The Climate-Industrial Complex Options

[impala454]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124286145192740987.html
Very interesting article on the WSJ about how people are raking in the cash over climate change hysteria

The world's largest wind-turbine manufacturer, Copenhagen Climate Council member Vestas, urges governments to invest heavily in the wind market. It sponsors CNN's "Climate in Peril" segment, increasing support for policies that would increase Vestas's earnings. A fellow council member, Mr. Gore's green investment firm Generation Investment Management, warns of a significant risk to the U.S. economy unless a price is quickly placed on carbon.

...

U.S. companies and interest groups involved with climate change hired 2,430 lobbyists just last year, up 300% from five years ago. Fifty of the biggest U.S. electric utilities -- including Duke -- spent $51 million on lobbyists in just six months.

...

Spain has been proclaimed a global example in providing financial aid to renewable energy companies to create green jobs. But research shows that each new job cost Spain 571,138 euros, with subsidies of more than one million euros required to create each new job in the uncompetitive wind industry. Moreover, the programs resulted in the destruction of nearly 110,000 jobs elsewhere in the economy, or 2.2 jobs for every job created.

I wonder how many scientists are getting paid off to have the "correct" opinions too...

[THECHICKEN]

Carpet baggers... they're here to help

[Dogmeat]

GO AWAY ICKYNESS AND ICKYNESS DOOERS! YOOOOUUUU ARE NOT SAVINGZ THE ENVIRONMENTZSSS AND YOU MUSSSTPTS GO AWAAAAAYYYAAAAYYY!!!!!

[chook]

Wind is cheap where it is feasable, like west texas. Its yuppies putting up solar panels in cloudy san fran

[Dogmeat]

HURRAY!!!! FOR $789 BILLION DOLLARS AND THE CONVERSION OF THE US TO COMMUNISM, A WHOPPING %1 OF OUR ELECTRICITY IN THIS COUNTRY WILL BE PRODUCED BY WIND MILLS!!!!!!


WooOOOoOOOOOoooHooOOoOOooOOo WE'RE SAVING THE WORLD!!!! WOoOOOoooHooOOoOO!!!!!!

[impala454]

Every time I see this money being spent I think of it in terms of how many shuttle flights we could be flying... $789 billion would let us fly nearly 400 more shuttle missions. In terms of current budget levels, it would run NASA as a whole for 40 more years.

[chook]

Honestly, what do shuttle flights do for us? I know there is a ton of other things that nasa does, but its expensive and a government sinkhole that needs an overhaul and a new mission statement.

[impala454]

Doesn't seem so expensive to me when you compare it to Barry tossing 30 billion at a auto manufacturer and then they go bankrupt anyways.

Here's a excerpt from some site I have saved that I paste when I see this question:

Shuttle flights deployed more than fifty satellites for military, governmental, and commercial clients. In addition,three interplanetary craft were launched from shuttles: the Magellan spacecraft that traveled to Venus, the Galileo spacecraft that traveled to Jupiter, and the Ulysses spacecraft that traveled to the sun. Shuttles also deployed important observatories into space, including the Hubble Space Telescope, Gamma Ray Observatory, the Diffuse X-Ray Spectrometer, and the Chandra X-Ray Observatory.The shuttle has carried more than three million pounds of cargo and more than 600 crewmembers into space. Hundreds of scientific experiments were conducted in orbit. Shuttle crews also serviced and repaired satellites as needed, particularly the Hubble Space Telescope. Between 1995 and 1998 shuttles docked nine times with the Russian space station Mir. Flights to construct the International Space Station (ISS) began in 1998. Shuttles carried major pieces of the ISS into space and traveled to the station seventeen times through the end of 2005.

Really, it's more a tribute to manned spaceflight. I agree the shuttle needs to be ramped down and Orion ramped up. Most nasa people will tell you the shuttle needs to get retired asap. Just could be a messy transition relying on China & Russia for travel to the station or any other manned spaceflight needs.

The other thing you have to keep in mind is the number of "unofficial" payloads that have gone up there...

[Dogmeat]

Honestly, what do shuttle flights do for us? I know there is a ton of other things that nasa does, but its expensive and a government sinkhole that needs an overhaul and a new mission statement.

NASA's prime directive should be interstellar space travel.

[chook]

Doesn't seem so expensive to me when you compare it to Barry tossing 30 billion at a auto manufacturer and then they go bankrupt anyways.

Here's a excerpt from some site I have saved that I paste when I see this question:

Really, it's more a tribute to manned spaceflight. I agree the shuttle needs to be ramped down and Orion ramped up. Most nasa people will tell you the shuttle needs to get retired asap. Just could be a messy transition relying on China & Russia for travel to the station or any other manned spaceflight needs.

The other thing you have to keep in mind is the number of "unofficial" payloads that have gone up there...

rods of God and such not? I would rather ride in a shuttle than some Chinese crap.

[impala454]

Yeah... in building 9 on site we have a full mockup of the Russian's Soyuz capsule, it is unbelievable how small that thing is. They technically cram 3 people in there, but they face each other in a circle, with their knees ending up interleaved if that makes sense. Basically you have the guy next to you's knee in your crotch.

[chook]

Yeah... in building 9 on site we have a full mockup of the Russian's Soyuz capsule, it is unbelievable how small that thing is. They technically cram 3 people in there, but they face each other in a circle, with their knees ending up interleaved if that makes sense. Basically you have the guy next to you's knee in your crotch.

Would you say smaller than the Gemini capsule?

[impala454]

Probably pretty close in size, but considering Gemini carried 2 and Soyuz carries 3, gives some perspective.