Why Offshore Drilling Can Bridge Gap to U.S. Energy Future

The Democratic and Republican conventions have arrived amidst a litany of calls for government-sponsored energy projects on the level of Apollo. Despite progress in fields from solar to wind and batteries to biofuels, Popular Mechanics' editor-in-chief says Americans should be careful what we wish for--scientists have more to offer than politicians.

Sadly, our government's track record isn't any better in picking energy sources that it does support. Coal has been a national priority ever since Jimmy Carter put on that cardigan. Yes, coal is plentiful, but it is an environmental headache all the way from strip mine to smokestack. Then there's ethanol. It was less than a year ago that leaders of both parties decided that ethanol made from corn would be a brilliant alternative to foreign oil. Speeches ... Full Story »

Posted by Kaizar Campwala

See All Reviews »

Review

Norman Rogers
2.2
by Norman Rogers - Oct. 1, 2008

This story is skimpy for such a complicated subject. Certainly the government's thinking has been clouded by global warming myths. Wind and solar are borderline nonsense. Ethanol is a disaster. The government subsidizes wind, solar and ethanol. Brilliant! Natural gas is good because of the new source - shale gas. Coal is good because it is cheap and can be converted to oil. Both parties are pushing stupid policies, but the democrats are far worse because they actually believe in global warming and windmills.

See All Reviews »

Norman's Rating

Overall
2.2

Poor
from 7 answers
Quality
2.0
Fairness
2.0
Information
2.0
Sourcing
2.0
Context
2.0
Popularity
3.0
Recommendation
3.0
Credibility
3.0
More How our ratings work »