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Originally Posted by Alchemist
Still, I wonder whether President Bush, if he were feeling really ambitious, could round up enough support among enviros on the left (note that the cofounder of Greenpeace now supports a big increase in nuclear energy generation) and national security voters on the right, for a Manhattan-Project-level effort to move beyond fossil fuels, sooner rather than later. (He's made noises about this, but our steps are pretty minor at this point.) It won't solve our problems in the Middle East anytime soon, and I'm sure it would carry its own unintended consequences, but I could just about be persuaded.
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If POTUS wants a genuine legacy he should push the development of commercially viable electric power plants driven by hydrogen fusion. IMNSHO hydrogen fusion has the potential (socially and economically) to be the equivalent of going from horse & buggy to the internal combustion engine. From theory to bomb took 5-6 years, from political statement to Moon took 7-8 years; how long would commercial fusion power take? A lot of the underlying science has already been done. Energy independance is a goal worthy of Manhattan Project resource commitment. Heck - clean up a few "porkbarrel projects/setasides" and the Federal Government wouldn't even notice the pricetag. Anything less lacks vision or more properly belongs in the private sector. My .02 - Peregrino