As dramatic as the contrast is between electrified and dark New York City in the skyline, the street level makes a similarly eerie transition as normalcy gives way to blackened street lights, dark building lobbies, murky delis and a lot of silent shutters.
You've no doubt seen pictures of the clusters of people, refugees from the dark side, gathered around power strips in stores with electricity, charging their phones and other devices. One of the more unexpected (and resourceful) power opportunities is on a block like the span of 42nd Street between 2nd and 3rd Ave. There are trees along with sidewalk with decorative uplighting -lamps that shine up under the foliage at night to make the trees glow. It turns out these lamps also come equipped with an auxiliary outlet that accepts plugs. So at every tree, all down the block, there are groups of people charging from the tree.
One guy was bent over trying to talk on the phone, his short charging cable plugged into the tree. Others found more comfortable positions.
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Resiliency. Adaptability. I love this country.
Hey, what about all those generators NYPD confiscated from the Occupy Wall Street folks?
Or the exercise bike hooked up to make power?
Green energy… hee hee!
It's nice to see that things are getting better. I hope the folks are getting what they need.
That Daily Show spot with the Machete wielding guy verses the missing mocha sprinkles was great. I'm on the other side of the country, but I get it.
Not to laugh out of place, because this has been really tragic.
Meanwhile, in Fly-over Country, they continue to read their Bibles by candle light. And cling to their guns, in case a Democrat knocks on their door.
No kidding. In North San Diego County a few years back, I was canvassing for a Democratic candidate and was greeted at one house by a guy with a shotgun telling me to get the hell off his property. I left.
Wonder how long it took before everybody started fighting over it?
AWww if only Obama had the windmills in the city, everything would've been just peachy. /sarc
I remember the day gas prices first shot way up and there were rumors of gas shortages everywhere, pulling up in line at a service station and the desperation on the faces of the people as they filled their gas cans and tanks (and anything else that would hold gasoline on short notice)...the defensive postures and the panic that surrounded all of us...I will never forget and hope I never have to witness such desperation again. It was truly scary and sickening.
It would all be so unnecessary if we just pulled together to protect the commons...the things we agree on that we all own, like air, drinking water, protection from natural disasters, energy production, health care, etc...most of which republicans think should be owned by those wishing to profit from them all. I think it's called Democratic Socialism...which is the only form of government which both protects and ensures our freedom AND our survival.
Move to North Korea then.
National Guard could, if they were directed to do so, set up posts where citizens could come and buy gas "directly from the source (truck)" as needed. This could alleviate the extremely long lines for gas in north Jersey. Colleagues tell me they have waited 3 hours or longer just to fill up their vehicle's gas tank. And in an area where mass transit is still out of commission, the private automobile is the best way to get around.
So many experts, so little knowledge. You think the National Guard has gas pumps to meter the gas, BILL for the gas (wireless?), and provide the standard required safety of actual gas stations? Just for people with cars, and access to roads, to fill their gas tanks, taking them away from providing shelter, food, and truck transport for the stranded? Oh no, three hours to fill their tanks. Sheesh, you're dumb.
How right you are on the experts with so little knowledge. There is actually an MOS specifically for fuel handling in the US Army, they are called "Petroleum Supply Specialists". Or a 92F. We called them glorified gas pumpers and made the joke that they could work at a gas station when they got out but, they come in pretty darn handy. Here, you can read about it: http://www.goarmy.com/careers-and-jobs/browse-career-and-job-categories/construction-engineering/petroleum-supply-specialist.html
Did you think we built actual "gas stations" in Iraq and Afghanistan? We had fuel supply points. Basically, there were nozzles hooked up to tankers with concrete barriers around them or if you were on the go just a tanker with the nozzle. The only hiccup may be accepting different methods of payment. Which is actually pretty easy and yes, they have internet capabilities as there are specialists for that as well. They stayed within all safety compliance's with our fuel points as well. We used mostly JP8 though and that is harder to catch on fire, but not impossible.
I do agree however, that it is a waste of resources. The women and men there in uniform are there to perform crucial functions and aid in recovery. Not to make sure you can drive into town. When it comes down to it I would rather see them feeding, clothing and sheltering people than making sure they have gas. Or even saving someones life. Just keep in mind that the military is self sustaining. So, they pretty much train people to do anything they think we may need at any time. Even pump gas.
