It is as if we are stuck in the stone age of energy resources. I personally believe that energy INDEPENDENCE is the single MOST IMPORTANT issue facing the United States today.  Our addiction to oil will eventually be our suicide.  If our supply of oil from overseas suddenly dries up or shrinks even if a little, it would literally catapult us back into the stone age because we have not implemented any other forms of energy for our vehicles, airplanes, trains, houses and buildings. In short, we will be screwed beyond belief when it happens and we will be completely naked and vulnerable to terrorists and countries waging war against us. Not only that, what little oil we have will be reserved for the military, NOT personal use. Not that I condone further drilling for oil here, but even if we did that we still could NOT meet the demands we currently have today. Without oil, no one could go to work, there would be little or no electricity, no goods could be transported to stores, children could not be schooled, hospitals could not function and a lot of people will die as a result. The economic consequences of a national standstill will be equal to a nuclear meltdown both here and abroad. Paychecks will be nonexistent, industries will shut down and you won't be able to even communicate with anyone other than in person!

  We are in the 21st Century yet still use old technology fuel for energy.  Most of our electricity and fuel for vehicles comes from OIL!!!  If we had that concept - only use technology we've used for years - we would NOT have cell phones, Ipods, the internet, DVDs, CDs and a million other modern conveniences. The horrible part is that we CAN utilize renewable, safe forms of energy for electricity and vehicles but because of the corporate run society in our government we don't. Did you realize that ALL PLANTS AND HUMANS ARE SOLAR ENERGY? Of course we are! The corn being grown in a farmer's field is a solar plant! Humans are walking around the planet because of the sun! We could not survive without oxygen, food, water and the sun! Why is food available to us? Because of the sun! In essence then, solar energy has been with us since God created the heavens and the earth. Why then, if the sun can sustain life on earth, can't we harvest that energy and use it to sustain our buildings and our vehicles? Think about radio and TV waves and the internet. ALL OF THESE EXISTED BEFORE WE KNEW THEY WERE THERE!!!  There are infinite sources of energy and applications of technology in this universe. Therefore, why should we be glued to old technology in the energy sector, such as harvesting oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear power?

  It is such a shame that we depend on oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear energy to supply our electrical needs, especially here in Florida! As the “Sunshine State” we should be the prototype of solar energy for the entire country. We also are almost completely surrounded by ocean and that environmental feature alone can generate wind and water energy for us.  Why in the “Sunshine State” aren’t we putting solar panels on all new construction instead of using coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear energy to power the concrete jungle we’ve created?  Isn’t it a disgrace that we do not harness the sun and the wind to fuel the ever increasing houses and strip malls we keep building? Corporations on their own rarely do what is best for the environment or the consumers of their products. This is what government was in part created for, to protect the citizens from evil, greedy corporations. Our government, within reason, should be dictating to the corporations, not the corporations dictating to the government how to run things. Why are they allowed to be heard and our voices squelched?

   I can tell you why - we are “bought” out by corporations that have infiltrated our republic system of government at all levels. Locally our commissioners keep approving new construction for outrageously sized houses that suck up energy yet they don’t mandate that at least 50% of all new construction needs to have clean, renewable forms of energy. Then they give permission to build nuclear and traditional power plants to fuel them. How archaic is that? This country used to be the epicenter of new technology but it seems to me while technology in many areas has created cell phones, the internet and Ipods, the technology of the energy sector has been in bed with politicians so long it is in a coma. The oil, coal, natural gas and nuclear lobbyists have literally stopped all innovative minds from being unleashed. Our “representatives” have, much to our detriment, sided with them instead of the American people. We have been prisoners of greed, pure and simple. The oil companies have record profits yet little of that money is channeled into renewable energy. These companies, above all else, have the capital, technology and people to make it happen yet they don’t and our government sides with them while Americans struggle to make ends meet and we continue to decimate the environment and go to war over fossil fuels.

   I say its high time to liberate ourselves into the 21st Century.  No president and no session of the Congress has ever made a push for energy independence like we need. It is now time to pull ourselves into the 21st Century. Be sure to get your voices heard by not just writing and calling your representatives, but demanding that they legislate a renewable energy policy that makes sense, is cost-effective and begins immediately. People used to look up to the United States because of our advanced technology but there are third world countries that are have now utilized renewable forms of energy far better than us.

  Brazil has been using flex fuel cars since 2003 on a mass scale.  This overpopulated third world country has become virtually oil independent by using their own home grown sugar cane! The same automobile manufacturers we have in the United States are in Brazil manufacturing flex fuel cars. Go figure!!  Brazil has had a long history of using sugar cane as car fuel but then in 2003 they began selling cars that can run on either gasoline or ethanol.  If Brazil can do this THE UNITED STATES CAN TOO!  The government of Brazil made incentives to the automobile manufacturers to produce vehicles that run on ethanol and they made sure there was plenty of ethanol available to run the vehicles. The United States is completely shameful to not be pushing for this same technology on a mass scale.  Instead of fueling the fire that in part flames terrorism, let us stop the insanity of buying middle east oil and pay the farmers of America to supply us with home grown fuel. Along with so many others, the American farmer has been overshadowed by corporations and is on the decline. Those corporate farms get subsidies that we pay for yet the lone farmer struggles to keep his farm and livelihood, many have already lost their farms. Doesn’t it make sense to strengthen our individual farmer by giving him the pride and satisfaction of knowing he is contributing to our energy needs while reducing pollution and the threat of being held hostage by terrorist activities? If George W. Bush is truly worried about terrorists and concerned about Americans and our economy he would push for this change in energy. It is literally as simple as that. How come Brazil, a third world country, has flex fuel cars which run on home grown sugar cane and the United States can’t seem to stop using a century old fuel?

