Magnetically levitated, Maglev Wind Turbine enters production
Wouldn't make much difference if he was - low power electrical generation has been around for a very long time - While it is correct that you cannot get "mega-watt " power from low wind speed, you CAN get plenty of useful energy if all you want to power is your lights and maybe a refrigerator and TV - IMHO, it was greedy power companies that lobbied for rural electrifiation that brought the "net" to rural America - farmers who wanted electricity were generating their own from "low yeld" and "slow" wind - then the Electric Companies got Congress to tax US so THEY could put power lines all over rural America - and we are STILL PAYING TAXES on our electric bills to pay for that. If a mag-lev bearing will make low wind speed generators more productive, I say, "Go for it". However, this device is either a technological breakthrough, or just another scam. (May 25, 2008 | post #48)
It's a bird, it's a plane ... it's a crazy Swiss guy with four ...
Six years huh? Working on an "invention " that was already invented. But the media and folks on this blog seem to want to ignore that. I guess it's the "Swiss" connection that steals the thunder - or, in the case of the engine-less wing, NO thunder - that steals the show. (May 25, 2008 | post #14)
Hillary invokes RFK assassination
Whethere or not you accept the explanation of "historical expmales of the nominating contest going well into the summer" - this gaffe clearly shows her lack of sensitivity to the human condition. All she REALLY needed to say was that RFK campaigned that long - didn't need to mention he was murdered for his trouble. Setting aside my loathing for what she wants to do to the USA (make it the United SOCIALIST States of America) - the mere fact that she can stubornally REPEAT a gaffe like this THREE TIMES indicates she is no diplomat - just a run of the mill political HACK - and we don't NEED any more hacks in the Oval Office. (May 25, 2008 | post #904)
Are you familiar with the FairTax bill?
Pat and vegashank are probably correct - that the vast number of people here ARE here because they've gotten on a mailing list as being FairTax supporters (note my logo) HOWEVER, the idea is to send a message to congress and SHOW them that the movement is growing as people become aware - also, this makes a GREAT - PUBLIC - forum to discuss this vital legislation. SO! If you came here because you are already a suppordter, send the link to anyone you know who may NOT be a supporter - let them SEE how many people DO support it, and let them see the discussions and LEARN MOST IMPORTANTLY, SEND THIS LINK TO YOUR CONGRESSMEN AND SENATORS so their staff can see the wide area of support and report on the movement to their bosses. (Take a moment yourself, scroll through the posts and look where they are coming from - all over the country! NOT just from some localized little group in po-dunk usa.) (May 25, 2008 | post #39)
Are you familiar with the FairTax bill?
"Michael Kersh wrote: I'm confused. Why does my post show Gilmer, TX? I live just outside Manvel, TX. - - (QUOTE who="GabbyJim ")<quoted text> Topix posts your city based on the location of your ISP server - not where you are physically located. If you are on dial up you could call long distance to - say - New York City and THAT is where topix would show you. If you sight up as a member, you can fill in your profile and show where you really are.(/QUOTE) OOPS! That is SIGN up, not "sight" up - and it's free (note- check out my data to the left - see where it shows my city on one line and my ISP on another? If you havent's joined the group, the only clue topix has is your ISP location.) (May 25, 2008 | post #38)
Are you familiar with the FairTax bill?
Well, "taxed equally" is a bit misleading - taxed at the same rate is more accurate - the rich would pay a LOT more than "equally " - the rich - like the oil company execs and congressmen - neither care nor pay any attention to how much tax they are paying - they have so much money that even a 75% tax wouldn't affect their life style one iota. (Most Americans don't realize that we are already paying 50% and more in taxes - because they are hidden in the price before tax of everything you buy and spread out through multiple taxin authorities - look at the PERCENTAGE of your phone bill - for example - that is a tax in one form or name or another.) As a result of the FairTax, the rich would continue to spend like money was free rain water - and as a result would pay MUCH more tax than the rest of us. And, yes, the prebate would ensure that poor folks don't pay the tax - indeed, those REALLY poor folks would actually get a subsidy. BUT illegal immigrants - "undocmumente d workers" would pay MORE than their "fare share" and might even go HOME rather than pay what WE've been paying! Imagine, no more latino gangs shooting up your neighborhood, robbing your convenience store, pushing drugs to your kids! And if they DID sell drugs, they'd pay TAXES on the money they spent - BETTER, they could be arrested on TWO counts - possession with intent / sale - of an illegal substance and - are you ready for this? TAX EVASION! If they failed to collect and pay the sales tax on the drugs they sell, it's no longer just a local thing - it is FEDERAL tax evasion! And, of course, it would be tax evasion on a state level too - unless, of course, they got a sales tax licensce and actually collected those taxes for the government - and the tax payer would STILL win! (May 25, 2008 | post #36)
Are you familiar with the FairTax bill?
