx,Az  Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?

Less than a quarter of a century ago, the Internet was an obscure network of large computers used only by a small community of researchers. At the time, the majority of computers were found in corporate information technology (IT) departments or research laboratories, and hardly anyone imagined that the Internet would play such an important role in our lives as it does today. In fact, the very idea of a "personal computer," much less millions of them connected by a global network, seemed absurd to all but a handful of enthusiasts.

Today, the Internet is far from obscure--it's the center of attention for businesses, governments and individuals around the world. It has spawned entirely new industries, transformed existing ones, and become a global cultural phenomenon. But despite its impact, today's Internet is still roughly where the automobile was during the era of Henry Ford's Model T. We've seen a lot of amazing things so far, but there is much more to come. We are only at the dawn of the Internet Age.

In the years ahead, the Internet will have an even more profound effect on the way we work, live and learn. By enabling instantaneous and seamless communication and commerce around the globe, from almost any device imaginable, this technology will be one of the key cultural and economic forces of the early 21st century.

Why is the Internet such a powerful and compelling technology? First and foremost, from its conception in the academic community (largely as a result of government-sponsored research) to its subsequent development and commercialization by the private sector, the Internet has evolved into a uniquely independent information exchange--one that is able to grow organically, can operate reliably with little centralized management, and is built entirely on common standards.

It is those common standards that helped make the Internet so successful. From TCP/IP (the technological protocol that is the "traffic cop" for Internet data) to HTML and XML (the twin lingua francas of the World Wide Web), common standards have opened up the Internet to anyone who speaks its language. And since the language of the Internet is universal and easily grasped, any business can create products and services that make use of it. That openness has produced amazing technological competitiveness. To thrive on the Internet, every business has to make its products, services and interface more attractive than competitors that are only a few mouse-clicks away.

The "killer application" that transformed the Internet into a global phenomenon was the World Wide Web. Developed in the late 1980s at the European Center for Nuclear Research (CERN) from research by Tim Berners-Lee, the Web was initially created to share data on nuclear physics. By using hyperlinks and graphical "browsing" technology, the Web greatly simplifies the process of searching for, accessing, and sharing information on the Internet, making it much more accessible to a non-technical audience.

As the Web's popularity surged among students, researchers and other Internet enthusiasts, an entirely new industry emerged to create software and content for the Web. This explosion of creativity made the Web more compelling for users, which encouraged more companies to provide Internet access, which encouraged still more individuals and businesses to get connected to the Internet. As recently as 1994, there were only 500 fairly modest Web sites worldwide; today the Web has close to 3 billion pages. We can expect this growth cycle to continue and even accelerate, thanks to more powerful and cheaper computers, higher-speed Internet access on a wider range of devices, and advanced software that makes it all work together.

Breaking Down Barriers

The main advantage of any new technology is that it amplifies human potential. In the 20th century, electricity, the telephone, the automobile and the airplane all made the world more accessible to more people, transforming our economy and society in the process. The Internet has the same revolutionary impact--individuals and businesses can overcome geographical, cultural and logistical barriers and improve the way they live and work. Because it amplifies our potential in so many ways, it's possible that the long-term impact of the Internet could equal that of electricity, the automobile and the telephone all rolled together. How?

The Internet makes the world smaller. The ability to communicate and exchange information instantaneously and across vast distances has enabled more individuals and businesses to participate in the economy, regardless of their location. Large companies can connect with employees, suppliers, and partners around the globe, and small businesses can find their customers anywhere in the world. Businesses can hire knowledge workers almost regardless of where they are, greatly expanding employment opportunities for people in the United States, and giving developing nations the ability to become economic powerhouses by providing information technology services to the rest of the world. The Internet, along with other computer technologies, is literally enabling some developing countries to "leapfrog" the industrial revolution and jump straight to the Internet Age.

The Internet brings people closer together. Before the Internet, it was possible to keep in touch with relatives and friends across the country or around the world--but it was also expensive. Today, communicating with a friend in Japan is as easy and cheap as communicating with a friend across town, and families regularly use the Internet to keep in touch with far-flung relatives. Millions of people with shared interests--no matter how obscure--exchange information and build communities through Web sites, email and instant-messaging software. Using innovative accessibility aids, people with disabilities can use the Internet to help overcome barriers that prevent them from leading more productive and fulfilling lives.

