I'm glad you are trying to educate people. The problem in the US is multi-fold:
1) Tribalism in the political parties causes Republicans to ignore solid indisputable science on Global Warming in favor of propaganda from their leaders and the state press, including Brietbart and Fox news. This is already doing irreparable damage to our country and planet.
4) Most people don't realize that the CO2 emissions from cars are almost as high as emissions from power plants, and yet all of the focus seems to be on the power plants. Power plant emissions are dropping or flattening out thanks to conversions from coal to natgas. Car emissions on the other hand continue to increase, despite having higher standards for mileage. US population is buying more and more large trucks and SUVs even though they are mostly single drivers and don't even use the pickup bed much. They don't give a thought to the environmental implications of buying a vehicle with a huge engine or a diesel.
What's Up With That is an absolutely joke website run by by a non-scientist (TV weather man). He famously miss-read a NOAA report on ice melting thinking that the ice caps were increasing in mass. Total joke.
It's insanity. To my knowledge, the US is the only country in the world where a major political party engages in climate change denialism. I guess that's part of our American exceptionalism (being sarcastic here). And yes, Breitbart and Fox News are pure propaganda indeed. But people, including otherwise intelligent ones, like to be brain-washed, it seems.
Last year I decided to pull the plug on my large car and switched to a Nissan Versa SV. Not only is gas consumption cut in half, but it is so much more fun to drive! How the car whizzes around corners is just a delight.
As for the rest of your post, Steve, it's all spot on. Great summary!
I heard a sobering thing on the news last night (the real truthful news, not Fox or Breitbart etc..):
Worldwide, 32.5 million barrels of oil are burned and put into the atmosphere every day by vehicles and power plants.
I cannot understand how anyone could think that this will not damage the planet and the atmosphere. The only CO2 sinks are trees and oceans, mostly trees, and if we are not clear-cutting or burning them to plant crops, we are thinning to prevent wildfires. The wildfires will happen anyway because thinning them increases the temperature, weakening them and allowing beetles to attack. I live in the forest, so I see this first-hand. We deal with wildfires every year.
More trees and lots of CO2 reduction by both vehicles and power plants is our only hope. How likely is that?
Steve N.
Empirical Audio
Thinning is a great thing in some areas, like here in Colorado. It makes for a much healthier ecosystem and when fires do come through they aren't as hot so more survives. The current state of the forests are a result of clearcutting and replanting trees too close together so nothing else survives, so many areas are Pine Barrens, nothing can really survive in between the trees. In areas that have been thinned we are seeing meadows come back, and wildlife variety and health improve. It is a huge improvement and a huge benefit.
On the car thing I've been thinking about converting my car to E85 as ethanol is carbon neutral (ok, corn ethanol is debatable but it's close)... oh, and 104 octane equivalent but that has nothing to do with it.
A quick view of some of my background...thirty years (I started in the mid 70s):
• http://www.brinkmanreforestation.ca/
• http://www.brinkman.ca/
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We all love National Geographic, for some of world's best pictures and planet and wildlife and humanity concerns. They hire some of the best photographers and best writers, a life magazine.
• http://press.nationalgeographic.com/2017/10/18/national-geographic-magazine-november-2017/
Thinning is a great thing in some areas, like here in Colorado. It makes for a much healthier ecosystem and when fires do come through they aren't as hot so more survives. The current state of the forests are a result of clearcutting and replanting trees too close together so nothing else survives, so many areas are Pine Barrens, nothing can really survive in between the trees. In areas that have been thinned we are seeing meadows come back, and wildlife variety and health improve. It is a huge improvement and a huge benefit.
On the car thing I've been thinking about converting my car to E85 as ethanol is carbon neutral (ok, corn ethanol is debatable but it's close)... oh, and 104 octane equivalent but that has nothing to do with it.
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