Alternative Energy and the President - Three Days of the Condor

Every revolution was first a thought in one man’s mind

Emerson, Essays: History

It seems that Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, is taking a page out of the book Former President Jimmy Carter by having Solar Panels installed on top of the White House roof as of the Spring of 2011 AD as stated in the article “White House to install rooftop Solar Panels”, published October 5, 2010 5:19 AM PDT by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech, specifically to generate electricity and provide hot water for the Executive Mansion.

This announcement was made in the week of October 5^th 2010 AD and made John Public very excited, especially as Energy Secretary Steven Chu, during his speech to the Green Gov Symposium a talk shop for the White House Council on Environmental Quality at George Washington University, went on to assert that, and I quote: “Around the world, the White House is a symbol of freedom and democracy. It should also be a symbol of America's commitment to a clean energy future”.

People, it is that kind of a decision that the year is mentioned as the Spring of 2011 AD, as no doubt when the date comes around next year, it be unveiled with much fanfare. Most likely, too, a lot of contractors are jostling to make it to the contractor approval shortlist in order to install what effectively is a strong show of support for Alternative Energy since the Oil Embargo in 1973 that prompted then President Jimmy Carter to install thirty two (32) Solar Panels, an event that occurred six (6) years in 1979 after the fact, indicating a push towards a renewable future.

His words were then very futuristic and reflected the bold optimism of a much younger man, when then President Jimmy Carter in 1979 prognosticated, saying: “In the year 2000, this solar water heater behind me will still be here supplying cheap, efficient energy”.

A backdrop with the Solar Panels made it seem quite futuristic, somewhat reminiscent of the movie Time Cop (1994), which had a scene featuring an All-Electric Vehicle passing in front of the White House.  You could almost smell the future back then. But alas, it was not to be.

President Ronald Reagan, afterwards, removed said Solar Panels and placed in storage in 1986, nearly seven (7) years later, thus killing the All-Electric Vehicle and research into Alternative Energy. Curiously, in the week of Friday September 10^th 2010 AD, one (1) of the panels which had been taken and installed atop the Unity College in Maine, where it had been for the last thirty one (31) years.

This was until author and environmental activist Bill McKibben and a merry band of Unity College Students brought the lone solar panel to the White House with the intention of getting an audience with Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America as stated in the article “Solar panels on the White House? Not on Obama's watch”, published Friday September 10, 2:16 pm ET By Mark Clayton, Yahoo! News.

This time, it is with a more Environmental as opposed to Energy Crisis Message, best expressed in the words of activist Bill McKibben himself in a phone interview with Yahoo! News Blogger Mark Clayton, words with which I agree: “We wasted 31 years when we Americans could have been using the sun's heat for power; We had a technological lead in a critical future industry – and instead handed it to China. We need to begin catching up.” Indeed, the Americans must.

Already the People’s Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, a Developing Caribbean country are beginning to catch the Green Energy bandwagon, with plans to install a plant to produce photo voltaic panels (Solar Panels) on a large-scale, a product soon to come rolling off the production lines and probably flood the Jamaican market with cheaper solar products that is currently available as stated in the article “TriniGovt looking into glass, solar panel plant”, published Thursday September 30 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

The delegation – and their proffered gift – was at the time refused by the Obama Administration. But, like the Bible and akin to the persecution of the modern-day Dancehall Artiste Mavado and his tune “Mad Ova” which speaks of the popularity of Jesus among women, who, by the way, was AudiaGrasnton favourite artiste (Gully me an’ she seh!!) of the time.

Jesus, the stone that the Builder Rejected, like Solar Power, seems to be the Stone that which is slated to become the head cornerstone of the American Economy with this recent announcement of the Solar Panel installation atop the White House, thus setting the tone for the Obama Administration Presidency as stated in the article “White House to install rooftop Solar Panels”, published October 5, 2010 5:19 AM PDT by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech.

In addition to Solar Panels on the White House, the DOE (Department of Energy), Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced, will be seeking to cut the Government Public Sector Electricity usage by the implementation of an Energy Competition in a bid to determine which Government Department and Agency can save the most power from the implementation of Alternative Energy, an indication that the White House is not the only Government Department and Agency, aside from the White House, that will be so augmented with Alternative Energy Technology.