The Internet makes the world simpler. For businesses, the Internet breaks down logistical barriers, offering greater flexibility and power in the way they do business. It shrinks time and distance, simplifies complex business processes, and enables more effective communication and collaboration--a giant corporation can now be as nimble as a tiny startup, while a family firm located in a remote rural village now has the world as its marketplace. Combined with advanced productivity software, the Internet enables individual knowledge workers to use their time more efficiently, and to focus on more productive tasks. And it gives consumers the ability to shop smarter, to find the best products at the right prices. In fact, it empowers them in ways that once were available only to large companies, enabling them to join with others to buy products at lower prices, and bid competitively around the world.

What's Next?

The Internet has already revolutionized the way we live and work, but it is still in its infancy. In the coming years, a combination of cheap and powerful computing devices, fast and convenient Internet access, and software innovations could make the Internet as common and powerful a resource as electricity is today.

Today, most people access the Internet through their home or office PC, but as microprocessors become cheaper and more powerful, Internet access will also be available from a wider range of smart devices, from tablet-sized PCs to smart cellular phones--even familiar household appliances. People will be able to share information seamlessly across devices and interact with them in a more natural way, using speech, handwriting and gestures. Eventually, they will be able to interact with a computer almost as easily as they do with each other.

And all this computing power will be interconnected, as high-speed Internet access becomes available in more areas and in many different ways, both wired and wireless. Advances in communications technologies, along with increasing public demand for Internet access, will eventually ensure that Internet connectivity will be commonplace at home, at work or on the move.

Communication between devices on the Internet will be greatly enhanced by new Internet standards such as XML, which offers a way to separate a Web page's underlying data from the presentational view of that data. Whereas HTML uses "tags" to define how data is displayed on Web pages, XML uses tags to provide a common way of defining precisely what the underlying data actually is. XML "unlocks" data so that it can be organized, programmed and edited. This makes it easier for that data to be shared across a wider range of PCs, servers, handheld devices, and "smart" phones and appliances. While today's Internet consists of isolated "islands" of data that are difficult to edit, share and integrate, tomorrow's Internet will break down those barriers and enable people to access and share the information they need--regardless of whether they're accessing the Internet from their PC or any other device.

All these advances will soon create a ubiquitous Internet--personal and business information, email, and instant messaging, rich digital media and Web content will be available any time, any place and from any device.

Opportunities and Challenges

Whenever a new technology emerges with the potential to change the way people live and work, it sparks lively debate about its impact on our world and concern over how widely it should be adopted. Some people will view the technology with tremendous optimism, while others will view it as threatening and disruptive. When the telephone was first introduced, many critics thought it would disrupt society, dissolve communities, erode privacy, and encourage selfish, destructive behavior. Others thought the telephone was a liberating and democratizing force that would create new business opportunities and bring society closer together.

The Internet brings many of these arguments back to life. Some optimists view the Internet as humanity's greatest invention--an invention on the scale of the printing press. They believe the Internet will bring about unprecedented economic and political empowerment, richer communication between people, a cultural renaissance, and a new era of economic prosperity and world peace. At the other extreme, pessimists think the Internet will result in economic and cultural exploitation, the death of privacy, and a decline in values and social standards.

If history is any guide, neither side of these arguments will be proved right. Just as the telephone, electricity, the automobile, and the airplane shaped our world in the 20th century, the Internet will shape the early years of the 21st, and it will have a profound--and overwhelmingly positive--impact on the way we work and live. But it will not change the fundamental aspects of business and society--companies will still need to make a profit, people will still need their social framework, education will still require great teachers.

However, the current debate over how widely we should adopt this technology does raise some serious issues that must be addressed to make the most of the Internet's vast potential.

Protecting intellectual property. The Internet makes it possible to distribute any kind of digital information, from software to books, music, and video, instantly and at virtually no cost. The software industry has struggled with piracy since the advent of the personal computer, but as recent controversy over file-sharing systems such as Napster and Gnutella demonstrates, piracy is now a serious issue for any individual or business that wants to be compensated for the works they create. And since the Internet knows no borders, piracy is now a serious global problem. Strong legislation such as the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), cooperation between nations to ensure strong enforcement of international copyright laws, innovative collaboration between content producers and the technology industry, and standards developed by organizations like the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) that can prevent or deter piracy have already made an impact on addressing this problem. But as more and more digital media becomes easy to distribute over the Internet, the government and private sector must work together to find appropriate ways to protect the rights of information consumers and producers around the world.

