The irony that so called ‘Greens’ end up demonising the cleanest source of energy there with their addled hippy brains.
Simon Denis
2 years ago
Well said. The degree of groupthink over this as over every matter was already a scandal twenty years ago; now, it has ossified into an orthodoxy. Dissent is therefore heresy, to be stifled and punished. Meanwhile, the established view, as always, depends on public ignorance and fear to do its legwork. It’s so easy to chant mantras, you see – “ten years / five years / two seconds to save the planet”; so delectable to feel the frisson of misgiving and so flattering to believe oneself an angel of foresight and self-sacrifice in confronting the “inconvenient truth”. Worst of all is the perversion of “science”, now referred to as “The Science” and quite openly touted as an elite consensus rather than the fluctuating suppositions of a million scrupulous sceptics. The result is that ordinary “concerned” persons think themselves oh-so-rational as they offer the latest alarmist tripe from the Guardian or the BBC; and presume to damn genuinely enquiring minds as “rednecks”, “Trumpists” and so on. The sustained confusion of language is key, as ever, to the left’s stranglehold and its control of the media grants it access to that key. If ever we get a government authentically committed to freedom, discussion, enlightenment and truth – a long shot, these days – its first duty must be to abolish the BBC and all other organs of state led misinformation.
Colin Elliott
2 years ago
It’s bizarre that in Germany, nuclear power stations are to be phased out in 2022, but coal not until 2038.
I feel no confidence in UK policies. Governments are terrified of the media, which overwhelmingly takes the view that UK governments, especially Conservative ones, are not concerned about the environment.
For example, it’s surely blindingly obvious that gas will remain important for a long time, and yet attempts to explore or exploit fracking within the UK, which has given significant benefits to the US economy, have been suspended for spurious reasons. In contrast, Germany builds more and more pipelines to convey the same stuff from a country which makes no secret of its desire to do harm to the democracies.
It’s a pity there aren’t more scientists and engineers amongst politicians and civil servants, and with the moral courage to say what they think despite the inevitable hostility. I’d hope that the electorate would distinguish between rational and irrational policies.
If the tertiary qualifications of those at the top of government and the Civil Service are all in subjects such as classics, PPE, etc, then government will be by slogan rather than strategy.
For example, banning the selling of ICE cars by 2030 is simple slogan based approach – Britain commits to green transport to save world- but it is absent of a strategy to deliver. How for example do we have sufficient charging capacity within roughly 8 years, what impact does this have on the grid and energy security, what about all those that live in terraces or flats how do they charge, what happens when there is a congestion on a motorway and cars run out of charge, they can’t simply be towed to the side and fueled with a petrol can, what about the logistics sector, remote communities etc. They teach none of this on a Classics course and PPE courses won’t help either. Although STEM subjects will not tell you the answer straight away, they will allow sensible questions to be asked before the slogan lot blurt out nonsense.
Last edited 2 years ago by John McGibbon
D Glover
2 years ago
Three Mile Island and Fukushima killed hardly anyone. The only really significant nuclear accident in terms of casualties was Chernobyl. That was caused by soviet engineering and secrecy.
How ironic, then, that the beneficiary will be Russia. In a cold winter the Germans will rely on their piped gas and do as they are told.
Last edited 2 years ago by D Glover
Simon Denis
2 years ago
Britain may indeed have the option of scaling up energy production, but the political will to which you so blithely refer is quite absent. In that useless lump which passes for our prime minister, we have the embodiment of defeatist apathy, happier to float on the crest of the woke wave than to advance effective policy. True, his polling remains in shouting distance of Labour – but this just demonstrates the continued decline of a once left-of-centre party. Had it not lurched towards extremism over the last ten years, it would be looking at power in the next parliament. The facts which underlie the reassuring illusions of the polls, then, are that the whole electorate is now mightily annoyed with every party and we are yet again entering a period of turbulence, anger and sour resignation. This can only benefit an insurgent – and since the public has been let down so frequently – over heating, over taxes, over Brexit, over migration – the insurgency may well change the political landscape for good, this time. Let’s hope it is not another form of extremism which leads the charge – for this is always the danger.
Brendan O'Leary
2 years ago
In addition to Nordstream 1 & 2 from Russia (and proposed Baltic pipe via Denmark) , there is Europipe 1 & 2 from Norway, and pipe from the LNG terminal in Rotterdam (and a new LNG terminal proposed near Hamburg) and gas from Austrian gas fields and gas storage wells
Germany still gets some oil and gas from the Mittelplatte/Dieksand complex in the Elbe estuary and onshore fields in Lower Saxony like Völkersen . You are allowed to do development drilling on these brownfield sites but not allowed to explore or develop any new gas fields in Germany.
And here’s the rub: more renewables (and let’s stop the RN waffle: it means hectares and hectares of ugly wind and solar. Geothermal etc is a pitiful percentage by comparison) means more gas will be required, because its dispatchability is essential to plug the gaps caused by the unreliability and intermittency of wind and solar.
Last edited 2 years ago by Brendan O'Leary
T Doyle
2 years ago
The feminisation of the West is at the root of a lot of the problems that will hit us badly.
William Hickey
2 years ago
It’s amusing to read the rational arguments of intelligent people attempting to counter the emotional “truths” of politicized neurotics.
