Being a Teamster... should I be proud or terrified?

[Bigum1969]

It is sad that we are still burning fossil fuels to generate power. We haven't come that far from the steam powered locomotive.

I believe the future is nuclear. We've got to get over our fear.

 

[Lars]

I'll happily volunteer to drive a car powered by a nuclear reactor.

 

[Paul]

I'll happily volunteer to drive a car powered by a nuclear reactor.

Hell yea!!!!

 

[Bigum1969]

Me too. I wouldn't mind having a mini reactor power my RV!

 

[Lars]

I'd go so far as to say a small reactor in my house to keep things running would be acceptable as well.

 

[Paul]

I'd go so far as to say a small reactor in my house to keep things running would be acceptable as well.

They do have ones that are smaller now. Like the size of a small house that will power a couple blocks of houses. That would be pretty cool.

 

[SavageEagle]

Got to hand it to you SavageEagle, you sure got us talking.

That was the point! 2 stimulate very intellectual conversation!

Those are just the initial cost. Things break over time and require maintenance. Also you have to ask yourself if you want to make that big of an investment at this point in time. I get the feeling something new and better will surface soon and that money could be better spent on the newer technology. Energy is become expensive enough for people to invest in research and development for alternatives.
If it was up to me we would be building more nuke plants. Its a sad statement that we still burn fossil fuels to make electricity.

Yes there are new solar cells, cheaper, more reliable due out in the next year or two. The utilize smaller cells in more of a honeycomb shape that gather more energy and a plexiglass cover that promotes a greenhouse effect. In effect storing MORE energy. Did I mention its going to be CHEAPER!?

The biggest problems with Nuke power is 1) radioactive waste. We haven't learned how to safely store it let alone how to safely recycle and reuse it. 2) There is always the possibility of a nuclear melt down or a terrorist attack/sabotage that would be devestating to the whole region. Remember Chernobyl(sp?)? Russia? Melt down? still can't go near the area 20 years later. How about the movie scenarios or earthquakes or tornados? Those could have devastating effects also. Can we truly risk that?

There are undeveloped alternitives such as Hydrogen power, Microwave Satillite power, FISSION power. Once developed these sources of energy would be cheap or free and possibly ever lasting. Remember the movie Chain Reaction? Not perfectly safe, but free energy that, in theory, would be abundant and clean.

So is Nuclear Power really the best solution? Not really. It's ok for now and 50 years ago. But in this day and age, no. We need to be investing more into the Space Program for help on alternitives.

 

[Paul]

The biggest problems with Nuke power is 1) radioactive waste. We haven't learned how to safely store it let alone how to safely recycle and reuse it. 2) There is always the possibility of a nuclear melt down or a terrorist attack/sabotage that would be devestating to the whole region. Remember Chernobyl(sp?)? Russia? Melt down? still can't go near the area 20 years later. How about the movie scenarios or earthquakes or tornados? Those could have devastating effects also. Can we truly risk that?

Actually in Europe, they recycle their nuclear waste. Why cant we do the same? We can!!!

Melt down, give me a break...Chernobyl was an inferior reactor with the workers not trained well. If you dont know anything about nuclear reactors, its kind of hard to explain....all reactors now are very safe.

Earthquakes and tornadoes will happen but not necessarily hit a plant or even risk it. Why even have nuclear weapons? A tornado could hit a base where we keep them and cause problems. What about all the dangerous chemicals that are around now days? How do we store these without them being destroyed?

We already have hundreds of nuclear power plants in the U.S. and they operate without problems. Nuclear power is the way of the future. We cant power the U.S. on just wind and solar, and certainly not on hopes and dreams.

 

[SavageEagle]

So you're saying that it's not possible, or probable I should say, that if we build hundreds more nuke plants, that the possibility of a melt down at even ONE of those plants could happen? What if it happens out west? Where is that radioactive cloud going to go? You can't say it won't happen because it can and it will. The more plants you build the more the risk goes up. And you CAN power the whole Country on solar and wind power. Make it cheaper. Who cares if they (company or government) makes a profit off the equipment? The profit comes in cleaner air, water, and ground. If everyone had a solar and wind powered house, and we utilize the rivers and lakes for water generated plants, or hydro-electric power plants, we can power the whole nation. And you don't have to dam a river to get hydro-electric power. Under water paddle wheels, water wheels from water mills of years past, the sky is the limit.

Nuclear waste... Ok, i don't know much about how to recycle it so please enlighten me as to how the EU does this and what it's used for and how they don't contaminate the ground doing so. I'm not trying to be a smartass, i really want to know. There has to be some energy uses we can get from nuclear waste. Radioactivity is, essentially, energy....

 

[melensdad]

Ok well for one, not everyone uses 60 Gigawatts an hour either. Second, if you couple the wind generator with a solar array you won't need the 'grid' for power and if you generate enough power you actually get a return from the energy company. The more power, the more the return ... You don't have to pay 12K to get a good wind generator. Yes some of the components are costly, but most components can be built, bought, or improvised for a fraction of the cost without sacrificing power generation. And instead of making a storage shed for batteries, you can generate what you need during the day and use smaller batteries coupled with energy conservation at night. There's many ways to do this without spending a fortune. . .