   I know President Bush  has personally called for fuel cells and alternative energy forms but its way too slow in coming and he has not funded the research and development of it like he should be and he has not pushed the Congress to pass legislation regarding renewable energy. The majority of our country’s electricity comes from coal, nuclear and oil which is a sickening shame in our present technologically advanced time. Why isn’t all the new construction that is raping our environment all over the country required to install solar panels or at least have a solar field nearby to meet the ever increasing demands of the burgeoning population and the construction of homes and shopping centers that go along with it? Why aren't wind turbines installed to fuel the mass expanse of urban sprawl?  It only makes sense that we now fully devote our resources in research and development to going from politically explosive, expensive, non-sustainable, polluting and environmentally destructive fuel sources to apolitical, free, sustainable, pollution-free and environmentally friendly energy sources like solar, wind and water.

   As I see it, the Bush administration and all prior administrations have acted as if all our non-renewable resources will last forever because they've done little or nothing to encourage the practice of using renewable energy sources.   They believe that we will have a never ending supply of oil from all the countries that export it to us. This a false assumption and one that can have catastrophic  consequences! President Hugo Chavez from Venezuela, a country we import a lot of oil from, has called President Bush "the devil" when he was at the United Nations in 2006. It is obvious he doesn't like George Bush don't you think?  It is also possible that he could withhold the sale of oil to the United States as a result. What would happen if, as a result of the war against terrorism, we did something to tick off the governments of Saudi Arabia or some other middle eastern country? Do you believe that we could still import oil from them? Do you think that perhaps they would retaliate against us and keep the oil to themselves? Utilizing a single source of nonrenewable energy that is responsible for running the majority of our country is not only foolish, but when it must be taken from other countries that are hostile to us, it can be deadly. Don't ever think governments will continue to sell us oil because they want the money. There isn't enough oil to go around now and with China's population growing, they are fast becoming a major player in the oil economy. There are plenty of other countries to sell oil to, they don't need the United States to sell to anymore. World wars have been started for far less than energy demands!

  A conservative president would not only want to protect the environment but they would utilize every non-political, free, safe, environmentally friendly, renewable energy source like the sun, water and wind not only because it’s the right thing to do in the 21st century, but because it would in part cut down the world’s hatred of us that stems from their belief that we are the hoarders of the world’s resources and are deserving of the title “ugly American.” Greed - it all comes down to greed on the part of the current and past presidents, the Congress and the oil companies - all who are practically stuck to each other in oil muck!

  Renewable forms of energy have been around for decades, if not centuries. The Dutch have used wind mills and the Israeli's have used solar panels for a long time.  The Japanese are now using wind mills built specifically for their climate.  I admit that installing wind mills and solar panels for your home is cost prohibitive but how do you think DVDs became so cheap? As with ANY technology, the more it is used the cheaper it becomes! Remember in the 1980s when VCR's and VHS tapes were expensive when they first came out? Now you would be hard pressed to even find a VCR in a store and VHS tapes are cheap but also getting hard to find. Then DVD players and DVDs came along and they are now cheaper as a result of mass production.  That supply and demand applies to renewable energy as well! Technology has been improved in most areas of our lives, not squelched or stayed the same, as has been the case with energy production.  I don't advocate each household to install these forms of renewable energy because it is costly and bulky. I do, however, advocate that current energy companies place their profits into research and development of renewable energy and THE IMPLEMENTATION of it!!! I wholeheartedly support ALL NEW DEVELOPMENT to mandate at least 50% of their construction's energy sources to renewable energy!  In other words, whatever they build, those buildings must get at least half of their energy from wind, solar, water or other renewable sources.  I also STRONGLY ADVOCATE THAT LOCAL energy companies, like FP&L in Florida, construct solar and wind fields. I am happy to report that Florida Power & Light has made strides in this area and I hope that they will eventually ditch all fossil fuels and use only renewable forms of energy to supply the needs of the growing Florida population.

   There has finally been a trend to construct "green buildings."  These buildings not only utilize recycled materials for construction, they  install "green roofs" to have actual dirt and plants on them to insulate the buildings, among other environmental advantages. The buildings also utilize renewable forms of energy and are also designed to use less energy. 

   What happens if terrorists seize the middle east oil fields? What happens if any of the number of countries that export oil to us suddenly decide to withhold it? What happens, if God forbid, we are at war and oil supply is disrupted? Don’t you think we would be kicking ourselves in the pants for not switching to home grown, renewable forms of energy? By the time these dreadful events happen it will be too late to continue to run our country at the speed to which we can sustain ourselves. How vulnerable will we be when we cannot defend our borders because we have no fuel? How long can we live with no goods being delivered to local stores? How long can we live without a paycheck because no one can get to work? How long will it be before we wake up and realize that, like Hurricane Katrina and September 11, 2001, we were warned about the dire possibilities of these events happening, and did nothing to prevent or prepare for them?

   I urge anyone who has read this page to contact your representatives and let your voice be heard on our current energy crisis. YES, we are in a crisis! We need to fully implement renewable forms of energy NOW before its too late. We need to be oil independent not only for environmental reasons but for geopolitical reasons, national security and economic security.

   Bottom line:  We are using antiquated "dinosaur" fuels that should be as extinct as they are! I realize that fossil fuels were created only in part by dinosaur fossils but I use the word "dinosaur" loosely to describe the lack of progress in alternative fuel technology as archaic - ancient like the dinosaurs.

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COMMENTS SECTION

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Thank you all for your comments!

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