Like We Needed Another Absurdity in the U.S.
Recently fired U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is back in the news today with this remark: “If our leaders seek to conceal the truth, or we as people become accepting of alternative realities that are no longer grounded in facts, then we as American citizens are on a pathway to relinquishing our freedom.”
Until very recently, the admonition that “alternative realities that are no longer grounded in facts” are a danger to our society applied to an extremely small segment of the population, e.g., people who believe professional wrestling is real or those who accept the idea that those who lost their six-year-olds at Sandy Hook were paid actors. Yet, less than 10 years later, it applies to 40% of the country.
That’s how far we’ve fallen.
And the real irony here is even scarier: this particular warning comes from the guy whose company spent decades and countless fortunes convincing us that climate change is a hoax. He’s a professional liar, and now he’s telling us that truth matters.
Good luck with that, America.
Craig,
Instead of parroting distorted misquotes, why not take a look at some positive and exciting progress ?
Today was the official opening of the Wyoming Integrated Test Center (ITC). The ITC is a carbon recovery research facility fully integrated into a working coal plant.
The facility is the largest and most modern in North America and one of a handful of such facilities in the world. The project’s six demonstration sites. Dry Fork Station owed by Basin Electric Power Cooperative will supply flue gas, power, and service water.
Wyoming currently produces 40% of US domestic coal. Coal is still and important resource for US energy generation, providing more than 32%. Coal is still very important when producing power for heavy industry.
Like it or not the US is a coal rich nation, with more than 450 years of reserves.
The ITC is a very important large scale commitment to resolving the problem of CO2 emissions created by coal usage. The “state of art” ITC facility is funded by organizations such as Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, Japan Coal Energy Center and Kawasaki Heavy Industries. (Kawasaki provided more than 30 million in funding after attending a lecture by President Trump).
All of these companies and many others will conduct or sponsor R&D at the facility, enabling the best scientists, researchers, engineers and chemists to study, conduct experiments and exchange knowledge.
The programs will be very exciting ranging from testing Kawasaki’s solid sorbent carbon capture technology using porous materials to absorb CO2 from plant emissions and carbon conversion testing of test laboratory findings under real-world conditions on a large scale. This kind of facilities greatly enhance the willingness of potential investors to invest in carbon conversion and sequestration technology.
The XPRIZE FOUNDATION announced today,
” XPRIZE is proud to be ITC’s first tenant. The five finalists for the coal track of the $20 million NRG Cosia Carbon XPRIZE will compete to develop breakthrough technologies that convert CO2 emissions into marketable products.
Teams from India, China, Scotland, Canada and the United States have all announced their intention of using the ITC Wyoming facility. They will work to transform CO2 into materials including methanol, plastics, carbonates used in building materials, and stronger, “greener” concrete. The five finalist teams will be scored on how much CO2 they convert and the net value of their products” .
Great news for Wyoming, the coal industry, the environment, the US economy and America.
Craig, if the super talented young team of experts leading the Board at XPRIZE think this is an exciting development, surely even an old curmudgeon like yourself should rejoice at the news that something practical and positive environmentally is happening.
Oh, c’mon at least be happy the State of Wyoming has kicked in $15 million.
(That’s if your masters at the Wind Power Cabal, will let you !:)