I'm sorry but you are simply wrong. Suggesting that I use 60 Gigawatts is silly and belittles you. My house is actually very energy efficient, but fairly large at roughly 4000sq ft. and certainly not a mansion by any standards. A typical new home is roughly 2400 square feet and doesn't sit on enough property to have a wind generator! As for your statements of making all of it work . . . Please check prices. . . Please check requirements. Many areas of Indiana simply do not have enough wind for wind generators, I happy to live in an area where it is viable, but it is simply too expensive to install. As for solar, check the prices on that too, they are through the roof AND most areas of Indiana cannot maximize solar efficiency. The average consumer simply cannot afford either of these technologies! We are talking about roughly $25,000 as an entry point to power a house with wind/solar. How are people going to pay that?

 

[Lars]

..... Flawed Math removed.
A 5KW/h solar kit, costs $35,500 and should be able to provide most of your power needs. A battery bank would be required to keep the lights on when the sun goes down.

The bank across the main part of the roof provides 4KW/h of power.
The bank across the garage provides another 2KW/h of power.
and according to the article keeps their house running, as well as charges their electric car.

That's still 284 months at an average of $125 a month for power before it paid for itself.

 

[Lars]

For the record, the installation above required a total of $45,000 out of pocket expenses in home renovations for energy independence. That's after receiving tax credits and incentives of almost $20,000

 

[BloodEclipse]

For the record, the installation above required a total of $45,000 out of pocket expenses in home renovations for energy independence. That's after receiving tax credits and incentives of almost $20,000

I wonder how much energy went into producing the solar cells and everything required for installation. It addition to that I wonder what the life span of the system is?

 

[SavageEagle]

Ok first off I wasn't trying to belittle ANYONE. I was simply saying that not everyone has a HUGE house and isn't as fortunate as you as to have 3 to 4 times more space than what the average home is. A mansion is usually classified as a castle these days. ANYWAY, if you would have read my previous comments before, solar technology is getting cheaper, and companies don't have to produce this stuff to make a profit. The profit should be from having clean air and water and a clean overall future for our kids. Does anyone care about this? I sure do. And I know it can be done if we just use our heads. Forget buying these things and having them installed. Learn how to do it, improvise the parts, get your whole neighborhood involved! Sheesh! What's happening to this Country??? Have we lost our creativity? Our Pride? Our ingenuity? Why can't we make this work? Why do we have to wait for our grandchildren or great grandchildren do figure something out? You know what, lets all just say to hell with it. Let's suck the earth dry of oil, coal, and NG! Let's pollute the water and poison the air! Let kill off every living thing just so we can live in comfort all because we place monetary value on EVERYTHING ON THIS PLANET! We just need to do away with money all together....

 

[mluker]

I am a Maintenance Mechanic for a very large tire manufacturer in Indiana. I am a member of the United Steel Workers. Our local union board is not about gouging the company to get us more money. Our board is more about getting the company to invest money in the facilities and machinery. This will make it harder for them to close the plant and move overseas. The union also provides us with benefits such as dental insurance and tuition coverage for college. This comes from my dues that I pay out of my own pocket. Not the company I work for. Our union has actually made concessions with the company to keep them competitive. Do I agree with all unions and their principals? No. But I do believe that unions can be fair to employees and the company. I do not understand why people are quick to criticize unions based on the bad things they hear about some of them. The press is not quick to point out the good things that some unions offer to the employees and the companies. So, I guess it is like anything else. There are two sides to every story. If you get both sides, you can make a better judgement of what is really going on. *sits back and waits for the STHTF about my post*

 

[SavageEagle]

I am a Maintenance Mechanic for a very large tire manufacturer in Indiana. I am a member of the United Steel Workers. Our local union board is not about gouging the company to get us more money. Our board is more about getting the company to invest money in the facilities and machinery. This will make it harder for them to close the plant and move overseas. The union also provides us with benefits such as dental insurance and tuition coverage for college. This comes from my dues that I pay out of my own pocket. Not the company I work for. Our union has actually made concessions with the company to keep them competitive. Do I agree with all unions and their principals? No. But I do believe that unions can be fair to employees and the company. I do not understand why people are quick to criticize unions based on the bad things they hear about some of them. The press is not quick to point out the good things that some unions offer to the employees and the companies. So, I guess it is like anything else. There are two sides to every story. If you get both sides, you can make a better judgement of what is really going on. *sits back and waits for the STHTF about my post*

Thank you for your support in this thread. I tried to explain that not all unions are bad and not destroyers. yes some are bad, but some are better to be a part of. Any organization can become corrupt. it's it's members of that organization that must overhaul, or rebel, to change that corruption.

Thank God for Freedom. Thank God for the Good Ol United States of America! And Thank God for those who make it possible!

 

[BloodEclipse]

Most Unions are just "The Company Lite". How many of you who are in Unions get to Vote for your National President? How many officials in your Union outside of your Local have the same pay scale, benefits, or pension plan? They say we are all brothers but they get special everything. They say they represent us but more and more it appears they represent themselves. How many appointed positions in your Unions go to qualified people instead of friends,family,or ass kissers?

 

[bwframe]

How many appointed positions in your Unions go to qualified people instead of friends,family,or ass kissers?

Why can't the average person get a high $, high benefited, union job without being one of these. Oh, and you forgot to mention sleeping with someone to get one, I've seen this be done.

 

[mluker]

The unions have nobody to blame but the union members. The union members vote at a local level for their leaders. If the wrong people get voted in, then thats what you get. It's no different than the government. We vote, they lead. The problem is that most union members do not really care who gets voted in. They know this guy, or don't like this guy, or what ever. But our local has a very strong leadership that works with the people and the company. Thats why they were voted in, and why the company is very willing to make concessions to the union. They know that the respect goes both ways.