Force, folks, and not reason, is the answer to the conflict — the time-tested answer you’re all desperate to not acknowledge.
The irony that so called ‘Greens’ end up demonising the cleanest source of energy there with their addled hippy brains.
Well said. The degree of groupthink over this as over every matter was already a scandal twenty years ago; now, it has ossified into an orthodoxy. Dissent is therefore heresy, to be stifled and punished. Meanwhile, the established view, as always, depends on public ignorance and fear to do its legwork. It’s so easy to chant mantras, you see – “ten years / five years / two seconds to save the planet”; so delectable to feel the frisson of misgiving and so flattering to believe oneself an angel of foresight and self-sacrifice in confronting the “inconvenient truth”. Worst of all is the perversion of “science”, now referred to as “The Science” and quite openly touted as an elite consensus rather than the fluctuating suppositions of a million scrupulous sceptics. The result is that ordinary “concerned” persons think themselves oh-so-rational as they offer the latest alarmist tripe from the Guardian or the BBC; and presume to damn genuinely enquiring minds as “rednecks”, “Trumpists” and so on. The sustained confusion of language is key, as ever, to the left’s stranglehold and its control of the media grants it access to that key. If ever we get a government authentically committed to freedom, discussion, enlightenment and truth – a long shot, these days – its first duty must be to abolish the BBC and all other organs of state led misinformation.
It’s bizarre that in Germany, nuclear power stations are to be phased out in 2022, but coal not until 2038.
I feel no confidence in UK policies. Governments are terrified of the media, which overwhelmingly takes the view that UK governments, especially Conservative ones, are not concerned about the environment.
For example, it’s surely blindingly obvious that gas will remain important for a long time, and yet attempts to explore or exploit fracking within the UK, which has given significant benefits to the US economy, have been suspended for spurious reasons. In contrast, Germany builds more and more pipelines to convey the same stuff from a country which makes no secret of its desire to do harm to the democracies.
It’s a pity there aren’t more scientists and engineers amongst politicians and civil servants, and with the moral courage to say what they think despite the inevitable hostility. I’d hope that the electorate would distinguish between rational and irrational policies.
If the tertiary qualifications of those at the top of government and the Civil Service are all in subjects such as classics, PPE, etc, then government will be by slogan rather than strategy.
For example, banning the selling of ICE cars by 2030 is simple slogan based approach – Britain commits to green transport to save world- but it is absent of a strategy to deliver. How for example do we have sufficient charging capacity within roughly 8 years, what impact does this have on the grid and energy security, what about all those that live in terraces or flats how do they charge, what happens when there is a congestion on a motorway and cars run out of charge, they can’t simply be towed to the side and fueled with a petrol can, what about the logistics sector, remote communities etc. They teach none of this on a Classics course and PPE courses won’t help either. Although STEM subjects will not tell you the answer straight away, they will allow sensible questions to be asked before the slogan lot blurt out nonsense.
Three Mile Island and Fukushima killed hardly anyone. The only really significant nuclear accident in terms of casualties was Chernobyl. That was caused by soviet engineering and secrecy.
How ironic, then, that the beneficiary will be Russia. In a cold winter the Germans will rely on their piped gas and do as they are told.
Britain may indeed have the option of scaling up energy production, but the political will to which you so blithely refer is quite absent. In that useless lump which passes for our prime minister, we have the embodiment of defeatist apathy, happier to float on the crest of the woke wave than to advance effective policy. True, his polling remains in shouting distance of Labour – but this just demonstrates the continued decline of a once left-of-centre party. Had it not lurched towards extremism over the last ten years, it would be looking at power in the next parliament. The facts which underlie the reassuring illusions of the polls, then, are that the whole electorate is now mightily annoyed with every party and we are yet again entering a period of turbulence, anger and sour resignation. This can only benefit an insurgent – and since the public has been let down so frequently – over heating, over taxes, over Brexit, over migration – the insurgency may well change the political landscape for good, this time. Let’s hope it is not another form of extremism which leads the charge – for this is always the danger.
In addition to Nordstream 1 & 2 from Russia (and proposed Baltic pipe via Denmark) , there is Europipe 1 & 2 from Norway, and pipe from the LNG terminal in Rotterdam (and a new LNG terminal proposed near Hamburg) and gas from Austrian gas fields and gas storage wells
Germany still gets some oil and gas from the Mittelplatte/Dieksand complex in the Elbe estuary and onshore fields in Lower Saxony like Völkersen . You are allowed to do development drilling on these brownfield sites but not allowed to explore or develop any new gas fields in Germany.
And here’s the rub: more renewables (and let’s stop the RN waffle: it means hectares and hectares of ugly wind and solar. Geothermal etc is a pitiful percentage by comparison) means more gas will be required, because its dispatchability is essential to plug the gaps caused by the unreliability and intermittency of wind and solar.
The feminisation of the West is at the root of a lot of the problems that will hit us badly.
It’s amusing to read the rational arguments of intelligent people attempting to counter the emotional “truths” of politicized neurotics.
Force, folks, and not reason, is the answer to the conflict — the time-tested answer you’re all desperate to not acknowledge.
Well said! Another armchair warrior! At least I admit I am one!