Pickens Plan Scam--Regruntled.com maybe half baked would be a more appropriate name for this blog

I used to have a little more respect for computer nerds in general, this guy is lowering the average rating in his blog post.

http://www.regruntled.com/2008/07/11/pickens-plan-scam/

For a guy who can write code and make it work, his intellectual analysis seems pretty shallow on what T. Boone's plan is all about. He totally misses T. Boone's request for the Feds to expedite the development of this century's drastically needed superhighway system--upgrading our existing power transmission corridors and increasing capacity and tying the wind and solar generation locations into the national grid. Private money will fund most of it because it is profitable to do so. Tax credits only enhance the return and for my money can be amortized over 100 years in the federal budget and will represent one of the best federal investments made since the national highway investment from 1950 on. I guess Dan at Regruntled.com feels there no such taxpayer contributions to national security etc. that protect oil company assets overseas, on the open seas etc??? I am no expert on oil/nuclear, but I am pretty sure taxpayers have been subsidizing those energy groups for a long time.

Once we have the power network completed, imagine how many jobs that work will create around the country, jobs filled by Americans on the ground in in factories etc, we can then pour the new solar and wind generated energy recaptured cash flow (i.e. not going overseas) into a down payment on building a network of true high speed trains to move around the country--for my money planes are a distant 2nd to ground based mass transit--only to be used where density is low and likely to stay that way and building track is too difficult--oceans mountains etc. It will be a long time till planes can stop burning carbon, in the meantime a coast to coast/north to south 200km high speed train network would have a lot of advantages over air travel and again, imagine the number of jobs that would be created?

while I champion Dan's right to publish to the world, for a computer nerd it would be nice if he could dig a little deeper next time and move beyond rants, I for one am sick and tired of rants, if we want to solve this problem we are actually going to have to dig a little deeper and fix the code that is wrong, rather than just point out that we don't think it is any good.

and what a surprise dear partisan dan the nerd finishes up dragging out the Swiftboat red herring, as if that only has to be shown by pulling back ones coat (much like showing your concealed gun) to reduce any opposition/doubters to jello!

time to pull together folks, even Dan may see that he has a role with his computer skills contributing to whatever the solution eventually becomes, but first he has to get up off his butt and use that lump located three feet higher on his spinal cord.

please get 5 new members at the Pickens Plan this weekend, we are all counting on each other to keep this fire glowing.

jeffrey gordon

Tags: credits, energy, lines, plan, power, scam, tax, transportation, windpower

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Comment by Daryl Oster on July 29, 2008 at 6:59pm: Jeff,
You are correct we must focus first on transportation – it is the highest priority.
The PickensPlan to transition vehicles to natural gas is a great start toward 100% energy independence, yet is a stop-gap as NG will also peak.

You mentioned High Speed Rail (HSR) as a possible solution that could displace aircraft. I understand how you feel. Many people have felt that way until they examine HSR more closely and they generally find that HSR is not the best solution for the future. I ask you to consider that in the year 1910 trains were capable of speeds greater than 100mph, and had more than a 90% share of the transportation market between cities in the US; now trains have less than 1% market share. The reason is that cars and aircraft offer far better transportation VALUE than trains. The only way to displace cars and trains is to offer the market a transportation technology offering a quantum leap in transportation value. ETT is such a technology.

Evacuated Tube Transport (ETT) is a patented technology where travel occurs without air friction or rolling resistance (like “Space Travel on Earth”); ETT can accomplish 50 times more transportation per kWh than electric cars or trains. ETT is silent, low cost, safe, faster than jets, and is electric.
Air is permanently removed from 2 tubes along a travel route (two-way). Pressurized car sized passenger capsules travel in the tubes on frictionless maglev. Airlocks at stations allow transfer without admitting air. Linear electric motors accelerate the capsules, then they coast through the vacuum most of the trip using no power. Energy is recovered when they stop.

Speed in initial ETT systems is 350 mph for in state trips, and will be developed to 4,000 mph for international travel that will take you from NYC to Beijing in 2 hours at a tenth the cost of airfare. ETT is networked as are freeways. ETT capsules (hauling up to 6 people or 3 pallets of cargo) are automatically routed non-stop between “off-line” stations that are disbursed according to demand, so ETT has potential to eventually serve homes.

ETT capsules weigh only 400 lbs, yet like a SUV, haul 800lbs of people or cargo. A twentieth as much guideway material is required to support ETT capsules than to support locomotives. Material savings, and use of automated pipeline production, drops cost to less than a tenth the cost of High Speed Rail, or a fourth the cost of a freeway. With automated passive switching, a single 350mph ETT tube can exceed 16 lanes freeway capacity, further economizing.

