Until his retirement, Rick Sikes managed the fleet of cars and trucks operating in the city of Santa Monica, CA, a municipality generally known for its progressive stance with respect to environmental stewardship. He worked hard to integrate alternative-fueled vehicles of all types: electric, yes, but also an interesting array of hydrogen, natural gas, even propane.
I interviewed Rick as the basis for a chapter of my first book, “Renewable Energy–Facts and Fantasies,” as an example of what forward-thinking cities are capable of when it comes to phasing out petroleum. I conducted the talk on a walking tour of his facility, which features huge tanks of different types of fuel, during which I asked, jokingly, “Am I in any danger here this afternoon?”
Taking me seriously, Rick replied that gas-powered vehicles are far more likely to catch fire than EVs and the rest. In fact, there are so many of them each day that most of them don’t even make the local news.
Here we are 15 years later, and now we’re starting see the propaganda that falsely claims that EVs are extremely likely to burst into flames, an assertion refuted in this recent article in AutoBlog.
I’m not a financial pro, but here’s some advice:
Don’t live on a budget. Make a lot of money and live far beneath your means. What value does luxury actually bring to your life, especially if it makes you nervous about running out of cash?
As I told my kids when they were growing up, “Unless you’re completely shallow, showing off your money is an idiotic thing to do. You make false friends and have people glomming onto you to sell you stuff you really don’t need.”
Warren Buffett still lives in a modest house in Nebraska, a state in which he could buy an entire country. Maybe there is something about him and his values that could benefit you.
I see.
There’s not enough land in Spain to support rooftop and ground-mounted solar at a fraction of the cost.
LOL.
It’s possible that right now, there are other civilizations observing the human race, studying us from afar, and noticing our decline into savagery and eventual extinction by turning billionaires into trillionaires.
People say that the principal weakness of human beings is that we can’t plan for the future as a species. Dogs are arguably even worse, though they aren’t consumed with greed. They don’t plot the starvation of millions of other dogs so they themselves can have enough food to last a billion years.
As an elderly man, I’ll be leaving this planet soon, but I won’t cease pondering this until my heart stops beating.
-
Climate Change10 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
-
Greenhouse Gases10 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
-
Greenhouse Gases2 years ago嘉宾来稿：满足中国增长的用电需求 光伏加储能“比新建煤电更实惠”
-
Climate Change2 years ago嘉宾来稿：满足中国增长的用电需求 光伏加储能“比新建煤电更实惠”
-
Climate Change2 years ago
Bill Discounting Climate Change in Florida’s Energy Policy Awaits DeSantis’ Approval
-
Renewable Energy8 months agoSending Progressive Philanthropist George Soros to Prison?
-
Carbon Footprint2 years agoUS SEC’s Climate Disclosure Rules Spur Renewed Interest in Carbon Credits
-
Greenhouse Gases11 months ago
嘉宾来稿：探究火山喷发如何影响气候预测