Is solar energy a viable long-term alternative energy source?

Not really. The sun burns continuously. The sun does not go off every twelve hours. It may only hit one side of the planet 12 hours a day.

January 24, 2013 at 10:55 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Is solar energy a viable long-term alternative energy source?

Even oil is a better option than coal. No such thing as clean coal. It pollutes when you burn in, pollutes when you dig it up. Coal no good.

January 24, 2013 at 10:52 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Is solar energy a viable long-term alternative energy source?

Yep. Though under the most ideal conditions, the mojave desert solar plant is on 1980's technology using mirror reflection to create steam, and it is approximately equivalent to the megawatts of a mid-sized coal plant. It is very promising considering the newer solar panel technology.

Hopefully in our lifetime we will begin to see some substantial renewable energy shift.

January 24, 2013 at 10:48 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

In Obama's second inaugural address, he calls on U.S. to help poor, elderly

“Our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it,” President Obama

January 21, 2013 at 9:34 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: GOP should employ resistance strategy

I see your point Jafs. And it is valid. I still see it as separate because if we have a government shut down, the debt ceiling can and should still be increased. In this way, the debt ceiling is separate from the budget. Just as it can be lowered if we ever get back to budget surplus. The debt ceiling can also be adjusted at any time during the year and it does not have to coincide with the timing of any budget.

January 20, 2013 at 4:37 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: GOP should employ resistance strategy

Increased money supply will not create inflation if capacity and/or supply is also increased....which is often the case when GDP is growing.

January 20, 2013 at 4:25 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: GOP should employ resistance strategy

I still believe it is separate. Finanacing and budgeting are separate. Even a balanced budget would require a raise to the debt ceiling to cover the accumulating interest.

As far as common sense, ruining the credit rating of the United States currency will result in higher interest rates on our debt. Some estimate this could be 1.2 trillion. This does not strike me as a wise way to spend tax dollars. This would also throw many economies back into a recession, thus leading to even larger defecits. This could potentially result in another stock market crash. This would be unwise and no common sense either.

Balancing the budget, stimulating economic growth and increasing tax revenues all need to be done to get us out of this mess. I don't know if accomplishing all three at the same time has ever been done. But not raising the debt ceiling will only add fuel to the fire and make things much worse.....unless we agree demolishing our economy and building anew from the ground up. I'd like to think we still have a chance to avoid this.

January 20, 2013 at 4:01 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: GOP should employ resistance strategy

The continuing to borrow part is a separate process.

The debt ceiling is the Finance aspect of the budget. We simply have to finance what we borrow.

Arguing about what we spend and what we should cut is done during the budgetary process. It one considers our current budget defecits irresponsible, I would argue that not raising the debt ceiling is way beyond irresponsible. I would call it reckless.

The other irritating point about all of this is that some politicians are doing this only because they want to use it as leverage and/or want to see President Obama fail. There was hardly ever even a slight argument about raising the debt ceiling during the past Republican administrations. Why are the Republicans all of a sudden willing to go of this cliff? Is it political. Damn right it is.

January 20, 2013 at 12:36 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: GOP should employ resistance strategy

There is one option that given the current economy might not be such a crazy idea. And that would be monetizing the debt. I am not sure how much this really would dilute the US dollar because 1) The dollar is used all around the world these days and is a cash outflow. 2) We are dumping a lot of US dollars into Afghanistan and Iraq for there infrastructure and much of this money is not cycled back into our economy 3) Our economy is slow to begin with so this would make the inflationary impact less.

I am well aware that monetizing debt is a wildly radical idea. But is it an option if it would not cause hyperinflation.....just a temporary inflation? It is something that might just get us out of this mess.....something we should never allow ourselves to get into ever again.

January 20, 2013 at 12:19 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Opinion: GOP should employ resistance strategy

You say it way better than I could have. I was only using a credit card to set an example.

We also got to see what is happening in Europe and what resulted from there Austerity experiment. Yet, right wing politicians want to do the same exact thing.

It is not necessarily that we spend too much (ie even though we can do much better and be more efficient) it is also that our economy is not producing enough tax revenue.

January 20, 2013 at 2:12 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )