Solving the energy crisis

Folks, we’ve got an energy crisis. How do we solve it? I would like to hear your thoughts.

Posted 1:16 p.m. May 22, 2008 — Updated 9:43 p.m. May 22, 2008

How are you dealing with these gasoline prices? Please weigh in. Folks, we’ve got an energy crisis. How do we solve it? I would like to hear your thoughts.

With every week bringing a new record high in gasoline prices something has to give. Rapidly rising energy costs have a crippling effect on many layers of the economy. So what do we do?

Personally I think it needs to start at the top. We need a true visionary plan coming out of the White House. We need a vision like the one President Kennedy had for the space program in the 1960’s. It’s the type of vision that fires the imagination and the collective passion of the public.

I ran across the quote the other day that fired my imagination. It came from Cal Tech Chemistry Professor Nate Lewis. He said: “More solar energy hits the earth in one hour than all the energy the world consumes in a year." Let that sink in for a few minutes. Lewis believes there are inexpensive ways to convert solar power directly into electricity. Lewis says water could be converted into “fuel like hydrogen, that can be turned back into electricity on demand.” Lewis says one day you may put paint on your house that captures electrons from the sun and ultimately powers all your gadgets and heats your home.

That sort of thinking isn’t going to stop today’s pain at the pump. We need short and long term strategies. We need to develop more energy sources right away and additional ones on down the line.

I look forward to driving a clean and green fuel cell car one day. It can happen sooner than you think with leadership, determination and a national spirit of energy independence and environmental stewardship.

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