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> As if nobody has considered these drawbacks already There is a real and consequential lack of attention to detail in this regard, though. Energy is a tricky
by walleeee 2y ago
> As if nobody has considered these drawbacks already
There is a real and consequential lack of attention to detail in this regard, though. Energy is a tricky and subtle topic which is very commonly oversimplified in the press, in politics, even among the technically literate, likely because we have a clearly identified problem (the consequences of hydrocarbons) and what seems to be an obvious solution (renewables).
It is a dangerous fallacy to think we can simply swap wind and solar into global industrial civilization and carry on happily into the sunset, but that is how many well-intentioned people seem to understand the situation.
- NoPicklez 2y agoI don't think anyone in this comment thread is saying we can simply swap wind and solar, as a very reductionist take. But just throwing up the drawbacks of a particular solution, doesn't mean that solution should be entirely thrown out. No solution is perfect in the beginning, but through iterative innovation and a need to switch to renewable energy sources, those drawbacks will become less of a drawback.
- walleeee 2y agoCertainly tradeoffs do not discredit a proposal wholesale. That's true, and it's beside the point. This thread is also beside the point. The relevant sphere is the general public discourse, which is largely naive and unexamined. This is not at all to insult the public, but to critique the narrative that dominates the public mindshare. The premise that we "need to switch to renewable energy sources" is what is in question. What is it that we want do with that energy? Are "renewables" really renewable if they require a massive expansion in mining of non-renewable materials? Have we really something we ought to call a "solution" if it prolongs our war on earth-borne life? We don't simply have a hydrocarbon problem. We have a deep and profound dilemma and a mass psychosis of global proportion. The application of tidy concepts like "problem" and "solution" to the former are symptomatic of the latter.