No one energy source or technology will meet our energy needs alone, but combined quality options will and are getting far better in terms of cost and feasibility to be competitive in the marketplace. Right now solar and wind are half-full… not half-empty!

The fact of the matter is that the world as a whole, and the united states in particular has been too slow to heed scientists warnings about our climate and economic issues related to our energy consumption. When one doesn’t pay attention to an issue and that issue comes to a head it then becomes a crisis. This sadly typical scenario is played out over and over again throughout history. People still need to learn how to think critically and think ahead, which requires history, education, and critical reasoning skills that are not pushed for in our elementary schools. This is a sociopolitical issue that humans as a species must learn to realistically address and navigate – and to not be swayed and lulled by quick “easy” comfortable options. Growth is rarely comfortable when it involves true change – and true change is what’s needed right now. Sometimes it takes an accident to realize that one has been asleep at the wheel… and our citizens have clearly not been driving with both eyes focused far enough down the road as they should have been. Is that harsh? Perhaps, but it’s reality.

A much more reasonable strategy for dealing with CO2 caused climate change would be to switch to nuclear power for the time being, while developing better solar/wind/geothermal/fusion, and switch to that when the technology is mature. It is likely that a solar power system built 10-20 years in the future with the benefit of breakthroughs in nanotechnology and materials science will pay off in a way that current feel-good PR-stunt style solar energy won’t.

As for switching light bulbs, it is one of those things that feels good for people to do, and can save money, but won’t have any real effect in the long term because global population growth and industrialization of the developing world is far exceeding our ability to conserve. Short of a complete end of industrial society worldwide (which would result in the deaths of billions of people, and billions more relegated to perpetual poverty and serfdom), our society is going to need lots and lots more energy. For every light bulb you replace, there is someone making a baby somewhere on the planet and that baby is going to want to live the same lifestyle that you enjoy. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t replace your light bulbs (like I said, it actually saves money), but the best thing you can do is support politicians who support a sane energy policy .i.e. politicians that focuses on reducing atmospheric CO2 ASAP, but don’t reject any technology (such as nuclear) on ideological or fear-mongering grounds.