Collectively companies have invested billions developing ETT; (although most are not aware of it yet); for instance, many companies produce pipelines (tubes), vacuum pumps, and electronics to automate it all. Everything exists to start building ETT now. ETT is being implemented in Asia; we can wait and buy ETT from others; OR we can leverage our superior capacities and be first to market.
The ETT Patent is assigned to et3.com Inc., an open consortium. An inclusive license agreement offers any entity incentives to participate in ETT implementation using their “off-the-shelf” assets (materials, parts, technologies, skills, labor, and capacities). For licensing information contact: Daryl Oster, et3@et3.com , POB 1423, Crystal River FL 34423-1423, (352)257-1310, www.et3.com (c) 2008 all rights reserved. ETT, et3, "space travel on earth" and the et3 logo are trademarks and service marks of et3.com Inc.

Comment by Daryl Oster on July 28, 2008 at 11:32pm: Jeff,
You are correct we must focus first on transportation – it is the highest priority.
The PickensPlan to transition vehicles to natural gas is a great start toward 100% energy independence, yet is a stop-gap as NG will also peak.

You mentioned High Speed Rail (HSR) as a possible solution that could displace aircraft. I understand how you feel. Many people have felt that way until they examine HSR more closely and they generally find that HSR is not the best solution for the future. I ask you to consider that in the year 1910 trains were capable of speeds greater than 100mph, and had more than a 90% share of the transportation market between cities in the US; now trains have less than 1% market share. The reason is that cars and aircraft offer far better transportation VALUE than trains. The only way to displace cars and trains is to offer the market a transportation technology offering a quantum leap in transportation value. ETT is such a technology.

Evacuated Tube Transport (ETT) is a patented technology where travel occurs without air friction or rolling resistance (like “Space Travel on Earth”); ETT can accomplish 50 times more transportation per kWh than electric cars or trains. ETT is silent, low cost, safe, faster than jets, and is electric.
Air is permanently removed from 2 tubes along a travel route (two-way). Pressurized car sized passenger capsules travel in the tubes on frictionless maglev. Airlocks at stations allow transfer without admitting air. Linear electric motors accelerate the capsules, then they coast through the vacuum most of the trip using no power. Energy is recovered when they stop.

Speed in initial ETT systems is 350 mph for in state trips, and will be developed to 4,000 mph for international travel that will take you from NYC to Beijing in 2 hours at a tenth the cost of airfare. ETT is networked as are freeways. ETT capsules (hauling up to 6 people or 3 pallets of cargo) are automatically routed non-stop between “off-line” stations that are disbursed according to demand, so ETT has potential to eventually serve homes.

ETT capsules weigh only 400 lbs, yet like a SUV, haul 800lbs of people or cargo. A twentieth as much guideway material is required to support ETT capsules than to support locomotives. Material savings, and use of automated pipeline production, drops cost to less than a tenth the cost of High Speed Rail, or a fourth the cost of a freeway. With automated passive switching, a single 350mph ETT tube can exceed 16 lanes freeway capacity, further economizing.

Collectively companies have invested billions developing ETT; (although most are not aware of it yet); for instance, many companies produce pipelines (tubes), vacuum pumps, and electronics to automate it all. Everything exists to start building ETT now. ETT is being implemented in Asia; we can wait and buy ETT from others; OR we can leverage our superior capacities and be first to market.
The ETT Patent is assigned to et3.com Inc., an open consortium. An inclusive license agreement offers any entity incentives to participate in ETT implementation using their “off-the-shelf” assets (materials, parts, technologies, skills, labor, and capacities). For licensing information contact: Daryl Oster, et3@et3.com , POB 1423, Crystal River FL 34423-1423, (352)257-1310, www.et3.com (c) 2008 all rights reserved. ETT, et3, "space travel on earth" and the et3 logo are trademarks and service marks of et3.com Inc.

Comment by jeffrey gordon on July 16, 2008 at 1:44pm: Hi Thomas, I am not familiar with the veto by the texas governor, that is illustrative of the difficulty faced when trying to work on projects which cross county/state/regional lines--T. Boone was on Cspan around the 3rd week of June testifying in front of senate hearing and in responding to a question about who was going to pay for the new transmission lines, he told the senate hearing under oath that capital was not the issue, the alternative energy producers could put in the lines. But, what they needed help with was expediting the process through all the jurisdictions, I recall him saying this is in essence a national emergency of national security proportions and the Feds needed to lead.

jeffrey gordon

Comment by Thomas on July 16, 2008 at 12:11pm: Where did you find this quote? "He totally misses T. Boone's request for the Feds to expedite the development of this century's drastically needed superhighway system--upgrading our existing power transmission corridors and increasing capacity and tying the wind and solar generation locations into the national grid. Private money will fund most of it because it is profitable to do so. Tax credits only enhance the return and for my money can be amortized over?"

The NAFTA superhighway would eliminate around 72 cargo seaports. Thousands of jobs would be lost.
Did you that the Texas Gov. vetoed a bill to make Eminent Domain illegal?

Comment by Sheri Elpern on July 14, 2008 at 10:22am: I totally agree! No time for naysayers! And no time for the past. This movement is sui generis!

Comment by Alasdair on July 11, 2008 at 4:25pm: Good article Jeff. Did you know the TGV train in France moves at over 300 km/hr (200 mph)? Smart thinking to suggest setting up something similar in the US.