Christopher Stubbs
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Christopher Stubbs commented on Do you think its right for food crops to be made into fuel for inefficient cars? on January 21, 2008, 6:20 AM
Hydrogen is great but the technology is not there yet so that is a null point. Saying that the United States has no climate zones capable of replicating those in which Brazil grows sugar cane is also not true. It is true that if we consider corn or sugar-cane based ethanol production, the land-mass of the united states would face difficulty in providing enough fuel to run the country based on our current consumption, we must switch to more fuel efficient vehicles! The E85 cars out there are NOT efficient even if the fuel were availableAnother point; the united states has been undercutting food costs in other countries to a degree that it is no longer cost effective to grow potatoes in the continent they are from! Exporting less food has the positive effect that it increases viability for farmers in other countries who previously could not turn a profit. And my final point for consideration; the cost of the war in Iraq would have paid for enough solar panels for every home in the US to power itself, tack on another ohh, 30% and they could power 1-2 electric cars every day for a ~40mi commute... oh well
Does Evangelical Christianity Need Fear as a Motivator?
In my 25year life I have encountered numerous instances of Heaven and Hell being spoken of as either a direct punishment or reward for someone depending on how they lived their life. Let us ignore for a moment that to be considered for "heaven" many views would require that person in question adhere to one specific brand of Jewish carpenter worship or another and assume that is the case. If that person lives their life with selfish and greedy motives, does not care for their fellow man, covets thy neighbors wii, doesn't honor their founding fathers, rolls on Shabbat, adulterates a murderer, etc, than that person goes to HELL. On the other hand, perhaps this person avoided the punishment of his/her children for the iniquity of parents to the third and the fourth generation, made only rightful use of the name of god, and only bore TRUTHFUL witness against their friends, then its HEAVEN-time, baby! In my case, leave the harp in its case and don’t take the tags off the halo, its going back to that big Wal-Mart in the sky. Until Google Heaven exists I shall remain spectacle of the existence of a fluffy ethereal realm in which I could one day look down on all those born of my loins and scowl when they sneak a bite of dinner before someone has said grace. I personally suspect that the concept of eternity experiencing either fire and brimstone or massages and caviar was drummed up as a way for the church to scare people into doing what they wanted, it certainly seem to work that way today. It’s Santa Clause for adults… don’t be bad and get on the naughty list or santa will bring you coal, but if you do what we tell you all year then you’ll get a &^$*&load of chocolate in your stocking, never mind that there may have been a good motive for treating your fellow man in a civil fashion BEYOND chocolate. In the immortal words of Mitch Hedberg, “A severed foot is the ultimate stocking stuffer.” Ok if you’ve read this far you are probably wondering what Im getting at. Picture this, a crotchety old guy dying painfully and slowly in some shit-hole hospital bed. He has lived his life for himself striving to achieve the highest standards of Scrooge himself. He has alienated his family and friends by treating them horridly and essentially violated all the basic humanitarian social values set forth in the 10 commandments and the other general Judeo-Christian beliefs. I cannot fathom that degree of loneliness and frustration and consider that prospect far more worrisome than some bullshit lava-tube where Satan, Hitler, and most of my 7th grade teachers hang out. Ok now picture the same old man, surrounded by his family and friends while showing off the scar from a failed surgery to his grandson. He knows the people he loved will continue to thrive due in no small part to the support and love he gave to them with his whole heart. This man feels no pain, he has no regrets, and he certainly never needed to be scared of Hell to motivate him to be a good person, his mind is instead focused on a bright future he helped create. I want to be that man one day. … Read More
January 21, 2008 |
Christopher Stubbs commented on Is ethanol overhyped? on January 21, 2008, 1:39 AM
Progressive nuclear technology research has been poorly supported by the US government. Right now there is an enormous number of insecure nuclear waste repositories all over the US just waiting to be attacked, and a large number of them area leaking. This waste needs to be dealt with and we didnt put the work into the research when we first knew it was going to be a problem. If Yucca mountain is approved, by the time we can begin moving the waste there we will already have WAY more than it could store at max capacity, and it's chance of being approved aren't very good. Nuclear energy has the potential to generate enough electricity to replace and enormous chuck (>30%) of our greenhouse gas contribution and should not be dismissed out of hand. Reactors are safer than ever before and the safety record in the US is good enough that I would feel comfortable living within a few miles of one (assuming they were not storing the waste on site beneath a few feet of water in a man-made pond which is frequently the case). I have no intention of discounting the issues relating to waste disposal, they are extremely serious. What I do know is that research into nuclear waste disposal facilities has been poorly supported and that is a MAJOR mistake, the need for new federal funding initiatives into ALL types of energy research are of the utmost importance.
Christopher Stubbs commented on REINCARNATION JUST MAKES SENSE. on January 18, 2008, 7:50 PM
Randall, you might enjoy reading up on the Aboriginal Australian concept of the Dreamtime, a philosophy that in one version or another has existed for thousands of years but is not frequently referenced in western discussion on the topic. It has at its center a profound and extremely interesting circular time process. I think you might find some similarities to your own ideas.
Christopher Stubbs commented on Is ethanol overhyped? on January 21, 2008, 6:39 AM
Progressive nuclear technology research has been poorly supported by the US government. Right now there is an enormous number of insecure nuclear waste repositories all over the US just waiting to be attacked, and a large number of them area leaking. This waste needs to be dealt with and we didnt put the work into the research when we first knew it was going to be a problem. If Yucca mountain is approved, by the time we can begin moving the waste there we will already have WAY more than it could store at max capacity, and it's chance of being approved aren't very good. Nuclear energy has the potential to generate enough electricity to replace and enormous chuck (>30%) of our greenhouse gas contribution and should not be dismissed out of hand. Reactors are safer than ever before and the safety record in the US is good enough that I would feel comfortable living within a few miles of one (assuming they were not storing the waste on site beneath a few feet of water in a man-made pond which is frequently the case). I have no intention of discounting the issues relating to waste disposal, they are extremely serious. What I do know is that research into nuclear waste disposal facilities has been poorly supported and that is a MAJOR mistake, the need for new federal funding initiatives into ALL types of energy research are of the utmost importance.