Rubénerd!

From USA Today, even though it came out yesterday:

Instead of shoehorning the electric powerplant into a conventional GM compact-car platform, the next Volt will be purpose-built. That will allow the ability to better package the batteries and other specialized components, says Mark Reuss, president of GM North America.

Shows my ignorance, I thought it was purpose-built. The Honda Civic Hybrid isn't purpose-built, and it doesn't come with a premium price tag.

To me, this reads like a book coming out in hardcover for the people who really want it, then releasing the paperback for everyone else.

And now I've exhausted all my car knowledge, and have lost my train of thought.

Flick My Switch! An initiative being spearheaded by my good friend Sashin! Spread the word :D

Comments should be left on the YouTube page.

@WestWingReport: Pentagon is by far the #1 consumer of energy in U.S. The Air Force alone uses more oil than some countries. Renewable energy is top priority

@WestWingReport: Navy is also investing big in renewable energy. It has conducted test flights of F-18s powered by biofuels - & developing a "Green Fleet"

My question for the President: aren't you missing the point?

They were out in full force this weekend in Earlwood. Over two days I had flyers handed to me about an End of The World seminar by the Jehovah's Witnesses, a Baptist pledge drive and an invitation for a "dianetic reading" for the low, low price of $1500. Pieces of Sweet Stars Yoko couldn't wait!

Ironically, just as people did with material from The Greens, these flyers were littered all around the street shortly after. Seems "Ruining The Earth" is a self fulfilling prophecy.

While I'm not qualified to comment on the specifics of old growth forests in Tasmania, one thing I can say from watching Q&A this evening was that Eric Abetz's take on science was a tad offensive.

Whether it be in the news media or general discourse, people are entitled to their own opinions, but nobody is entitled to their own facts. Asserting science and shock jocks like Alan Jones are of level footing on a supposed spectrum of ideology is simply not true.

What could possibly go wrong?

Extra fuel is joining peanuts and magazines on the list of things American Airlines wants to ditch at the gate. The airline announced plans this week to save cash by using "scientifically precise" computer models to load less fuel. If pilots want more, they'll need to submit a request in writing.

I would think retiring the world's largest fleet of ageing MD-80 would do more to reduce fuel consumption than these penny pinching schemes. They still call 1c coins pennies in the US, right? I found an Aussie penny in a drawer yesterday from before decimalisation. It had King George The Something on it.

Back to this flight nonsense, it's almost as if they have an ulterior motive with these decisions... say for example being able to land earlier than other planes in holding patterns above airports because they're running out of fuel sooner, or so they can pretend to appeal to greenies while saving themselves a few bucks, or so they can blame pilots for more problems. "Hey it's not our fault for that, the pilot didn't fill out form 23A..."

I've got an even better idea

Anyway I've got an even better idea (you just said that Ruben) to reduce fuel consumption in places like the US and Australia: ditch domestic flights altogether and replace them with cross-continent high speed rail! They'd be more comfortable, more convenient, vast airport land could be reclaimed for parks and other such Hippie draws, and best of all we could wire them up to renewable energy sources like geothermal for baseload and solar in the centre where very little rain falls. It's genius, I tell you!

Hey, I can dream, right?

Photo of an American Airlines MD80 being deiced by PhilipC on Flickr.

Usually I wouldn't dignify the likes of The Australian with my readership, but someone on Twitter linked to this article by John Black about how us Greenies are destroying his party and figured it was work a look-see. I thought I was only destroying the Internets by clogging all them tubes with my words and whatnot.

Greens 07 were very well-paid inner-urban renters who made extensive use of public transport and had few religious convictions. They tend not to have children until their late 30s, if at all, which makes them even richer and gives them lots of spare time to organise local political activities and annoy the rest of us.

That's right, The Greens are only taking votes away from your [formerly left leaning] Labor party because they annoy people. Yeah, that must be it! I've also read those greenies tend to get angrier at those calling themselves journalists who make broad, sweeping generalisations to attack them as if they're the only reason people are becoming bored with Labor's talk and no action.

For what it's worth, I am an inner-urban renter who makes extensive use of public transport and have no religious convictions, at least he got that bit right. Stick to reporting facts Mr Black, and you may have a shot at this here journalism thingy!

Now where's my joint and John Lennon record?!

Oh crap, I didn't leave it lit ON the John Lennon record, did I? I am so friggen high, bro! Eh, my mum was a hippie, but I can't pull it off.

With the (continuing) disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, in true technocratic style Dmitry Medvedev has proposed a pragmatic, logical idea: an international environment fund. So it probably won't ever happen.

From his official Kremlin blog:

"The environment and the economy do not contradict each other. A properly functioning economy is an environmentally friendly economy."

Yes! Spasiba! That's what people like me have been saying for years!

"Perhaps we should consider setting up a global fund for insuring or re-insuring against these sorts of [environmental] risks. I think I will raise this subject at the G20 summit in Canada later this month."

Sounds like a brilliant idea to me.

Lingering frustration frustrates me with frustration

I'm still frustrated and bitterly disappointed with world leaders for their combined abject failure to rise above their shallow, short term self interests to ensure the future of our planet at the Copenhagen summit earlier this year. Even if the whole event was just a token effort as some environmentalists claimed, it would have at least sent a message that they were willing to start taking the issue seriously. They couldn't even do that.

Medvedev's proposal sounds like an excellent way to let these world leaders regain some of our trust by committing funds to help in the wake (and hopefully in the prevention) of future environmental disasters that affect all of us.

Questions...

I could spend paragraphs elaborating on these questions, but I'll leave them short and sweet:

1. Who would manage such a fund?
2. Who would check for compliance?
3. How would we make sure the system isn't being rigged (as I'm sure many will be trying to game it, no doubt)?
4. Could such a fund be extended to encompass environmental research such as alternative fuels and helping developing countries meet environmental and sustainability needs they otherwise couldn't afford?

As I say, Medvedev's idea is f-ing brilliant, I can't wait to hear how other world leaders spin the idea to justify why they won't support it. Hey, they've got to be doing something with all our tax dollars, and those PR folk have families to feed too, you know. Not that I'm bitter or anything.

Why is Medvedev saying this and nobody else?

Waah! This is just a step to a World Government!

Even if this were true (and it clearly isn't)... so what? It's high time we start tacking these issues outside political borders, because they affect all of us.

Jaw, meet floor. To be fair to Fox News, at least they had one dissenting panelist who scoffed at the idea that oil was just in a "few isolated patches", and that nature could take care of it. Frankly, the moment Brit asked "Where's the oil?" I would have informed him it's in his skull, where his brain should be.

I post this because Singapore is dealing with its own oil spill now too. Obviously its an order of magnitude smaller than what BP managed to do in the US, but given Singapore is barely the size of a country town in land area the effects are being felt all over the place. The smell, mostly :P.