State of the Union: Close but no cigar!

Some great things were said this time around*... however, the effort does not meet the promise: a "22%" increase in funding is insufficient to make any significant change. A 75% decrease from one region is not the same as becoming an exporter of energy!

Becoming a net-exporter of renewable energy should be our number one national priority. Many other solutions will come from solving overcoming this challenge:

> The safety & security of our nation - due to energy independence - will increase.
> Innovation - to solving myriad technology hurdles - will soar.
> Our trade deficit - will disappear.
> Our economy - will boom.
> Thousands of new jobs - will be added.
> Corporate profitability - will improve.

Please encourage your congressmen & women to present a bold initiative to solve this problem in our lifetime!

* From the State of the Union Address:
"Keeping America competitive requires affordable energy. And here we have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world. The best way to break this addiction is through technology. Since 2001, we have spent nearly $10 billion to develop cleaner, cheaper, and more reliable alternative energy sources -- and we are on the threshold of incredible advances.

So tonight, I announce the Advanced Energy Initiative -- a 22-percent increase in clean-energy research -- at the Department of Energy, to push for breakthroughs in two vital areas. To change how we power our homes and offices, we will invest more in zero-emission coal-fired plants, revolutionary solar and wind technologies, and clean, safe nuclear energy.

We must also change how we power our automobiles. We will increase our research in better batteries for hybrid and electric cars, and in pollution-free cars that run on hydrogen. We'll also fund additional research in cutting-edge methods of producing ethanol, not just from corn, but from wood chips and stalks, or switch grass. Our goal is to make this new kind of ethanol practical and competitive within six years.

Breakthroughs on this and other new technologies will help us reach another great goal: to replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025. By applying the talent and technology of America, this country can dramatically improve our environment, move beyond a petroleum-based economy, and make our dependence on Middle Eastern oil a thing of the past.