His stance on ethanol sets Cal professor apart

Contra Costa Times ^ | 9/26/5 | Judy Silber

[radioman]

I still want to get a diesel and make biodiesel from the leftovers of the local fish fry place

Yeah, diesel fuel sure is easier to make than alcohol if you have a source of cheap vegetable oil. You can simply filter and preheat the fryer oil if you don't want to use the lye treatment process.
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[Ninian Dryhope]

"Why should people be driving big trucks and SUVs that get 10 mpg when they could be driving full sized cars (like a camry or accord) that gets 30 mpg?"

Why should people be driving full sized cars (like a Camry or accord) that gets 30 mpg when they could be driving 'smart' cars that get 60 mpg?

[-YYZ-]

Ethanol is not just an energy source for vehicles, but also is an energy substrate for many humans, not to mention the adverse side effects on the central nervous system.

Whaddya mean, "adverse"? Unfortunately I'm limited on the alcohol intake side these days due to my dangerously high tri-glycerides, but I consumed enough in my younger days to make up for it.

[radioman]

Excellent idea, but I don't think it'll succeed given the cost and the energy required to make ethanol

You may be right. I think ethanol is a waste of farmland. Methanol can be produced cheaper from many more non-farm sources than ethanol.
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[spunkets]

"I want my tax dollars back!"

Taxation is an irreversible process.

That "paper" though comes out of govm'ts NPR type stream.

[BlueMondaySkipper]

Manufacturers releasing their model year cars so early into the previous year always messes me up, so I don't remember all the exact years. Still, it was a relative death trap prior to that.

In that case, it was actually released in 2003.

[flashbunny]

because full size cars are the level of control HE approves of.

Anything smaller and the government might be infringing on HIs rights as well. And he probably wouldn't like that.

[Balding_Eagle]

As often happens when people argue with me, you editorialised my statements into something I didn't say.

I never said that people can engage in illegal activity.

Losers use the technique often.

Better luck next time.

[antiRepublicrat]

You can simply filter and preheat the fryer oil if you don't want to use the lye treatment process.

For that you need to modify the engine. Plus you don't get all that glycerine leftover. That plus a little more lye and some more pure fat can put you in the melt-and-pour soap business.

Or you can just break out the old chemistry set and start blowing stuff up. :)

[Mr. Lucky]

I got rid of it a year or so ago.

I was driving down the interstate doing maybe 5mph over the limit in the passing lane when this doofus in a Lincoln Navigator pulled up behind me and flashed his headlights. I pulled over as soon as I got around the car I was passing and this guy goes by, giving me the finger.

Well, sir, that made it personal.

I let him get a hundred yards or so in front of me and I floored it. That Navigator was doing top end of 90 mph or so (on 87 octane, I'm sure) The Nova hit 140 (on 110 octane e85, of course)

After I slowed down, it occurred to me how dumb such a stunt was for an old man and I sold the car. I ain't as good as I once was.

[Arthalion]

Nothing bizarre about it at all. The US was founded because our ancestors believed that the people of the US has the right to determine their own destinies and not be subject to the whims of a distant government and king. The system they put in place was one which allowed the people to collectively determine the paths that their society should take. That's what democracy is all about, after all..."the people" determining the fate of their own nation.

There is nothing in the Constitution which gurantees the individual the right to do whatever they want. On the contrary, the Constitution creates a framework wherein society can develop and enforce laws and norms which have the effect of permitting and prohibiting certain behaviors. The Constitution itself makes little reference to the rights of the individual, focusing instead on the rights of the people in a collective sense.

We choose to interpret many of the Constitutions protections as individual freedoms, and the courts have in many cases supported that interpretation, but it is incorrect to state that the US was founded for the purpose of guranteeing individual rights.

As I said in my first post, we prohibit all kinds of behaviors and actions for no reason other than the fact that we consider them harmful to society. If society ever determines that the inefficient consumption of oil is detrimental to us as a whole, the people would be entirely within their rights to demand that they be banned. The "Because I want to" argument holds no legal water.

The downside to living in a democracy is that EVERY right is subject to revocation at the whim of the majority. We have a representative form of government in place to help moderate this effect but when it comes right down to it, if the people in this country REALLY want to ban or permit something, there isn't anything that's going to stop them. That's the way democracy works, and IMO that's a good thing.

[chipengineer]

>When their choices cause 3 times the pollution and I am having to breath that pollution...

You might have a point if actual pollution was related to MPG, but it is not. All cars (sold in a given state) have to meet the same pollution standards.

CO2 emission is proportional to fuel consumed, but it is not pollution.

[Ninian Dryhope]

Nuclear powered stills?

[radioman]

For that you need to modify the engine

No engine mod needed. Stick the preheater in your trunk. Start the engine on diesel and switch over when the preheater gets up to temp. Switch back to diesel and let the vegetable oil clear the system before you shut down. It's a hassle but it works.

That plus a little more lye and some more pure fat can put you in the melt-and-pour soap business

LOL!
Great idea...Sell soap to help pay for the fish oil!
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[wolfcreek]

"If gasoline hits the $5/gallon mark will ethanol be more cost effective?"

Perhaps, we could make it and store as part of the stategic reserve?

[SierraWasp]

Not bad at all!!! I love this guy!!! Thanks for posting this... Thanks very much!!!

[SierraWasp]

Bookmarked!!!

[SierraWasp]

Bookmarked!!! Thank you for this Perfect Ping!!!

[GreenFreeper]

Bookmarked!!! Thank you for this Perfect Ping!!!

Yeah, lots of good info in the article and the posts. I need to start compiling a list of resources!

[Dog Gone]

Wow, a Berkeley professor with common sense! Whodathunkit?