Big Problems Big Ideas

Bull Run Steam Plant TVA is planning to abandon the Bull Run and Paradise steam plants according to the news. Why not install gas turbines at these locations since there is already a switchyard and transmission lines connecting them to the grid? There are administration buildings and water and rail access. I don’t think abandoning these plant sites makes any kind of sense. A staff to operate the gas turbines could also administer the environmental cleanup necessary for a coal fired plant. TVA, you have a lot of infrastructure already in place. Use it! https://www.amazon.com/Jubals-Gold-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00K2763PW/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-4&keywords=rabb+marcellus

Carbon Capture It is possible to capture CO2 using an ammonia process. The problem is the amount of power necessary to do it. I suggest the nations of the G8 commit to build several carbon capture plants each, powered by nuclear fission. CO2 could be captured from the ambient air around the plant or from ocean water. After capture the CO2 could be injected into existing depleted oil wells, deep underground. These units could run constantly for the next fifty years, continuously removing CO2 and be part of the solution to climate change. When decommissioned, the spent fuel could be put aboard heavy lift rockets and shot into space. Just an idea. https://www.amazon.com/Without-Warning-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00B8L2TH2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-3&keywords=rabb+marcellus

Shade the Planet In previous posts, I discussed why C02 reduction is improbable. That being the case, what else could we do to reduce the temperature of the atmosphere? In 1816 the Tambora volcano erupted and put so much ash into the atmosphere that it reflected enough sunlight to reduce average temperatures that year as much as 1.3 degrees F. This proves it can be done. I’m not suggesting we induce some volcano to erupt, but it might be possible to put some less destructive particle into the stratosphere that will have the same effect.   Do we have commercial airliners that fly high enough every day? I’m not a chemist but suppose these planes discharged say 500 pounds of calcium carbonate on every trip, every day, everywhere. Over time that might be enough to slow, stop or even reduce global temperatures, and reduce the acidification of the oceans. Just an idea – Rabb https://www.amazon.com/Other-Side-Tomorrow-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B07KGHKQB5/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1...

Virginia Rackets Last year, I was caught speeding in Lexington County Virginia doing 85mph in a 65 zone. Guilty as charged, except I was attempting to pass a truck doing 60 at the top of the hill and 80 at the bottom. I was pulled over and ticketed for reckless driving, a misdemeanor. The truck was not stopped. The following week when I arrived back home, my mailbox was filled with dozens of offers from Virginia attorneys guaranteeing they could get the charges dropped for a fee! Now hold on! A guarantee means only one thing. The attorneys and judges of Virginia are running a racket! I was facing a misdemeanor charge, and a lot of hassle, so I decided to pay the fee and so contribute to their unethical conspiracy. Okay, I’m grumpy about this. But a league between the Virginia judges and attorneys where traffic offenders van be guaranteed charges will be dropped for money is corruption and racketeering. What’s more, it has created an industry of hundreds of crooked attorneys and jud...

Gun Safety Treat every gun, loaded or unloaded, as if it were loaded and ready to fire. Never point a gun at a person, including sweeping them while the gun is being handled. When handed a gun, first check and make sure it is unloaded. Rack the slide of a semi-automatic and check for a round caught in the chamber. If children, adolescents or anyone unstable has access to your home, or if burglary may be a problem, then lock up your gun in one place and its ammunition in another. Never carry a semi-automatic with a round in the chamber. Never place your finger on the trigger unless you are ready to fire the weapon. If you are not experienced with guns and feel you need one, then buy a revolver not a semi-automatic. Write down the serial number of your gen and keep it somewhere safe in case it is stolen. Report any stolen gun to the police. https://www.amazon.com/Prince-Tyrants-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B01352R50M/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-2&keywords=rabb+mar...

Salt on the Roads One of the reasons our bridges are rapidly deteriorating is the use of salt on the roads. Any new infrastructure legislation needs to solve this problem first. I have two suggestions. Stop using salt to melt ice. Not only does it rust mild steel bridge trusses, it scales the surface of concrete and washes into nearby streams. One substitute might be fly ash from power plants or perhaps some newly created substance easier on the environment. Second idea is to insist that new bridges use a rust resistant steel such as Corten or stainless steel. More expensive, only in the short run. New concrete used needs to be sprayed with a coating resistant to salt, probably after construction. Another idea is to stay home on snow days and telecommute using your home computer or otherwise stay home. If you must travel then use vehicles equipped to do so in snow. We need to deal with salt on the roads before we spend billions on infrastructure only to have it rust away again in t...