Pretty good - but there is a misunderstanding being promoted here that needs correction - there have been a lot of phony emails claiming congress doesn't have to pay Social Security - this is an error - they DO pay social security - and other than their own personal investments in OTHER retirement programs - the same that are available to you or me (IRAs, 401Ks, Inusrance Annunities, etc) Social Security applies to them the same as to you and me. NOW - back when I was in school, they DID have a different program - but it was the same program my father, who worked for the FAA and most military people could opt in for - it was essentially the same as Social Security and later was converted to the same. HOWEVER, MOST congressmen have a lot more personal income to invest in private retirement programs and it is that outlandish income that puts them out of touch with the real world - if THEY had to live on the same INCOME as you and me, they, too, would get on the Fair Tax bandwagon. It's much the same for the oil company execs - they have such high income that they don't CARE what it costs to drive a car! (May 25, 2008 | post #33)
Are you familiar with the FairTax bill?
Topix posts your city based on the location of your ISP server - not where you are physically located. If you are on dial up you could call long distance to - say - New York City and THAT is where topix would show you. If you sight up as a member, you can fill in your profile and show where you really are. (May 25, 2008 | post #32)
A LOT of people don't understand electricity. Almost ANY electrical power source can be adapted to recharge almost ANY battery - provided the source is sufficiently powerful. For example, (with very inexpensive equipment) I can take the power from a 110 Volt wall outlet and change it to almost any voltage I want - from a few millivolts to the tens of thousands of volts needed to run an x-ray machine (125,000 volts or more). The limitation is only that the product of the current times the voltage must not exceed the ability of the source to provide. Most "wall outlets" in modern homses can be adapted to safely provide as much as 2,300 watts (20 amps) just by changning the circuit breaker (wire size permitting, a screwdriver or two all that is required! And most modern houses have adequate sized wire.) And that's just the "standard " wall outlet. If you go to - say - the electric stove outlet, it is not unreasonable to expect a capacity in the area of 22 THOUSAND watts - Even the most odd-ball electric car battery charger could be adapted - and most chargers can be small enough and light weight enough to be easily placed in the vehicle itself. As for towing because the battery is dead - once again, that's just ignorant. Aan ordinary "tow truck" type battery booster system can be adapted to charge almost any kind of battery out there. For your edification, I can take the power from almsot any standrard automobile battery charging system and convert it to provide almost any voltage you desire - limited only by the product of the voltage times the amperage - which in most cars is about 600 watts continuous or THOUSANDS of watts briefly. So, for your tow truck, recharging the battery of an electric car would be a piece of cake. If the owner of the car is smart, a simple device carried on board would allow a "jump" from almost any 12 Volt car system. Not having such a device would be comparabe to not having jumper cables - and equaly ignorant and improvident. Just as you wouldn't expect the tow truck to fill your tank, but give you enough to get to the next gas station, you wouldn't expect a tow truck to fully recharge your electric car, but provide enough power to get you to a service station (ANY service station, even most convience stores. And if it were to beome a common problem, you can expect that it would quickly have a common solution - like coin operated electrical outlets like they already have in many cold climates -like Minnesota and Michigan, etc.). Whether gas or electric charge, runniing out can be ducedly inconvient - so, to avoid that, PLAN AHEAD! Don't be stupid. Know the range of your vehicle and don't think some kind of "magic" will let you exceed that limit. But if you DO run out of charge, just as running out of gas - expect some delay getting back on the road - Yes, a FULL charge can take several hours - but enough charge to get you to your destination - provided you didn't GROSSley understimate your range - will take only a little longer than if you had to stop for gas - and once there, you can recharge the vehicle while you do other things - like enjoy the wedding party, or conduct your sales meeting. Runing out of charge is as stupid as running out of gas - and just a little more inconvenient. (May 19, 2008 | post #37)
NASA Study Links Earth Impacts to Human-Caused Climate Change
(QUOTE who="ThatGuy ")<quoted text> You talk about our future like you've given it some thought. Do you support basic research efforts in science and technology wholeheartedly? Are you a huge supporter of NASA and the NSF? If so, good for you. If not, then you are just a political hack. (End QUOTE) An acronym doesn't make it science nor necessarily qualify for ANY kind of support from ME! Only a MORON (or a science worshiper) thinks that a fancy name or government ties - or even implied scientific goals, is justification for support. I used to work for the National Aeronautics and Space Administratin (NASA) and can tell you, science may be / have been part of their operation - but they are also influenced by political expediency - likewise, I'm sure the National Science Foundadion. By political expediency, I mean to say that there is every reason to suspect that their "conclusions " may be biased toward whoever controls their purse strings. There are certainly enough bloggers complaining about "the Bush Administration " (or who ever happens to be in power) putting pressure on scientists to "fall in line" with the "official " position. Also - anyone folloiwng anything in which the NASA is involved will have observed that the data they have collected has been used on BOTH sides of MANY arguments, and that many conflicting conclusions have been drawn from their activities. But then, there are those people who blindly "worship " science the same way that some people blindly follow organized religions without question. Well, DUH! Sure looks like "ThatGuy " falls into THAT category! (May 19, 2008 | post #15)
