In virtually all arenas of technology in which there are (or were at one time) many different competitors, we inevitably reach the point that “the winners win and the losers lose.”
In renewable energy, we recently said goodbye (except for niche applications) to concepts like hydrokinetics, geothermal, and biomass. In automotive, one could say that biofuels took its last breath when Chevron gave up about a decade ago after 30 years of effort, and, per this post, hydrogen expired today.
While I grant that this is a controversial matter, I think that winnowing out the competition and leaving us with the strongest players–to strengthen even further–is a good thing.
In renewable energy, we have solar and wind; in automobile drive trains, we have electricity. Concentrating on what we do best is, I would argue, the most effective way to decarbonize the energy and transportation sectors—an absolute must if this civilization is to deal effectively with environmental collapse.
There Is No Way to Prevent the Winners from Winning–and That’s a Good Thing
There really are threats to human civilization that seem to be mounting in intensity:
• World fascism. (If it can happen in the U.S., it could conceivably happen anywhere.)
• Environmental collapse.
• Malicious use of AI.
• Pandemics, as misinformation on vaccinations spread and the frozen tundra melts, releasing pathogens never seen by humans.
• Nuclear war.
Addressing the point made at left, is there any scenario in which world governments agree to cooperate so as to stave off the end of an organized society here on Earth? One supposes so, though it sounds far-fetched in today’s world in which the leaders of most of the 200+ sovereign nations are trying so desperately to cling to power.
Obviously, James Carville has been wrong before, but it appears that he’s onto something here.
An ever-increasing number of Americans are realizing that Trump is criminally insane, and is leading this nation to destruction.
It’s a pleasure to see that Dr. Brian Cox has people so popular, having joined the ranks for Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Bill Nye, and a few others. This phenomenon of celebrity physicists if one of very few bright spots in our modern world.
I would qualify what he says at left as follows: the only people who hate the economics here are those invested in fossil fuels. Clean energy and transportation are already huge industries, and they’re growing at an amazing pace–even in the face of heavy suppression by Big Oil and Donald Trump.
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