Someday, I imagine, humankind will rue having burned oil for fuel, realizing that it was far more valuable as material feedstock for plastics than it is as fuel. It may be our children who come to realize this, and they may wonder why their parents and grandparents didn't realize it and why they didn't insist that oil be used only as a feedstock. This is as true for countries with large reserves of oil as it is with those with few reserves.
Meanwhile, electricity can serve the needs of transportation and heat - but only if it comes from long-lasting, non-polluting sources. At this point it seems to me that this means nuclear power, augmented as possible by wind, hydro- and solar power. These are all technologies that we understand well. But our population retains a taboo concern with nuclear power - perhaps confounding it with nuclear weaponry - a concern that is encouraged by the questions of waste disposal, the safeguard of weapons-grade materials, and the safety of nuclear plant operations. Until these questions are met, it will be difficult for a nuclear power program to be fully embraced in the US. Are there credible answers to these three questions? Lawrence
