As I said before, twice, Germany needs to revert its stance on nuclear power. A lot of progress has been made and nuclear fission is getting more and more viable as an energy source.
We cannot presently rely on wind turbines or solar plants since the sun doesn’t shine at night and there’s often not enough or too much wind to use wind turbines.
The only solution we have right now is nuclear power. It is the only cheap, reliable and efficient source of electricity that does not fuel the green house effect almost everybody is concerned about. It is probably the only power source that can sustain the world’s energy needs until we finally figure out how to make an economic fusion power plant. German funds are needed to allow researchers to study new power plant designs that would iron out some of the issues nuclear power presents. Germany should also allow reprocessing plants to be built.
Archive for the ‘Socio-Political Thoughts’ Category
Nuclear power (part 3)
April 15, 2008The problem with Atheism
October 3, 2007Sam Harris, a famous critic of religion wrote an essay about what he thinks are the problems when calling oneself an atheist. I think it is a great read and points out many interesting things worth reflecting about.
Germany seen from abroad
September 17, 2007Slashdot | German Police Arrest Admin of Tor Anonymity Server
I do not find the article that interesting especially because a poster pointed out that the whole thing is not such a big deal, but I think the discussion below is very interesting. Some of these posts (I have my threshold on +3, so I only read comments that are at or above +3) sum up my thoughts about Germany quite nicely. I do think that in Germany, people trade essential liberties for temporary security (“They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security.” ~Benjamin Franklin).
I also like this post. I do not necessarily agree with his opinion that “Germany is one of the finest countries on earth, it was liberated from
a facist dictatorship and is now an excellent example of what democracy
can achieve given the opportunity”, his points are valid, however, and the characteristics he ascribes to German people are probably exactly what I dislike about the Germans.
Transrapid!?
February 21, 2007There is an ongoing discussion about a Transrapid (German Maglev train) connection in Munich, connecting the Bavarian capital to Munich International Airport. Residents and politicians fight the project for whatever reasons they can find.
Maglev train technology was patented in Germany in 1941 and a test facility was constructed in 1987, however, as of 2007, no German commercial implementation exists. The Transrapid is a great concept that could one day replace conventional train systems but politicians and residents refuse to accept any plans to build a track. China was able to build a commercial track in 2 years (2000 – 2002) and it went into operation in 2004. Germany has had the technology for decades yet we are unable to build a regular track. I think it is a shame that a real technology of the future is hampered by petty considerations.
Ban of violent video games? Video game branch wants to leave Germany
February 19, 2007Branche will bei Totalverbot von Killerspielen auswandern
In case of a total ban of violent video games as proposed by conservative Bavaria, the video game branch wants to leave Germany. Since conditions become worse and worse in Germany, the video game business will avoid Germany altogether if the ban passes parliament
As I said previously, such a ban seems unconstitutional which was already stated in America. In my opinion, threatening to leave Germany is the only possibility to protest against it.
Pope condemns sex and violence in video games
January 25, 2007Golem.de is running an article about a new message the Pope has given concerning the production of violent video games and movies and those containing sex. He calls them “perverted” and condemns everyone making such games.
As a reader pointed out: Everyone’s definition of the word “perverted” is different and the one used by the Catholic church is pretty much outdated. Moreover, churches should not have such a great influence on state legislature or public opinion.
It’s quite funny because my last post from a few days ago pretty much condemned these church actions.
Update: English article
Germany Wants EU to Ban Violent Games
January 18, 2007Germany Wants EU to Ban Violent Games
I found this comment very funny and insightful:
“Ah, yes. Germany, where they limit freedoms and lock people up so that no one will come along and limit freedoms and lock people up.”
This simple description is surprisingly accurate.
Genetic engineering and cloning
January 8, 2007Physicians and modern medicines extend the life time of humans and their chances of survival significantly. Some time ago, many who are able to live normal lives today were not considered survivable. Consequently, there no longer is natural selection in the human species. Survival of the fittest no longer applies to us. Evolution has come to a halt. I can also imagine it reversing its direction and making us weaker and dumber: intelligence is no criteria for survival. On the contrary: stupidity and ignorance often are rated higher in persons.
In my opinion, this stagnation means we are no longer able to adapt to new environmental circumstances and are threatened to become extinct. If mankind wants to survive, it has to achieve the means to alter its own DNA. Since external information is gathered very fast and life is very slow to modify its DNA, it would greatly benefit mankind if we could insert our own fixes and “patches” to our genes. I also support cloning since it will probably help us cure diseases that have been plaguing us for centuries. Life is not perfect, but with our knowledge we could fix issues that would take millions of years for the evolution to fix, assuming it still takes place.
Wouldn’t it be exciting if it were possible to revive the dinosaurs? Remember: Jurassic Park is fiction and the story takes place on an island in a storm and is too dramatic and implausible to actually be a possible scenario. There should be no problems with dinosaurs killing people in a secure, modern wildlife park or something similar.
Concerning a possible ban on violent video games
December 21, 2006I recently read that several bills for bans on violent video games in two or three states of the USA got retracted because they were considered to be against the first amendment (freedom of speech) by courts (Link). If such a ban is considered to be against free speech in the USA it certainly is against free speech in Germany, too. Although some people say the human rights are not respected enough by the United States and its Republican government these courts were certainly right in their decisions.
Now if such a ban passes in Germany, what does this say about the German government and its respect for the German constitution and the human rights?