Regulating global commerce. Hal Varian and Michael Armstrong's contributions to this project detail another major challenge the Internet poses to governments around the world: how can we regulate Internet commerce--or should we do it at all? Because the Internet offers people an easy way to purchase goods and services across state and national borders--generating tremendous economic growth in the process--it makes global commerce even more challenging to tax or regulate effectively. But since the Internet's economic effects result largely from the "friction-free" commerce it enables, any regulation that gets in the way comes at a price: lost economic growth. As more and more business transactions take place on the Internet, governments and businesses must cooperate to find innovative ways to regulate and derive tax revenue from Internet commerce without interfering with the economic benefits it can provide.

Protecting individual privacy. In the coming years, people will increasingly rely on the Internet to share sensitive information with trusted parties about their finances, medical history, personal habits, and buying preferences. At the same time, many will wish to safeguard this information, and use the Internet anonymously. Although technology has placed individual privacy at risk for decades--most consumers regularly use credit cards and exchange sensitive information with merchants over the telephone--privacy will become a far more pressing issue as the Internet becomes the primary way for people to manage their finances or keep in touch with their physician. The use of personal information by retailers wishing to provide personalized service and advertisers that want to target very specific audiences--some of whom have resorted to gathering information from consumers without notifying them--has greatly increased public concern over the safety of personal information. It has also left many people reluctant to trust the Internet with their data.

Private industry and many in government currently favor self-regulatory tools and privacy-enhancing technologies as the best way to protect privacy. Today, several independent organizations enforce commonly accepted "fair information practices" that ensure honesty and accountability among companies that gather and use personal information. But as Ellen Alderman and Caroline Kennedy's contribution to this project explains, it is still unclear whether this approach is fully effective. Nonetheless, protecting individual privacy is a major barrier that must be overcome--as soon as possible--in order to keep the Internet moving forward.

Keeping the Internet secure. Security has always been a major issue for businesses and governments that rely on information technology, and it always will be. Much the same is true for individual security--long before the Internet, people were happily handing their credit cards to restaurant waiters they had never met before, and that too is unlikely to change. But as our economy increasingly depends on the Internet, security is of even greater concern. Widely publicized incidents of Web site hacking, credit card fraud and identity theft have given the Internet a largely unjustified "Wild West" reputation. In order to keep the Internet a safe place to do business, software companies have a responsibility to work together to ensure that their products always offer the highest levels of security. And the judicial system and the law enforcement community must keep pace with technological advancements and enforce criminal laws effectively and thoroughly.

Protecting our children. The Internet can revolutionize education, giving children the opportunity to indulge their intellectual curiosity and explore their world. But while it helps them to learn about dinosaurs or world history, it can also expose them to obscene, violent or inappropriate content. And since the Internet is an unregulated global medium, it is hard to "censor" in any traditional way. The private sector has already made great strides in giving parents and teachers more control over what children can see and do on the Internet, through filtering software that blocks access to objectionable Web sites; industry standards such as the still-evolving Platform for Internet Content Selection (PICS) that enable helpful rating systems; and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that voluntarily regulate the activities of their customers. Government has also played a part, encouraging the growth of the market for child-safety tools, and increasing law enforcement's role in policing and prosecuting online predators. So far, the issue of protecting children on the Internet has served as an excellent example of how governments and the private sector can work together to tackle problems on the Internet.

Bridging the "digital divide." The Internet can empower and enrich the lives of disadvantaged people around the world--but only if they have access to it. Robert Knowling and Ernest Wilson's contributions to this project clearly show that the digital divide is a global problem. In the United States, where a large percentage of the population has access to the Internet, it¹s easy to forget that most of the world has never made a phone call, much less browsed the Web.

In the 1930s, the United States government helped bridge the "electrical divide" by forming the Rural Electrification Administration, which brought power to rural areas that could benefit most from electrification. Similarly, "universal service" programs have helped some remote areas and disadvantaged communities have access to inexpensive telephone service. These efforts have been largely successful in the United States, but on a worldwide scale there's still plenty of work to be done before the Internet can make a real difference. It's important to remember that much of the world is still without adequate electrical power, telephone service, or even quality healthcare and education<bridging the digital divide is but one of the many ways we can improve the quality of life worldwide. However, the benefits of widespread access to the Internet and communications technology are clear enough that governments now need to decide whether a similar principle should be applied to ensure that nobody is left behind in the Internet Age.<p> What is government's role? The Internet is a constantly changing global network that knows no borders, presenting a unique problem for governments that need to address the many challenges it presents. In the coming years, governments will have the opportunity to develop thoughtful and innovative approaches to policies that protect their citizens while nurturing the openness, flexibility, and economic opportunities that make the Internet such a compelling technology.

