A Con Game with Happy Victims
• Most people think wind or solar electricity is a great solution.
• But wind or solar costs five times more than using natural gas to generate electricity.
• If governments continue to mandate wind and solar, electric bills will soar.
• Wind and solar are promoted by special interests.
• The average person doesn't realize he is being conned because the truth is hidden.
• $1,500,000,000,000 of your money wasted so far.
Don’t be a happy victim. Learn the facts.
Everything you've heard about renewable energy is wrong
Norman Rogers
In our world we have good energy and bad energy, or clean energy and dirty energy. Renewable energy is another term for good, clean energy like wind energy or solar energy. Coal, natural gas and nuclear are bad, dirty energy, even though in modern plants they don't cause significant air pollution. There is fuel for hundreds or thousands of years. But they are still bad energy. Nuclear doesn't emit carbon dioxide but still is bad energy. Hydroelectricity is mostly bad energy because it involves dams. Dams are bad.
We're dealing with energy superstition. There is no anchor in logic or engineering. The Sierra Club promotes wind and solar as a solution for every energy problem. It seems like they are lying. but they are pursuing an idealistic dream, rooted in ignorance, and unconnected to engineering reality. According to to the Sierra Club: "Transitioning to 100% clean, renewable energy nationwide offers new opportunities. for economic growth, saves families money, and fosters job creation." They have discovered a new form of economics where wasting money leads to prosperity.
The Sierra Club has a successful beyond coal campaign. The object is to destroy the coal industry and put coal workers out of work. It's safe to assume that there are few coal workers in the same neighborhood as Sierra Club members.
The nation has already spent $1.5 trillion on useless wind and solar energy. It costs five times more to generate a kilowatt hour with wind or solar compared to using natural gas. Wind or solar can't replace traditional fossil fuel plants or nuclear plants. Wind and solar are erratic, dependent on the weather or the position of the sun. Wind and solar are very expensive supplements to the electric grid.
Many states have renewable portfolio laws, imposing schedules to greatly increase the use of wind and solar. For example, California demands that 60 percent of its electricity shall be renewable by 2030. That is like using gasoline to put out a fire. The politicians that passed these laws thought they were improving the world. They believed the propaganda. At least, that is the charitable explanation.
Although wind and solar power reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, there are other much less expensive methods of reducing CO2 emissions.
According to a school of academic thinking, CO2 emissions threaten us with a planet-wide climate catastrophe. Plenty of scientists don’t agree. In any case, reducing CO2 emissions in the U.S. is a foolish mission. Emissions in Asia are vast and increasing very fast. Decreasing emissions from the U.S. won’t change anything.
Then, there is the good side of CO2. Plants breathe CO2 and use the carbon to make the food we eat. The increasing CO2 in the atmosphere has likely increased agricultural productivity by 30 percent.
Propaganda
Edward Bernays in his 1929 book, Propaganda, stated that “Democracy is administered by the intelligent minority who know how to regiment and guide the masses.” The problem is that the intelligent minority is possessed by cult-like beliefs. Left environmentalism has become a religion among the intelligent minority. It is an old story, intelligent but lacking common sense.
The International Energy Agency makes the grandiose and false claim that solar power is the cheapest form of electricity in history. The Sierra Club claims that wind and solar are competitive with natural gas, a claim that is not remotely true.
Pew Research has taken polls of the public on various issues related to renewable energy. The polls show that most Americans favor developing wind and solar. There is some progress. The percent favoring wind and solar has declined from 79 percent in 2020 to 67 percent in 2023. Among Republicans 2023 support is only 42 percent but among Democrats 90 percent.
Texas is a Republican state where leading politicians brag about the vast number of wind farms developed in West Texas. They are obviously unaware that this investment is a complete waste of money, especially in Texas where natural gas is cheap. This is an illustration of propaganda at work. The experts at Texas universities and the investigative reporters at Texas media organizations, members of the intelligent minority, have little interest in taking a critical look at wind power. What little criticism there is mostly does not discuss the economic failure of wind power, but speaks to peripheral issues, like the disposal of used wind turbine blades.
The conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation is an exception to the widespread Texas belief that wind power is wonderful. They dare to ask if wind is so cheap why are electric bills increasing.
Is there hope?
Green or renewable electricity is a big business. It employs thousands of people. Sinclair Lewis said: "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." The business consultants, lawyers, scientists and engineers that depend on the industry will not be easily persuaded that their industry is a fraud. The blue collar workers that build these facilities, for some reason, know it is a fraud. Apparently they are not card-carrying members of the intelligent minority.
The government has a propensity to continue useless and expensive programs. The corn to ethanol industry is an example. We can hope for some movement in the direction of less wind and solar. Killing the wind and solar industry, employing thousands, is a political stretch.
The pages indexed below are independent articles, mostly previously published, that take on aspects of the renewable electricity industry.
Useless Wind Energy
Useless Utility Scale Solar Energy
Useless Residential Solar Energy
Norman Rogers writes on energy and climate change. He is the author of the Amazon book Dumb Energy.
