6 ms·
> Most of the Amish fill large air storage tanks using a gasoline or diesel powered engine. Isn't that cheating? The electricity is not fine, but gasoline and
by yumraj 7y ago
> Most of the Amish fill large air storage tanks using a gasoline or diesel powered engine.
Isn't that cheating? The electricity is not fine, but gasoline and diesel powered engine, that itself is extracted and refined using electricity is.
They should have compressed air using horse power.
- TheSpiceIsLife 7y agoHuman-cranked flywheel would be even better as it excludes the use of horse-technology, at least for that particular purpose.
- tzs 7y agoTheir issue with electricity is with depending on the grid, not with electricity per se. They want to minimize critical dependencies on outside sources, especially single outside sources. Gasoline is a commodity available from many sources, so doesn't cause the kind of dependency the grid would. Many Amish do use non-grid electricity, from solar cells, batteries, windmill driven generators, or gas powered generators.
- Jerry2 7y agoSo, do Amish consider solar power acceptable?
- eropple 7y agoAny question like that is hard to answer as Amish groups are pretty diverse. Some do. It depends on how that particular group views that technology's impact on the community.
- e40 7y agoCan solar panels be made in ways they make their current appliances and tools? I'm guessing not. I'm guessing a huge reason solar panels are made in China is because their production pollutes a lot[1]. I'm guessing the Amish are against anything that pollutes. [1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/05/23/if-solar-panels-are-so-clean-why-do-they-produce-so-much-toxic-waste/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/05/23...
- StudentStuff 7y agoBut gasoline & diesel are okay despite polluting? That doesn't make sense, nor does it follow that petroleum based fuels are permitted despite be extracted and refined using tools and appliances well beyond what most Amish communities currently permit.
- digarbitrage 7y agoThis criticism of solar power is mostly propaganda from the fossil fuel industry. There are 5+ types of solar panels. Cadmium-Telluride solar cells, the ones criticized for toxic components, only make up about 5% of all solar panels produced. Most conventional solar panels are made from Silicon. Silicon is produced by refining sand. It's not toxic and makes up objects that we use every day (i.e. windows or cups).
- jefurii 7y agoMy understanding is that many Amish are enthusiastic solar adopters, precisely because it's off the grid.
- mirekrusin 7y agoSolar power as in stove with parabolic mirror - probably yes, solar power as in photovoltaic panel - probably not. The reason is that you can build one yourself and you can't the other. No dependency during usage is less bad but you're still depending on manufacturer - and you want to avoid dependency.
- gnud 7y agoCan they refine diesel and build an air compressor themselves? And I mean in practice, not theoretically.
- adrianN 7y agoIn practice they most likely can't build a hammer or nails from scratch, because refining iron ore and making steel is quite complicated.
- lawlessone 7y agoCan't diesel engines burn oil?
- alistairSH 7y agoI wonder... would the same community be ok with building their own grid, with a small power generation plant? They could run it off hydro/wind/solar and end up LESS dependent on the outside world than they are currently (where they need a steady source of gasoline, the production of which relies on the very same electric grid they want no part of joining). This feels like a very strange place to draw the line, thought I realize like all such social/religious things, a line has to bee drawn and can be redrawn in the future. Kind of like Shabbat elevators in NYC.[1] Both seem, to me as an outsider, to be somewhere between ingenious life-hack and outright cheating. But, it's not my life and they aren't asking my opinion. 1 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shabbat_elevator https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shabbat_elevator
- Gibbon1 7y agoOne wonders about how solar panels fit into that. Seems of all people that Amish would be okay with only having minimal amounts of electricity at night.
- ericdykstra 7y agoAmish are not anti-technology, they are technology-skeptic and will only adopt a technology if they see that the benefit outweighs the cost, and they are very conservative about their decisions. http://amishamerica.com/technology/ http://amishamerica.com/technology/ Just looking at the result, it seems to have worked out well for them. They're a community that has maintained a focus on family and community, and are in a good position to withstand collapse scenarios, since they are much less dependent on the global economic system.
- BurningFrog 7y agoThere are also several different "strains" of Amishism, with substantial differences in their technology adoption stances.
- willis936 7y agoDriving through the midwest the most surprising thing I saw was a big Amish family birthday party... at a Texas Roadhouse.
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 7y agoThe are even some 1-2 dozen church districts of New Order Amish that use grid electricity.
- jandrese 7y agoIt's a lot of local councils making judgements individually on an case by case basis. The rules can vary quite a lot depending on the individuals involved. It's also important to remember that most Amish didn't choose that lifestyle, they were born into it. And while it is possible to leave at any time, it is pretty difficult to adjust to a radically different lifestyle with little support on the outside. So instead you see stuff like air powered blenders where people work loopholes so they can lead a more comfortable life while not having to go to extremes. This is the major difference between the Amish and for example Monks. In the latter case they chose that lifestyle and find it fulfilling in itself. They weren't forced into it.
- 7y ago
- reaperducer 7y agoIt should be noted that "the Amish" is painting with a very broad brush. It's like saying "All Californians are surfer dudes." There are many different groups of Amish, each with special rules. For example, In some communities, tractors of prohibited. But in others, tractors are fine. And in still others, tractors are only OK as long as they don't have rubber tires. As with any group of humans, generalization is often inaccurate.
- yumraj 7y agoCurious, why no rubber tires? (Or was that just an example to make point)
- sifar 7y agoit is in their faq [1] >> Tractors are often equipped with steel wheels rather than rubber air tires to discourage its use as a vehicle on the road. [1] http://amishamerica.com/technology/#tractors http://amishamerica.com/technology/#tractors
- kemitchell 7y agoGasoline engines use electricity to ignite compressed fuel-air charges. Spark plugs work by arcing electricity over a measured air gap.