Quote:
Originally Posted by cloud9
I'm reminded of the story of the Buddha coming across a man who had spent 30 years practicing to levitate across a stream. Near him was a footbridge. This man was very proud of his accomplishment and said, "Look, oh Buddha, watch". And he floated across the stream to the other side. And the Budha walked across the footbridge across the stream and said, "Yes, but you could have just walked across the bridge, instead of spending 30 years trying to levitate..."
It's not to say that some of these abilities aren't wonderful - they are. But one could spend a great deal of time and effort on such abilities. Meanwhile, we are destroying the Earth and our civilization is terminal. So when the great task is at hand, even important things have to be set aside". (Pag.228)
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hi cloud9 - I agree with this 108%. There's a book from a few years ago, "The Hydrogen Economy," by Jeremy Rifkin. It's already all ready to go, conceptually, and the idea has already been put on the ground in Iceland (public transportation as I remember).
http://www.amazon.com/Hydrogen-Econo.../dp/1585421936
How the Hydrogen Economy Works, by Marshall Brain
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/hydrogen-economy.htm
Transportation is a big deal. On September 11, 2001, I was in the transportation & logistics business. It was a near miss in terms of whether anything would still move. There is a big backdoor world out there re distribution of goods. If food, mascara, and other key items are not available to consumers, the social problem becomes huge. Drivers were shell-shocked too in '01, but kept hauling and delivering. This is a testament to people holding infrastructure in place. The 'go shop' economic advice that followed, it's another story.
Rail is an option too. Everything old is new again (existing infrastructure - and we all love trains). I have more thoughts about jobs, employment rates - to start throwing ideas ...
love & light