Energy Usage in the U.S. and The New Hampshire results

The facts about energy usage in the United States:

Petroleum-----------38.3%----------Transportation, Manufacturing
Natural Gas---------23.0%----------Heating, Manufacturing, electricity
Coal-----------------22.0%----------Electricity, Manufacturing
Uranium--------------8.2%----------Electricity
Biomass---------------2.9%----------Heating, electricity, Transportation
Hydropower----------2.7%-----------Electricity
Propane---------------1.9%----------Manufacturing, Heating
Wind------------------0.1%----------Electricity
Solar & other----------0.1%----------Lighting, heating, electricity

What is wrong with this picture? The top three sources for energy in this country come from nonrenewable resources that have a limited supply. The renewable sources of energy make up less then 6.1% of the total energy used in this country. You might also want to take note that manufacturing, electricity, and transportation are the areas that use the most nonrenewable resources in our country. This chart show that we as Americans can have a profound effect on our own energy independents if we persuade our government to put more money into the research and development of renewable energy resources.

It is also clear that the people in control of manufacturing, producing electricity, and providing energy for transportation have a great deal to loss if we do us more renewable energy. They know that it cost money to change our ways and will only encourage us to continue on our current course until supplies run out and they can no longer make a profit from the consumer. The factor of supply and demand also comes into this equation where the lower the supply and the higher the demand the less likely these people are to switch because of the profit margins that result for this type of situation. We have only to look at the profits made over the last few years by major oil companies here in the U.S. to see why the suppliers of energy have no reason to want to change our current course. It is also clear that the low and middle income consumers are the losers in this area.

If we do not step up now and force the people in control of our government to develop new lower costing sources of renewable energy things will only get far worse for the low and middle class consumers of energy. My economics instructor always told me that it was up to the consumer to demand change if the provider of a resource got out of control. We have a way to demand change that will work. Now is the time to demand a major change in where we get our energy.

The New Hampshire results

We as Americans are a hardheaded independent group and don't like to be told that we are predictable when it comes to how we vote. New Hampshire voters made that only too clear to the news media yesterday. It left them wondering where they went wrong. I personally think that they should report the news and stop trying to forecast the news. Polls will always be wrong when it is a major issue and the media tries to force their views on the general voting public. I wish some people here in New Mexico would get that message and go back to reporting the news as it happens and not before it happens.