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The further we go down the renewables route the less we depend on despotic states for our energy. Energy may well be cheap in the US but you have been paying f

• Lord-Jobo 3mo ago
  It’s not possible to truly estimate what our military costs would be without those conflicts, but I would be interested in our energy costs if you incorporated the military costs into that. I’m willing to bet we pay more than nearly anyone else if you lump it in relatively fairly.
  • hunterpayne 3mo ago
    The GWOT was 7% of the US military budget. Also, the US doesn't get oil from the Middle East anymore. Its been about 10 years since we did.
• bradfa 3mo ago
  We've gotten pretty good at digging holes in the ground and there's a lot of existing energy down there under our land (and near-by water). So yes, we've certainly had misadventures in the middle east, but we've also embraced the "drill baby drill" mantra of late. Texas is probably our national leader in terms of deploying solar and wind power, which feels ironic but is totally rational and logical.
• toasty228 3mo ago
  > The further we go down the renewables route the less we depend on despotic states for our energy. 80% of solar panels/batteries/windmills are made in China. We wouldn't even be able to make them without fossil fuels in the first place. Not even talking about the electronics that is needed
  • eigenspace 3mo ago
    German wind turbines largely don't come from China, but even if they did, the difference is that if China stopped selling us solar panels, batteries and wind turbines, the existing infrastructure would continue to function for decades to come while we work out a domestic replacement supply chain. This is in stark contrast to fossil fuels, where it's infeasible to stockpile more than a few months of usage, and if suppliers turn off the tap, you're at their mercy almost instantly. If China stopped supplying solar panels or batteries, it'd spark a frenzy of activity and demand for locally produced replacements, and there would be enough time for those to come online.
    • hunterpayne 3mo ago
      The rare earths do come from China and that's where most of the environmental damage they cause happens. Rare earths can be mined almost anywhere. They aren't rare but they also aren't concentrated because they aren't water soluble. They are mined in places that don't care about environmental damage, not in places where specific geologic conditions exist (like everything else except AL). Also, you need them to make generators. When you put those generators in wind instead of in hydro or nuclear, you waste them. This is because they will generate 6 to 9 times as much power in hydro or nuclear plants as in a wind turbine.
      • eigenspace 3mo ago
        The generators are not the expensive or hard part of building hydro or nuclear, so I have no idea why you're making that comparison. Wind power is an incredibly cheap form of power. Your point about rare earths is more or less covered by my previous comment about solar panels and batteries. Besides, rare earths is actually a supply chain that's being rapidly de-risked from China as we speak anyways.
      • mrob 3mo ago
        Big generators in power plants use alternators with field windings, not permanent magnets. Wind turbines use either permanent magnet generators or induction generators. Permanent magnets generators are more efficient, especially at low wind speeds, but we can do without them if necessary.
  • KellyCriterion 3mo ago
    20 years ago, Germany was among the topleaders in Solar Research & Manufacturing, the Government back then killed the opportunity for they country.
• clarionbell 3mo ago
  Who is making all those solar cells and batteries? I'll give you a hint, it's not a European country.