Oh, I forgot to mention. There are meters on the trucks. Plus it is not hard to hook one up to the tank if the one on there already is acting up. But, again, waste of resources.
Sadly these people should have been told not only to stock up on flashlights, batteries, water
etc... Fill your gas tanks too----experience from many hurricanes
No, the National Guard cannot "set up posts where citizens could come and buy gas directly from the source (truck)." First, trucks are not the "source" of gas, oil wells and refineries are. Second, commercial petrol tankers are not set up for that kind of use. I hate to burst your fantasy, mightbealiberal, but it's not like, "you bring a gas can and I'll hand over the hose." Commercial tankers are equipped with valves, hoses and pumps that are designed to seal with tanks and to flow at just the right pressure and temperature so as to minimise risk of explosion when delivering a load, and the rate at which those hoses flow is designed for 1,200 + gallon underground tanks, not people filling up their cars. So even if possible, it would be extremely - and I mean - EXTREMELY dangerous and wasteful to distribute gas that way. Third, military fuel tankers are for diesel and jet fuel, not regular unleaded, and see above. Plus, using military vehicles to fuel people's private cars on demand is not a good idea. Fourth, the government cannot force companies to distribute gas that way as it would probably violate the Interstate Commerce clause of the Constitution.
I am not sure where you got your information from about military fueling capabilities, but they are absolutely capable providing this type of service. Google the Oshkosh HEMTT A4. These tankers are capable of carrying pretty much any kind of liquid fuel from unleaded gas to JP-8 jet fuel. Also through contractors the would calculate how much fuel you got and charge the government for it. A little research goes a long way.
The top of a laptop would be perfect for a solar cell charger and I THINK I have seen a fold out solar cell that could work on cell phones. If there isn't; I get dibs on the royalties.
They have a place not too far away in Hopland, CA called Real Goods.
http://www.solarliving.org
It's a really cool self sufficient place that has lots of things like that and not to be advertising for anything in particular, I found some other solar chargers:
http://mobileaccessories.bestbuy.com/solio-solar-charger/5A58A2100.htm
http://www.amazon.com/Soladec-Portable-External-Integrated-High-Flux/dp/B005ZA2W42
etc., etc.
Another few years and thin film solar cells will be built into your clothes.
Today I have seen so many pictures of people in the Northeast helping others who are stranded and even a picture taken in Hoboken, NJ where the owner of a house that apparently has power (perhaps a generator -- he thought ahead) had a sign in the front yard stating that people were welcome to charge their phones, etc. It occurred to me that I wonder how many of these people who were charging their phones using the help of someone else are voting for Romney -- by that, I mean, they all opposed the idea that everybody needs assistance to succeed. Nobody in this world can do it all by themselves and yet so many stubborn, self-centered, people opposed that idea, claiming that they did everything all alone, without help, and without assistance from anyone else. I wonder if they are at all humbled by the assistance and help they are getting now from people who can show them that they can't do it all alone -- people they don't even know.
My heart goes out to everyone in the affected area -- I am a native New Yorker and was raised in Bergen County, NJ, so I have many friends and relatives up there -- many of whom think they "did it all themselves", too. We all need each other, whether we are building a company, a family, a house, a friendship, or trying to charge a phone or fill our gas tanks.
it's worse than you think but it's been covered:
"Every GOP politician thinks he was born in a log cabin he built himself" - Bob Strauss
I think this is called hooked on phone-ics! Literally 'hooked' in more than one sense of the word.
Hand crank iPhone? Shoe Power Generation? Technology used for imagination?
