Return of the ice age

[Tugaloo]

Well worth the time to read it..

To Europe, anyway. Years of horrible decisions by European leaders have come home to roost, as Europeans now worry about how to heat their homes this winter. Reliance on a geopolitical enemy for much of their energy turned out to be a mistake, as Russia has now shut off gas supplies. Who could have predicted it? Other than anyone with a modicum of common sense? Which Europe’s governing class has lacked for many years.
The continent’s leaders are panicking and preparing to ration energy:
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called for the implementation of “mandatory” energy rationing throughout the EU during peak hours in order to “flatten the curve” of demand amid the largely self-inflicted energy crisis befalling the bloc.

“Flatten the curve?” Where have we heard that before?
Energy rationing proposals have already come out of several member states, including France, Italy, and Germany. President Emmanuel Macron, who has warned that France is facing the “end of abundance“…

https://www.powerlineblog.com/archiv...ice-age.php

[Garand]

Politicians, regardless of country, show little desire, these days to consider all options to a problem and unfortunately take the easiest most politically expedient route for themselves.

[Armyjimbo]

Well hey, it DOES show weakness in the green energy they've been trying to say is much more gooder than fossil fuels. All the billions and with one winter, it all falls apart. While I think the green sources are good, unless theres a major rethink and breakthrough it will be a good secondary source but not primary.

[Tugaloo]

Politicians desire to lead the pack; the problem is they lead in reverse.

A liberal at church commented we have to do something. Well, try doing the right thing for once.

I have modest solar setup and it does a great job. However, the life of a battery is finite. They'll do a great job; however, not as long as one would need in a survival situation..

[Armyjimbo]

Definitely needs a rethink, before I put my faith in it on my budget. It can be used but the requirements for powering a state is ginormous and costly. Wind is the same way, nuke power unless they start firing waste at the sun is still hobbled by waste. Dogs chasing tails it seems. It can work, just not now.

[Tugaloo]

It does need a rethink; the problem is they are not capable of a "think" in the first place; so a rethink is beyond their comprehension.

Even living on a mountain, the wind doesn't blow all the time; nor does the sun shine all the time. Unless something else comes up; currently, nuclear is our best bet. Increase efficiency and output with less waste.

A cold winter is not an ice age. As we are observing, our electrical grid can't even handle a hot summer or a cold winter.

[Armyjimbo]

Yup and for some reason they are trying to push for more reliance on a system barely holding on. Yet Brandon killed the Keystone and boy blunder up here, jammed to sell all of ours. After killing of most of the natural gas, blac gold in the country. Rather than develop our own local infrastructure we ship it as crude, only to import crude from the OPEC areas? The eastern states/ provinces want it but not the pipelines. Odd that.

[Tugaloo]

Oddly enough, the US has the world's largest oil and natural gas reserves. However, our current dim-witted administration has cut off drilling, pipelines and exploration.
They're going to save the planet by bankrupting the economy and overloading the electrical capacity. As Europe, California, Kansas and Oklahoma have experienced power shortages, brownouts and rolling blackouts. To keep warm, people will burn wood which requires cutting down trees who remove CO2 from the air and generate 02.
It's similar to jumping out of an aircraft without a parachute.

[grumpygremlin]

Merkel, the now retired chancellor of Germany was brought up in Russian controlled East Germany so thought nothing of getting all Germany's oil and gas from mother Russia, the chickens are now coming home to roost.

[Tugaloo]

It could be her loyalties were still behind the Iron Curtain?

Many Germans have dual fuel vehicles; they run on gasoline or NG. Or whichever the Russians are charging the least for.