How fitting all of this fits into Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America overall Alternative Energy Strategy, involving pumping billions of taxpayers money into All-Electric Car or EV research, specifically:

1.      Battery technology development as stated in the article “Obama: Clean Energy's Venture Capitalist-in-Chief”, published August 5, 2010, 5:00PM EST By Mike Dorning, POLITICS & POLICY, BusinessWeek

2.      Solar Power Investment in Silicon Valley as stated in the article “Obama commits billions to solar firms”, published July 4, 2010 11:34 AM PDT by Reuters, CNET News - Green Tech

3.      Bio-Fuels Sector in a bid to find alternatives to the taxation of corn-based ethanol as stated in the article “'Green' gas and Diesel get boost in Biofuel grants”, published December 4, 2009 12:33 PM PST by Martin LaMonica,CNET News - Green Tech.

Emission and MPG (Mile Per Gallon) regulations that punish Automakers for making cars that have lower than expected emissions and mileage standards and give rewards in the form of subsidies to Consumers and Automakers to encourage the adoption of All-Electric Vehicles this coming summer of 2010 as intoned in “Will 'fun-factor' or mandates drive electric car sales?”, published March 6, 2010 1:56 PM PST by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech

An Obama Administration initiative as stated in the article “U.S. cracks down on vehicle emissions”, published April 2, 2010 6:30 AM PDT by Reuters, CNET News - Green Tech. This now being fulfilled with recent announcements by the Obama Administration by upping the mileage to 62 mpg by 2025 AD as stated in the article “Autos would get up to 62mpg under U.S. plan”, published October 2, 2010 6:00 AM PDT by Reuters, CNET News - Green Tech.

A second ride being an All-Electric Vehicle parked in every garage as opined in the article “The Electric Car might Be the Perfect Second Ride”, published August 3, 2010, 4:35PM EST By Ed Wallace, WALLACE'S WORLD, BusinessWeek, is surely an American Dream come true, especially as these All-Electric Vehicles are to be built with American labour – and Government of the United States of America invested tax dollars.

This is a great job creation and a strong spur for the Technology Sector the spirit of research, now an American Export of the People’s Republic of China as stated in the article “The Other U.S. Energy Crisis: Lack of R&D”, published June 17, 2010, 12:01AM EST by Peter Coy, POLITICS & POLICY, BusinessWeek

This echoed in the prior article “America's Green Innovation Problem”, published May 3, 2010, 4:41PM EST By Rob Atkinson and Devon Swezey, BusinessWeek – VIEWPOINT. A chief criticism echoed by ZDNET author Jason Hiner as stated in the article “Is the American tech industry Oiling its own guillotine?”, published August 30,2010,7:00am PDT By Jason Hiner, ZDNET - Between the Lines.

Throw in a little Government of the United States of America endorsed education initiative, “Educate to Innovate” that support a Silicon Valley initiative called “Change the Equation”, specifically to boost interest among the young in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) being piloted by former Intel Chairman Craig Barrett and Xerox CEO Ursula Burns with the endorsement of about one hundred (100) Silicon Valley CEO’s, inclusive of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation.

Now you have the whole nation in synch with the “Change you Can Believe In” Message that got Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America in the White House in the first place as stated in the article “CEOs take on White House initiative to drive tech education”, published September 17, 2010 11:28 AM PDT by Lance Whitney,CNET News - Business Tech.

Along with a bit of political maneuvering and vote securing from the VoxPopuli as stated in the article “Barack Obama announces $50bn infrastructure plan”, published 6 September 2010 18:15 GMT , BBC World News

Obama also promised the Republican Senate support for the revival and extension of Bush-era Tax Cuts as stated in the article “Obama to introduce another business tax cut”, published Saturday August 7 2010 By Ed Henry, CNN Senior White House Correspondent, CNN News in his bid to control Congress by appeasing House Minority Leader John Boehner, (R-Ohio), the coy cool cat voicing tacit support for the Obama Administrations Long Term plans on CBS “Face the Nation” in late September 2010.

House Minority Leader John Boehner, (R-Ohio) is naturally supportive of Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America Alternative Energy Initiatives, especially as US Military has ambitions plans to wean itself off its current dependence on Oil from the Middle East.

This may be because of a published report back in 2009 by the Center for Naval Analyses with the John Hancock of twelve (12) former US Generals and Admirals all over it, effectively selling the idea that America purchase of Foreign Oil is a transfer of wealth that, albeit going to a sovereign nation, may inadvertently be fuelling not only terrorism but possibly nuclear proliferation.