Candidates are buying your vote - Journal of Political Economy
Sadly, the courts have made a couple of decisions that are jack-ass stupid. First is that politicians don't have to live up to their campaign promisies - not too long ago someone tried to sue a (Utah) politician that made specific promises and then - after winning the election - deliberately and blatantly did the exact opposite of what she promised in order to get elected. The court let her off scott free, clearly saying political promises aren't worth the ink to print them. In any OTHER part of Americana she'd have been convicted of false advertising and possibly fined and sent to jail - at the very least, the courdt shoud have thrown her out of office. What gives a politician the right to lie about ANYTHING - let alone to get elected? So, with that in mind, why should we believe ANYTHING a politician says - ANY politician? It is time politicians were held accountable for their promises - especially those that they actually have the power to keep. And, of course, they shouldn't make promises they don't have - or won't have - the power to keep. Second - the Supreme Court has ruled that the laws against slander and libel don't apply to "public figures" - I wanna know - what is it about getting my name in the paper (or on the "tube") that means I have to lie down and take it when someone lies about me? Children, can you say, "Activist Judges?" - Can you say, "Liberal Politics?" can you say, "Voter, Get Screwed?" Goerge Bernard Shaw wrote: "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man." (The Revolutionists's Handbook, Penguin) With that as my motto - you may understand why it is that I may seem unreasonable - I want progress - REAL progress, not just lip service - from my political leaders. (May 18, 2008 | post #17)
(QUOTE who="topgun ")hybreds cost more to drive ,because of the price of the car ,and if you dont buy a high price repair policy on the car ,you could not afford the new batteries!!!!!!!! The speed limiy should be all lowered to 55 per hour ,every body would get a lot better gas milage ,and a lot less peoploe getting killed on tyhe highway over 60,000 getting killed now ,just bdecause most people are road hogs ,and only in a hurry because they want to show off ,ANY BODY THAT KILLS SOME ONE WHY SPEEDING AND OR RECKLESS DRIVING ,SHOULD BE CHARGED WITH MURDER!!!!!!!!!!!! (/QUOTE) And AJM thought PIPEWRENCH lacked brains! A hybrid is NOT that much more expensive than the same car in a conventional model - and the batteries are NOT that expesive to replace, and a Maintenance / Repair Contract really IS a bad idea unless you have more money than skill and brains (maintenance contracts are for the foolish or rich - a big money maker for the seller). In fact, a hybrid can cost LESS than a comprable standard vehicle. (Lighter engine, lack of transmission, smaller cooling system, etc.) As for speed being an ego thing, only the immature drive fast to show off (and usually only for very short distances) - 55 MPH may be OK on the overcrowded roads of NYC, but out here it's deadly - see previous post on that - There are a great many OTHER reasons people drive fast - SOME, I'll admit, are psychological (I've got to be the lead horse in the pack - I think driving is a competitive sport, etc) - but many highER driving speeds have to do with matters of economy of time or urgency of need - ever hear the expression, "I've got a plane(or train or bus) to catch" - ? (like, I've got to get my cargo to the airport and was delayed picking it up - or a myrid of other reasons for being in a hurry) - and when I was repairing hospital equipment, a few minutes drive time could make a life or death difference. However, speed without caution - or speed just for the sake of speed - is unwise and can be deadly - and as has been pointed out, a few MPH doesn't really save a lot of time OR fuel on short runs - but 5 MPH for the legally maximum drive time for a professional driver (11 hours) can make a serious difference (55 miles) between having to get off the road for 10 hours (a legal requirement) or delivering your load on time. Thats better than a ten to one advantage. Arrive 55 minutes earlier (at 60 MPH), or close to eleven HOURS later (10 hours down time, plus 55 minutes slower drive time at 60 MPH - or out here where the limit is 75 mph thats more than an hour and a half time difference - the trade off has to do with MPG vs $/Gal - each driver must make the calculations for his/her unique situtaiton - one size does NOT fit all.) So, please, if you MUST drive at 55 MPH in a 60-65-70 or 75 MPH zone, stay the H-E-double tooth picks OUT OF THE WAY. (May 16, 2008 | post #34)
They tried a national speed limit of 55 MPH - it didn't work - first, in the wide open highways of the west the boredom factor was deadly - second, like phrobition, it was nearly impossible to enforce. ASSuming you were not just being sarcastic, Sorry to hear about your timidity - I suggest you hire a chauffer or stick to public transportation. People like you are a deadly road hazard and cause no end of road rage as well. We professional drivers understand a vehicle with heavy load lumbering up a difficult hill - but a passenger vehicle blocking the flow of traffic is another story. (May 16, 2008 | post #33)
True, but you CAN drive somethng that is green-ER. Please let me know when you come up with a vehicle that uses something like tr-lithium chrystals and anti-matter for power. Until then, we are pretty well stuck with combustion or solar power in one way or another. (May 16, 2008 | post #32)
There you go again, flapping those brainless jaws (sorry, couln't resist - even if I do NOT agree) - Although I agree with tina anne that an intelligence test should be manditory for a driver's license, they really need to come up with a test for common sense. However, where the hybrid cars are concerned, well - - see my other posts on this - (May 16, 2008 | post #31)