Blackface I did not know that blackface was offensive to black people. Suddenly it is a horrible thing to do. Who knew? I think the black community should provide a list of probable offensive stuff, and forgive those of us who did not know this was offensive. After all, Bing Crosby used blackface in Holiday Inn to commemorate Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. I thought it was great and not demeaning at all. Again, are there any more things that are offensive? Please tell us so that we may not offend and be castigated and destroyed such as the way Megan Kelly lost her career. It’s hard to keep up with all the rules!

American Billionaires I realize Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and others have committed to giving away much of their wealth. I do not know the extent of their philanthropy or the projects they fund. But I do know there are millions of their fellow Americans who can’t pay their medical bills due to the sorry state of health insurance in this country. So, I have a suggestion. These billionaires should contact all the hospitals throughout the country and offer to pay these bills at fifty cents on the dollar, since hospitals overcharge, with the condition that those patients in debt be cleared of that debt in writing. Or, the billionaires could buy an insurance company and create the mission to accept pre-existing conditions and maintain a liberal policy toward coverage and a reduction of premiums as part of their philanthropic efforts. Just an idea.

Nuclear Waste Solid waste from nuclear plants needs permanent disposal, especially high level waste. The industry is spending billions (or they were) creating deep mines in salt deposits to store this waste which will continue to be radioactive for over ten thousand years. Pretty hard to secure something for that far into the future. My solution? Elon Musk. Encapsulate the waste, put it on a rocket and boost it into space with an orbit that will send it into the sun. The billions spent on storage could be spent, instead, on rocket booster technology and large volume lifting bodies. Or the space elevator. https://www.amazon.com/Jubals-Gold-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00K2763PW/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-4&keywords=rabb+marcellus

Russian Billionaires Why don’t Russian billionaires spend their money on the needs of the Russian people, instead of laundering it into western banks? Surely there are poor people in Russia who could use a hand. An orphanage or a rural community on hard times. A bridge needed or a farm tractor somewhere. I’m not an authority on Russian poverty, but how many jets, yachts and houses does it take to satisfy these guys? Some of them can’t possible spend all that they have, ever. Putin, Deripaska, and others need to stop and consider how they can use their fortunes to help their country, not leave it behind. Help for the here and now. Okay you guys, you have a choice. Tyranny and greed verses kindness and charity. Was Stalin a good example in Russian history? Your time on this earth will also pass. How do you want to be remembered? https://www.amazon.com/Without-Warning-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00B8L2TH2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-3&keywords=rabb+marcellus

Home Solar Systems Instead of spending two billion on a new power plant, utilities should spend that money on home solar systems wholly owned, operated and maintained by the utility. Installed on local roof tops. The utility would own and maintain not only the solar system but the roofing material beneath it. The homeowners’ obligation is to provide the roofing space and agree to purchase the power for a specified duration. The system I imagine would include the roofing, solar panels, inverter, battery bank, control and metering system, and interconnecting wiring, so that reserve capacity would be available even on rainy days. Details as to hail damage and quality of power delivery, as well as insurance would need to be in the contract. Two billion in home solar systems spread out over a large area would be a lot less risky than a coal or nuclear power plant, and if they are all linked together they could deliver their excess power on demand. This could be an alternate and environm...

Ocean Cities The streets of Miami, for example, are already flooding due to global warming. They are spending millions on elevating streets and ocean walls to keep the water out. My idea is to take a lesson from Venice Italy, only with modern engineering. Spend those millions, instead, on modifying the infrastructure and buildings to accept the ocean as it rises. Expand the city out onto the continental shelf, with vast underwater housing and surface areas fit for cultivation and green areas. Miami could be the first “Ocean City” built to accommodate and embrace the sea and all of its treasures. I realize this city would have to resist ever larger and more destructive hurricanes, but this is an engineering problem solvable with innovative approaches to accommodate wind and water. Even use them as energy sources. I see a Miami of tall glass buildings connected by broad waterways and canals growing eastward with new structures that allow residents to live under or above the surface. ...

