Energy and Alternatives

[Darren Dirt]

a lot of rural people are going to get @%&#ed over in a couple of years (I mean, Canada's population density is WAY lower than the US, I can't see the Gov't running cable to everyone, or giving away cheap satellite boxes).

Jeff Rubin has some thoughts about how the rural communities will change in the future... hopeful thoughts.

[Tom]

a lot of rural people are going to get @%&#ed over in a couple of years (I mean, Canada's population density is WAY lower than the US, I can't see the Gov't running cable to everyone, or giving away cheap satellite boxes).

Jeff Rubin has some thoughts about how the rural communities will change in the future... hopeful thoughts.

Its too bad he's totally ignoring human ingenuity. Sure we don't have a cheap energy alternative right now, but industry will get it sorted asap once it becomes a necessity. Why? Because they'll have to. Most of the businesses won't be able to continue to operate without it.

The interviewer even asked the question up front, and Rubin either was totally oblivious to what the question meant, or he was intentionally ignoring it to help sell his book.

[Darren Dirt]

Rubin didn't get a chance to remind Strombo of the thing many people overlook -- oil is not JUST used for energy/fuel, it's also the base product in a whole lotta other things we use all the time, including plastics.

But then again, if there weren't the moral "issue" connected with it, HEMP would solve both our energy and plastic (and even GRASS[water]!) problems virtually overnight

or he was intentionally ignoring it to help sell his book.

keep in mind, Rubin was like THE top economist at CIBC, without question his "career as an author" brings in less coin than he was making from salary+bonuses+"side action" ... obviously the guy is passionate about bigger picture issues beyond his own wallet (not saying he's fully informed about related aspects of his book's subject, just saying his motives are likely more complex and "society-benefiting" than, say, Donald Trump vis. Miss America pageant ownership )

[Thorin]

Rubin didn't get a chance to remind Strombo of the thing many people overlook -- oil is not JUST used for energy/fuel, it's also the base product in a whole lotta other things we use all the time, including plastics.

But then again, if there weren't the moral "issue" connected with it, HEMP would solve both our energy and plastic (and even GRASS[water]!) problems virtually overnight

Okay, I followed your link to a Google search for "American Savannah", and I have no idea what you're trying to imply either by way of the results or of the wording of your link.  How does hemp solve a water problem?  Maybe you can come right out and say what you're thinking instead of just loosely implying something and expecting us all to read your mind on the subject?

[Darren Dirt]

Okay, I followed your link to a Google search for "American Savannah", and I have no idea what you're trying to imply either by way of the results or of the wording of your link.  How does hemp solve a water problem?

Hemp is apparently a plant that grows fast without fertilizer and uses very little water, as opposed to the pretty green stuff that the CBC Nature of Things special (called "American Savannah") was focused on which especially uses a ton of water to keep looking pretty. I put a winky there at the end because on the visual side of things I doubt hemp looks as "pretty" as the green stuff but hey if you need a lawn in a place where water is scarce maybe it would serve as a good alternative (although due to "moral" legislative issues good luck in getting the seeds in the first place if you are in a "civilized" country).

[Thorin]

Okay, so now it makes sense what you were implying - however, hemp does not make for a lawn:



source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp

Might as well just go with drought-resistant ground cover, at that point.  Or some other lawn alternative.

[Darren Dirt]

cool, thanks for that info... I guess I used the word "apparently" a lot cuz subconsciously I knew that I really haven't done enough of my own direct research into what this miracle plant *can* actually be used for

PS: clicked a random search result page, found this neato page, about a neat alternative.

[Thorin]

lol

Well, if you're going to push a miracle plant make sure you know what it looks like   I got my info about it from Trailer Park Boys, the story arc where they accidentally planted a giant field and had Rita MacNeil harvesting it...

I agree with you that industrial hemp can do a lot to lessen our dependence on oil, at least for plastics products.  However, it really depends on where you live.  The EIA (US Energy Information Administration) has an interesting web page here: Demand Chapter, which then links to some interesting graphs:

World Oil Demand per Capita by Region, 2003
World Oil Demand by Region, 1980-2003 (notice, not "per capita")
U.S. Oil Demand by End-Use Sector, 1950-2004

So if you live in Western Europe, reducing plastic use might have the most impact on oil used for your region.  If you live in North America, reducing gasoline use will have the most impact on oil used for your region.  If you live in Africa, you barely use any oil as it is now...  Reducing Africa's plastic consumption will have less effect than reducing America's, Japan's, India's, China's, and Russia's use of plastic.  But again, in America reducing gasoline usage will see quicker, bigger effects.

And it all comes down to us driving more, thanks to living further from work and play.

Now to a different point - it seemed to me like you were pushing hemp because of society's (or the government's?) supposed hemp-is-immoral stance, rather than providing a true alternative to oil use.  It seemed to me that you hadn't really studied hemp, but were merely using it as a crutch to rail against the government and society in general.  I've sorta gotten used to you doing this, and in my mind I just write it off as, "Darren's talking crazy anti-government/anti-society again".  Which is too bad, because the point that got lost was that there are smart people with smart solutions and Jeff Rubin might be one of them.

