Letters to the Editor
mattwa33186
Published Letters: 395 Editor's Choice: 41
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Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure
[Read the article: Peak oil? Consider it solved]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The reason most solutions to the energy problem - and it is a problem regardless of where you stand on the peak oil or global warming arguments - are a joke is that they rely on economic and physical infrastructure that was designed and largely built when we thought oil was forever and before anyone ever heard the term environmental impact. They are band-aids at best. We need real change in how we get things done.
Food
1. A perpetual ban on building on land that can be used for farming. That includes replacing structures that currently exist. If it's condemed, abandoned, or destroyed, it goes back to being farmland.
2. Legislate Archer Daniels Midland (and all companies like them) out of existence.
3. Punative taxes on any food that has to travel more than 200 miles to get to market.
Now it once again becomes possible to make a profit producing and selling food locally. If people in Minnesota want oranges, we have the technology to grow oranges in Minnesota using a lot less energy than driving them from Florida takes.
Travel
1. A 2 pronged approach to telecommuting. Big tax breaks for companies that implement it in a meaningful way, huge tax penalties for companies that don't to subsidize those who do. Everything based on the carbon impact of your employees getting to work.
2. Use taxes to triple prices for air travel. Triple them again every 5 years for the next 15 years. Use the money to build out a real high speed data network connecting everybody to everybody.
Telecommuting and videoconferencing technology have been good enough to replace most travel for a decade now. The time has come to force everyone to start living in the 21st century.
Commerce
1. No more perishable goods coming from over seas (because of the taxes on food) means we can use slower, cleaner methods of powering ships.
2. Exhorbitant prices for air transport means no more air shipping.
3. Prohibit over the road trucks from crossing state lines. Much as I hate trains, there is nothing more efficient than diesel-electric power.
Transport
1. Go for the low hanging fruit. The point of diminishing returns for pollution from personal cars was reached around the turn of the century. Start cleaning up trucks, busses, and the factories that make cars, trucks, and busses.
2. Place limits on how much oil can be refined. Limits the supply, limits the amount of oil that can be used, raises prices. Also puts potentially dangerous nations in a weaker position, since we won't buy more oil than we can refine, so we won't give them as much money.
Not comprehensive by any means, but its a start.
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Standards
[Read the article: A rocky Windows trek for Apple's Safari browser ]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Safari is the least standards compliant major browser out there. What Apple wants is for web developers to have to accomodate them, because Safari has largely been ignored until now. iPhone started to change that, this stunt will possibly change it some more.
Likely they are doing all this in the hope that their browser will eventually work on almost all sites without them having to worry about standards. For all the progress they have made in the last 5 years, this is still a company that has never felt all that obligated to adhere to their own standards(see "backward compatibility, lack thereof, Apple"), let alone anybody else's.
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Or
[Read the article: Ask the pilot]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Goat Rodeo
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@Xanthro
[Read the article: Peak oil? Consider it solved]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Because we all lived in caves before ADM came along to feed us, I guess? And obviously we're far better off with shopping malls and endless acres of McMansions where there used to be farms.
Your knowledge of technology is pretty lacking, from what I can see.
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Always liked Winona
[Read the article: My Winona, your Winona, our Winona]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]And Mr. Deeds was hillarious. Well, at least John Turturro was hillarious.