300 Years, Good and Bad.
Capitalism produces more products cheaply, for higher profit and those products are made at less cost to consumers. Supplying products at less cost to consumers is a socialist idea that is enabled and endorsed by capitalism. Communism is nothing more that the idealization of socialism (taken to extreme), that was in turn enabled by the productivity of capitalism to provide disposable time for socialist educated consumers to day dream. Now then Capitalism provided the disposable time to become educated. Being educated should bring about the realization, that capitalism without employment (jobs) for idle or uneducated masses, and without any attempt to further understand Capitalism brings us to the current state of multiple failures, political, economic, production, transportation, capitalism, socialism and communism. The list grows longer because of misdirected energy (social, political, cultural); a certain scientific understanding is needed to fully realize that energy from fossil and renewable sources are the ultimate consideration for all Capitalists, propelling capitalism as forward the ultimate change force. Were energy is seen as being in common to all basic resources that are propelling capitalism. Then we might be enlightened enough to demand that Capitalism provide more of what is needed and less of what we don't need, or cannot afford, or should not have and that which is too destructive to be allowed to happen. Capitalism needs to employ as many who can sustain themselves working in producing useful necessities and as well for the education of as many people as possible who can understand this relationship. The workers need to know the value of education, and the educated need also to be educated in the manner of workers trying to be productive.
The entirety of the Capitalist idea, is laid at the foundation of the utilization of energy, beyond ages of manual labor, beyond eras the draft animal.
The modern world is stuck at the point where Capitalism believes earthly energy resources are infinite, and is found ignoring the distribution around the globe. Capitalism needs to be informed that if the undeveloped world began using the same level of energy resources as the developed world, that level of utilization would consume all of the sustainable energy resources should they be developed. So if the entire world should desire to live as we to in the developed countries, there would be no way to deliver more without plundering fossil and mineral reserves. This would obviously mean the consequences of resource warfare, that history provides with examples.
All ahead Warp factor 4
The next transition from sustainable earthly resources, to the possibility of using space base energy system, would require everything left unused on the earth to be used. Of the space already available on the earth and all the energy received from the Sun there are about four orders of magnitude a factor or 10,000 between what we receive and what we can use. Ideation space; is to recognize that this we have to work with in Earth; using all human intellectual, cultural and political and material resources. To move into space (to obtain energy), would seem to require energy from space that is nearly four more orders of magnitude higher than current earth utilization. (Not to worry there would still be a factor of 240,000 left at worst case, a factor of 2.4 billion in raw energy.) The furtive plan is to work on the earthly ideation space of 10,000 to reduce it by pervasive technical means, moving to space energy systems would requiring the technical means of space development, also a factor of 10,000 without any hope of even attempting it.
Dropping to space normal speed:
Ideation - The think space of the mind.
Some homework required.
Four Americans dead in Libya.
One American brain dead in Georgia.
I don't understand why this is titled "Green Energy" - did I miss something?
What colour are leaves?
how do you delete a comment? Mine posted twice accidentally.
If Sandy teaches us anything it is that we must transition to decentralized green sources of energy such as solar panels and wind chargers. The main argument against this transition is that the fossil fuel industry stands to lose huge amounts of money and power (political power). Many reasonable solutions to our problems are being blocked by the economic power of those who are profiting from the status quo.
I went to the recycling center in my small town in Colorado (Cortez) yesterday to recycle my waste paper (catalogs and lots of political requests for donations) and my glass bottles. I met another environmentalist, Green Party, democratic socialist with whom I had worked last winter on an overturn Citizens United event. We of course discussed the election which lead to local politics. The big local political fight that is coming is the battle over fracking. The conflict of interests surrounding fracking reveals the root of the problem of moving to green energy. There is a lot of money to be made from fracking. Many people want a piece of this enormous pie. The problem is that it threatens the lives of many people. It is noisy; it causes earth tremors; and it takes a lot of water. The real fight will come down to a very valuable and scarce resource in the West and that is water. We have been fighting about water out here for centuries. Just as the real battle over the spotted owl was really a battle between the timber industry and the fishing industry. The fracking battle is going to be a battle between the energy industry and the farming, tourist, hunting and retirement industries. In the end it will be a fight about water and water rights.
The energy industry is already spending millions, maybe even billions, to convince the rest of us that fracking is safe and will deliver us from the extremists in the Middle East. They gloss over the fact that fracking uses a lot of water. Even if you ignore the pollution aspect of this use of water, the supply problem is not going to go away, at least not in the West.
Any attempt to change the way energy is generated and distributed in the Northeast is going to be met with enormous push back from all the vested interests that will be impacted. Progressives will have to mobilize to fight these interests in order to protect our future and the future of our Earth.
I may be going to join the League of Women Voters because our local chapter is mobilizing to fight the fracking industry which is already applying for permits to frack in Montezuma County. As soon as I can afford it I will add solar panels to my house.