Oh, and Canada supports growing industrial hemp, so you were even sorta wrong on about Canada considering hemp immoral/illegal.

[Lazybones]

Not to mention you guys went WAY off topic.

[Darren Dirt]

sorry.

[Thorin]

Not to mention you guys went WAY off topic.

lol, yes we did, but someone was nice enough to split the thread

[Darren Dirt]

here's the kind of stuff that I wanted to say, but it's coming from folks who actually have done real research into the subject...

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2009/06/19/morning-buzz-following-the-pot-trail/

Travis   June 19th, 2009 9:48 am ET

I guess I miss interpreted the whole idea you had Mr. Cooper when you were going to discuss the pros and cons on the subject of Marijuana legalization. As I suspected there is no independent news agency that is actually willing to produce a production show where the truth is told. As I stand by and watch the program which was widely advertised to be a non bias approach on this very simple subject. I was not surprised that the media could not produce such a show. As I suspected you were looking for ratings and you knew the topic of marijuana would get the viewers watching.

I was not alive in the 30's but as you have proved to my eyes that your show and all other american programs are strictly bias on the subject that marijuana should remain illegal. All your programs are showing the bad and the ugly you are not showing the good that can come from this natural herb that was put here for human consumption.

Why don't you just admit the reason they will not legalize it is because you can't regulate it. Marijuana a simple weed that can be grown in any location. While you are at it you could also admit that your superiors are also making sure that the points you make are points that lean more towards keeping it illegal than producing the truth about the positive effects of natural herb.

Legal or not I will always be a pot smoker. I make over 6 figures a year and yet I have been labeled a looser by one or your bias supporters. LOL I thought I was supposed to a lazy good for nothing couch potato that you portray on your show. I guess I didn't read those rules when I started smoking pot in the late 70's. At no point in my life of 30 years of smoking have I never felt addicted, lazy or a no good person. I have been able to quit smoking pot easily for periods of months on end. Yet I never felt like I had to have it or I would die like cigarettes me feel.

When I try to quit smoking cigarettes I feel like the world is crushing down on me. My temper is very short and I get headaches constantly. I am not a happy person when trying to quit cigarettes. But with marijuana it is no big deal. There is no craving, drive or feeling that I have to have it 24/7 like cigarettes. If I run out of cigarettes I have to have another pack soon so I know it is available. With pot I can wait 6 months for a new batch. I don't have to have it all the time.

So Mr. Cooper I suspect you report to your superiors about the production of your show. I would hope that you might stand up for your own reputation and let your superiors know that next time you attempt approach this subject you will demand a non bias approach. Till then good luck.




Michael W. North Little Rock, Arkansas   June 19th, 2009 10:21 am ET

I completely agree with the above poster 'Travis.' This is almost a one-sided debate that you are putting out.

Why haven't you mentioned any of the industrial uses for marijuana? We could completely move away from crude oil by using hemp seed oil. It is much more cost efficient than crude, can be used to make plastics that are ten times as hard as steel (thank you Henry Ford for that innovation), could almost put an end to our de-forrestation if cultivated for paper products, and is an excellent source of cheap fiber for clothing and other related materials.

As Dr. Gupta said on your show the other night, it does have medical benefits, but the money that our country could make from industrial applications is what you/we should be pushing.

Imagine, pot ending the energy crisis. Pot bringing in billions of dollars a year from oil production alone! This simple little weed could actually bring our country out of this recession quickly! Wake up Anderson! Respectfully yours, M.W.

[Darren Dirt]

Why don't you just admit the reason they will not legalize it is because you can't regulate it. Marijuana a simple weed that can be grown in any location. While you are at it you could also admit that your superiors are also making sure that the points you make are points that lean more towards keeping it illegal than producing the truth about the positive effects of natural herb.

And yet with all the information out there, probably close to half of Americans believe lies and think it's okay to sentence someone to a quarter century in a cage for selling a freakin' plant. :sigh:

[Thorin]

Darren, you spend a lot of time complaining about American laws...  Why not bring up ridiculous laws in other countries?  From my point of view, you seem to be brainwashed by the anti-American movement.

My complaint here is not that you're pointing out the (perceived) idiocy of American anti-marijuana law, but that you never seem to point out the idiocy of the laws in any other countries.  For instance, South Korea's anti-adultery law, where spouses (usually women, rarely men) can be thrown in jail for having an affair.

If yer gonna hate on de gubmints, at least spread it out amongst all of 'em...

[Lazybones]

or you could keep it more local.

http://www.theprovince.com/Vancouver%20cops%20update%20camera%20seizure%20policy/1702789/story.html


http://www.boingboing.net/2009/06/08/michael-geist-explai.html

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/05/canada-ip-battlelines-plagiarized-report-piracy-guesses.ars

but I suppose that would be to relevant.