The light hand of government regulation has created an environment that has encouraged the Internet to flourish, and enabled companies to bring their innovations to consumers at breathtaking speed. Over the next few years, governments worldwide will find it rewarding to pursue policies that speed the building of the infrastructure that will make it possible to bring the benefits of the Internet to more people. This includes finding ways to speed the implementation of broadband technologies, deregulate where necessary to stimulate competition, resist the temptation to enact new regulations, and redouble our efforts to protect content on the Internet by strengthening and enforcing intellectual-property rights.

The Internet gives people the opportunity to put their knowledge to work and take advantage of greater opportunities to lead productive and fulfilling lives. It is the gateway to vast amounts of knowledge, art and culture. It provides equal access to information and communications, allowing the formation of rich communities and forging real connections between people. It breaks down barriers between (and within) nations, opening up economies and democratizing societies. And as cheap computing power becomes more pervasive, the Internet can bring all these benefits to more and more people around the world.

Ensuring that the Internet can have the broadest and most positive impact on the greatest possible number of people will be a tremendous challenge for our political and business leaders. There are some key issues that need to be overcome to realize the Internet's full potential, but although they are challenging, they are not entirely new and definitely not insurmountable.

And it's clear that these are challenges worth facing--like the printing press, the telephone, electricity or the automobile, the Internet is a revolutionary technology that is transforming our world.

Dan Ur---Says
 Look for the fusion, tech saves us!  

"Peak oil: the last skeptics"   (???)  What?  The last of the skeptics?!!  Did he really say that?  Because right now, I can find NOTHING but skeptics, unless I come to TOD, energybulletin or the ASPO....folks, let's admit it, the "peak" aware need to get out more...because the average schmoe is gettin' ready for a hell of a rompin' summer, and already has the discounted SUV in the driveway ready for it...frankly, the idea of impending peak is in full retreat right now, with only the true believers still holding out any hope for the immediate collapse.  Now, that does NOT mean the immediate collapse can't or won't happen.  I have said it many times, there is simply NO WAY to know, and there will be NO WARNING.   Again, think back to the U.S. peak in 1970, when U.S. oil prices hit an inflation adjusted price lower than ever in history with the exception of the the great depression.  There WILL BE NO WARNING, not from CERA on the one hand and not from Kunstler or Simmons on the other....it is a completely blind crapshoot.
Now, back to that energy bulletin online article
by Jérôme Guillet

 "Do you seriously find that the above graph disproves the idea that oil production will peak and then decline? This is meant to be the optimistic version, and all it says is that (i) the peak will be in 2030, not 2010, and (ii) the decline after that will be slow, not fast."

" In 25 years, many of us will (hopefully) still be alive. In 25 years, we'll be living, for the most part, with infrastructure built or planned today or in the next few years"

That of course is all fascinating, but somewhat useless.  In the grand timescale of nations, it is true that a 25 year shift in peak means very little, and on the geological scale, it wouldn't be a pizz in the sea, but in the life of an individual and an investor, it is infinity.  I could go through two and a half SUV's and be in the old folks home dying with fond memories of me and babe on my twin engine speedboat before peak ever got here...saying it may happen now, or in 25 years, well, may be 30 or 35 longside, and with technology, maybe....(???), is not going to move anyone to make sacrifices and changes.

FROM
Peddling PetroProzac: CERA ignores 10 warning signposts of peak oil

by Randy Udall, Jeremy Gilbert & Steve Andrews

 "Peak oil is not the end, nor even the beginning of the end of the Oil Age. Indeed, at peak the world will have more oil available than it ever had before; to the casual observer all will appear well. No one can predict how rapidly oil production rates will fall once they have peaked, plateaued and begun to decline. Because heroic, expensive efforts will be made to reduce demand and expand supply, the plateau could last for some years, and the backside of the global production curve is likely to be less steep that the ascent. On this we agree with CERA."

The above from the ASPO-USA.  So, we are seeing a murky blending of ASPO-USA and CERA....that comes out somewhere in the middle of the road where all dead animals are found, that being "yep, peak or plateau, sometime between now and when your kid gets to middle age..., depending....."
This is not the type of iron jawed certainty that moves people to the "heroic, expensive efforts" called for, is it?

And still we have the facts on the ground:
http://money.cnn.com/2006/11/16/markets/oil/index.htm

To repeat, this tells us NOTHING.  The price signal has proven again and again as being completely useless in predicting real emergency or catastrophe.  All it is good for is leading people into the jaws of a trap.
There is only one thing good about running all sides running in such blind ignorance.  It does reduce the sting if the opposition accuses any party in the debate of stupidity.

Roger Conner  known to you as ThatsItImout