• Most people think wind or solar electricity is a great solution.
• But wind or solar costs five times more than using natural gas to generate electricity.
• If governments continue to mandate wind and solar, electric bills will soar.
• Wind and solar are promoted by special interests.
• The average person doesn't realize he is being conned because the truth is hidden.
• $1,500,000,000,000 of your money wasted so far.
Don’t be a happy victim. Learn the facts.
Everything you've heard about renewable energy is wrong
Norman Rogers
In our world we have good energy and bad energy, or clean energy and dirty energy. Renewable energy is another term for good, clean energy like wind energy or solar energy. Coal, natural gas and nuclear are bad, dirty energy, even though in modern plants they don't cause significant air pollution. There is fuel for hundreds or thousands of years. But they are still bad energy. Nuclear doesn't emit carbon dioxide but still is bad energy. Hydroelectricity is mostly bad energy because it involves dams. Dams are bad.
We're dealing with energy superstition. There is no anchor in logic or engineering. The Sierra Club promotes wind and solar as a solution for every energy problem. It seems like they are lying. but they are pursuing an idealistic dream, rooted in ignorance, and unconnected to engineering reality. According to to the Sierra Club: "Transitioning to 100% clean, renewable energy nationwide offers new opportunities. for economic growth, saves families money, and fosters job creation." They have discovered a new form of economics where wasting money leads to prosperity.
The Sierra Club has a successful beyond coal campaign. The object is to destroy the coal industry and put coal workers out of work. It's safe to assume that there are few coal workers in the same neighborhood as Sierra Club members.
The nation has already spent $1.5 trillion on useless wind and solar energy. It costs five times more to generate a kilowatt hour with wind or solar compared to using natural gas. Wind or solar can't replace traditional fossil fuel plants or nuclear plants. Wind and solar are erratic, dependent on the weather or the position of the sun. Wind and solar are very expensive supplements to the electric grid.
Many states have renewable portfolio laws, imposing schedules to greatly increase the use of wind and solar. For example, California demands that 60 percent of its electricity shall be renewable by 2030. That is like using gasoline to put out a fire. The politicians that passed these laws thought they were improving the world. They believed the propaganda. At least, that is the charitable explanation.
Although wind and solar power reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, there are other much less expensive methods of reducing CO2 emissions.
According to a school of academic thinking, CO2 emissions threaten us with a planet-wide climate catastrophe. Plenty of scientists don’t agree. In any case, reducing CO2 emissions in the U.S. is a foolish mission. Emissions in Asia are vast and increasing very fast. Decreasing emissions from the U.S. won’t change anything.
Then, there is the good side of CO2. Plants breathe CO2 and use the carbon to make the food we eat. The increasing CO2 in the atmosphere has likely increased agricultural productivity by 30 percent.
Propaganda
Edward Bernays in his 1929 book, Propaganda, stated that “Democracy is administered by the intelligent minority who know how to regiment and guide the masses.” The problem is that the intelligent minority is possessed by cult-like beliefs. Left environmentalism has become a religion among the intelligent minority. It is an old story, intelligent but lacking common sense.
The International Energy Agency makes the grandiose and false claim that solar power is the cheapest form of electricity in history. The Sierra Club claims that wind and solar are competitive with natural gas, a claim that is not remotely true.
Pew Research has taken polls of the public on various issues related to renewable energy. The polls show that most Americans favor developing wind and solar. There is some progress. The percent favoring wind and solar has declined from 79 percent in 2020 to 67 percent in 2023. Among Republicans 2023 support is only 42 percent but among Democrats 90 percent.
Texas is a Republican state where leading politicians brag about the vast number of wind farms developed in West Texas. They are obviously unaware that this investment is a complete waste of money, especially in Texas where natural gas is cheap. This is an illustration of propaganda at work. The experts at Texas universities and the investigative reporters at Texas media organizations, members of the intelligent minority, have little interest in taking a critical look at wind power. What little criticism there is mostly does not discuss the economic failure of wind power, but speaks to peripheral issues, like the disposal of used wind turbine blades.
The conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation is an exception to the widespread Texas belief that wind power is wonderful. They dare to ask if wind is so cheap why are electric bills increasing.
Is there hope?
Green or renewable electricity is a big business. It employs thousands of people. Sinclair Lewis said: "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." The business consultants, lawyers, scientists and engineers that depend on the industry will not be easily persuaded that their industry is a fraud. The blue collar workers that build these facilities, for some reason, know it is a fraud. Apparently they are not card-carrying members of the intelligent minority.
The government has a propensity to continue useless and expensive programs. The corn to ethanol industry is an example. We can hope for some movement in the direction of less wind and solar. Killing the wind and solar industry, employing thousands, is a political stretch.
The pages indexed below are independent articles, mostly previously published, that take on aspects of the renewable electricity industry.
Useless Wind Energy
Useless Utility Scale Solar Energy
Useless Residential Solar Energy
Norman Rogers writes on energy and climate change. He is the author of the Amazon book Dumb Energy.