House Minority Leader John Boehner, (R-Ohio), possibly a former military man, will like this as it appears that the U.S. Navy is moving in that direction as well, recently purchasing from little known Bio-fuel company Solazyme nearly one thousand, five hundred (1.500) gallons of Jet Fuel ordered by the U.S. Navy for testing and certification as stated in the article “Solazyme raises $52 million for algae fuel”, published August 9, 2010 7:17 AM PDT by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech

The U.S. Navy then going to order another twenty thousand (20,000) gallons of their Jet Fuel to the U.S. Navy as stated in the article “U.S. Navy buys 20,000 gallons of algae fuel”, published September 15, 2010 10:36 AM PDT by Candace Lombardi, CNET News - Green Tech, but it is now evidently clear, as Candace Lombardi, a freelance Blogger for CNET, points out.

The report as stated in the article “U.S. Navy buys 20,000 gallons of algae fuel”, published September 15, 2010 10:36 AM PDT by Candace Lombardi, CNET News - Green Tech suggests that the US Military go Green to reduce this flow of money out of the America Economy into the hands of its enemies, simply put. Mind-blowing indeed!

The question begs though, why did this not occur to them back in the 1970’s or foreseen when President George W. Bush was punch drunk with lust for Iraqi Oil? Curiously enough, he did quietly install a solar water heater, with virtually no fanfare in the Fall of 2003 as stated in the article “Solar panels on the White House? Not on Obama's watch”, published Friday September 10, 2:16 pm ET By Mark Clayton, Yahoo! News.

This coincidentally, is the same year that I remember being interviewed by the Nurse Gunning at C&W Jamaica Ltd before I was made redundant in 2004 AD and during that conversation, I mentioned the proposed idea of C&W going solar to power its cell sites via doing an audit of the power usage of the company.

Decoupling the American Economy from Oil and adopt an Alternative Energy or LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) Based Electron Economy as opined in the article by Dr. Ulf Bossel in his published paper entitled “Why a Hydrogen Economy doesn't make sense”, published December 11 2006, PhysOrg.com seems to be the path that the United States of America is taking. A quiet revolution has begun in Washington. But as the President has so many Advisors, in whose mind was this Idea originally conceived, again credit to Christopher Nolan’s Inception (2010)?

Thought to ponder as John Public in Jamaica prays for the coming of All-Electric Vehicles, despite the negative naysayers in the form of Kent LaCroix, President of the Automobile Dealers Association (ADA), who is still harping an old idea I used to support called Turbo Diesel and in the process downplaying the adoption of All-Electric Vehicles in Jamaica as stated in the article “Is Jamaica ready for electric vehicles ?”, published Friday, October 01, 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

The Obama Administration’s ambitions Energy saving plan using Alternative Energy, specifically solar power, will be the envy of other Developing and Developed Nations to follow as Energy Secretary Steven Chu, during his speech to the Green Gov Symposium a talk shop for the White House Council on Environmental Quality at George Washington University, went on to say those most resounding of words: “Around the world, the White House is a symbol of freedom and democracy.

It should also be a symbol of America's commitment to a clean energy future”. The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is going that route as stated in the article “TriniGovt looking into glass, solar panel plant”, published Thursday September 30 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

Senator James Robertson, Minister of Energy and Mining, when are you going to insist on a similar installation of Solar Panels on Jamaica House, increased Energy Efficiency usage by Government of Jamaica Public Sector and a commitment to Alternative Energy?

What of All-Electric Vehicles importation into Jamaica as well as investing in the construction of the necessary support facilities, such as Electric Charging Stations as a counterpoint to Kent LaCroix, President of the Automobile Dealers Association (ADA) ramblings in the article “Is Jamaica ready for electric vehicles ?”, published Friday, October 01, 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

John Public, like the character in the Robert Redford movie Three Days of the Condor (1975), suspects that the Jamaican Government is in bed with the Oil Industry, what with the recent activity here in Jamaica as well as the Oil Discovery by Sagres Energy, the parent of Canadian firm Rainville Energy that had drilling rights in Jamaica since Thursday June 15^th 2006 AD.

This was announced Friday August 27^th 2010 AD and reported in detail on Wednesday September 1^st 2010 in the Jamaica Observer as stated in the article “Jamaica may have 3 billion barrels of Oil”, published Wednesday, September 01, 2010, The Jamaica Observer.

More confirmation is provided in the article “Sagres yet to commit to Jamaica Oil drilling”, published Friday, September 03, 2010, The Jamaica Observer and the article “Wright affirms Oil potential”, published Friday September 3^rd 2010 by The Jamaica Information Service, The Jamaica Financial Gleaner.

Only time will tell, as the Peak Oil Countdown Clock, set to alarm in 2015 AD, as in the Robert Redford movie Three Days of the Condor (1975). More time, folks!!