It is amazing how powerful dependence on fossil fuel is.  Cars, of course.  Driving back from the river yesterday, I needed to get home in a hurry, so I chose I-5 over beautiful country roads.  As I came over the overpass to get on, I noticed unbelievable numbers of big rigs going in both directions.  I know we need the goods loaded on them, and in recent decades, the US has relied less and less on a modern rail system.  Of course, trains use fuel too.

Would we be BFF’s for even a minute with certain Arab nations were it not for their oil?  Right now, would the EU be putting up with Putin for a split second if not dependent on Russian natural gas?

I used to haul logs into my fireplace for winter warmth, but this gradually proved inefficient for several reasons.  I was considering solar panels for my roof, but I do live in Oregon where we have lots of trees which are watered by lots of rain.  The roof at 1880 is wonderfully shaded.

All this is fraught with contradictions and dichotomies. I read another one in the SJ this morning:  “The fracking revolution is about to make the US a natural gas exporter.”  In spite of the many problems with this method of getting our fossil fuel to the surface,

would it not be too cool to provide it to Paris, Berlin, and Warsaw to keep them warm in the winter and say to that Russian thug, “Take that, Putin!”?