I mean, it is, but it isn't.

We have on our hands a 1970s-style energy crisis. We cannot afford to bet the entire table on one solution; we must use a multi-pronged approach.

(1) We must begin developing domestic supplies; we know how to do it in an environmentally sensitive fashion, and there are massive reserves out there that can be used over the next decade without even making much of a dent. We can buy time this way, and we must.

(2) We need to build nuclear power plants for our electrical needs. This doesn't address our transportation needs, but it will help. Electricity is cheap, and will become cheaper as we learn to use it better in cars. Nuclear power is one of the cleanest alternatives out there.

(3) All of the other avenues we're exploring right now—for electricity, the uses to which we put natural gas (and the other possibilities it holds), the delicatessen of hybrid, electric, flex-fuel cars, biodiesel, and the legion of biofuels—must be sorted out by the market, which means that the government shouldn't be playing favorites among 'em.

If the Feds want to make themselves useful, they might want to come up only a few fuel standards (or maybe even only one—but certainly formulations by region) for this country. One of the burdens we are carrying right now is the need to formulate different gasoline for nearly every state. This is not just a commerce issue; it is a national security issue. Just as we needed an Interstate Highway System, we should at least consider streamlining our fuel requirements.

More: Jazz Shaw at The Moderate Voice, and Ed Morrissey at Hot Air. (Ed's got a poll, too—and it forces one to choose between developing U.S. petroleum reserves, researching alternative energies, and building nuclear power plants. I see all three of those as equally important.)

Personally, I'm okay: I just moved to a location from which I can walk to the supermarket, restaurants, the bank, and theatres. But this is no way to run an economy; the situation is desperate, and we've got to take the handcuffs off of those entities that are in a position to help.

Posted by: Attila Girl at 08:06 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 372 words, total size 2 kb.