Ocean Plastic Collection Coastal countries such as Japan, the US, England and others, need to pay fisherman to collect ocean plastic. It seems to me that all you need is a boat, a net, and an incentive. Make it just as lucrative to catch ocean plastic as it is to catch fish. Find way to ensure the plastic actually came from the ocean, such as analysis of entrained organisms or saltwater.   https://www.amazon.com/Mom-can-drive-Robyn-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00DR0SM1E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196328&sr=8-1&keywords=robyn+marcellus

Legalization of Drugs If you are addicted to alcohol, then you are free to overdose on this drug, at the expense of your family and friends who are poised to mitigate or not. If you are addicted to marijuana, then you should be free to overdose on this drug, at the expense of your family and friends who are poised to mitigate or not. If you are addicted to heroin or cocaine, then you should be free to overdose on this drug, at the expense of your family and friends who are poised to mitigate or not. I realize this is brutal, but so is our present situation where drug gangs are so rich from drug money that they can take over whole governments and force populations of people to flee their oppression. It seems to me that if this condition persists, our civilization will become unstable and incapable of coping with any other crisis such as rising sea levels and famine. It is a shame it has come to this, but everything else has been tried and has failed. Eventually, individuals who are ...

Border Wall I don’t believe a border wall will resolve the problem of immigration from Mexico and points south. My ideas are as follows: 1. Pass immigration reform laws to AGGRESSIVELY allow these immigrants into the country after thorough vetting. 2. Resolve the reason why these people fear for their lives. If Honduras, For example, is being run by lawless gangs that force large populations to our border then this has become OUR problem. Gangs take over governments in South America because they have billions in drug money to finance their endeavors. Legalize marijuana and other drugs to remove the cash flow to the gangs, just like what happened after Prohibition was repealed. 3. Send our military to these countries to work with, or remove from power, gang run governments, similar to the Grenada invasion. Clean out the cartels with overwhelming military force! Set up a new government and leave. No nation building please! 4. If these countries once more become our problem, t...

Confederate Monuments My great grandfather fought for the Confederacy, so I like the monuments. However, I understand how they might be offensive to black people and others. Therefore I suggest, if this is an issue, that a simple vote be taken and let majority rule. What IS important to me is that they be relocated to a national battlefield such as Gettysburg or Chickamauga. These parks are dedicated to the Civil War and are covered with monuments from both sides. This is the suitable place for these unwanted monuments. For example, monuments recently removed from New Orleans should be moved to the Vicksburg national Military Park. https://www.amazon.com/Jubals-Gold-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00K2763PW/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-4&keywords=rabb+marcellus

Defense of Facebook Everyone seems to think Facebook has been negligent in protecting data and policing the use of their platform. But I submit, Facebook is new technology. I’ve been around a long time and I’ve seen computer systems evolve over time. I doubt if anyone at Facebook could have predicted as late as 2012, the way the Russians and other criminal actors could have perverted its use. Or how political the platform has become. I remember telling my kids when Facebook first came out, not to put personal data out there because it could go anywhere, be used for anything, and could never be retrieved. Now that Zuckerberg knows what can happen, he needs to find ways to prevent bad usage in the future. The users of Facebook, like myself, need to stop using the “share” button and only place original content on our pages, being mindful that our political opinions may not be the same as our friends. That’s okay, and no amount of political preaching will change their minds. https://...

Nuclear Power I know! It’s dangerous and the waste is radioactive for 10,000 years. But, I believe it CAN be part of the solution to climate change. First, it could replace all the coal, oil, and gas fired power plants which all produce C02. From nuclear power produced electricity, we could build electrified rails on the freeways between cities to power electric cars. We could build desalinization plants to produce fresh water. We could build huge plants to remove co2 directly from the atmosphere or from the ocean water. Reactors built today are safer, so a Fukushima style event is much less likely again. The high level radioactive waste (fuel rods) could be encapsulated and shot into space to orbit some distant planet or allowed to burn up in the sun. Carbon polymers derived from coal and oil should be used to make things, not be burned for fuel. Just an idea. https://www.amazon.com/Without-Warning-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B00B8L2TH2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8...

Ultrasound I recently watched a documentary about a soldier whose brain was damaged by an explosion near to him. It seems the concussive force through the air was transmitted through his brain as a wave form that tore at the cellular fabric of his brain. Pretty scary! Isn’t this similar to the waves generated by an ultrasound examination of an unborn fetus? I realize the wave is probably much less intense, but the fetuses’ brain is developing. Any disturbance, especially a sonic wave traveling through its tissue over a period of several minutes is not something nature ever meant to happen. How long have ultrasounds been performed, and is there any correlation between the advent of these examinations and various new child hood abnormalities such as autism? Has anyone looked into this? Just an idea. https://www.amazon.com/Other-Side-Tomorrow-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B07KGHKQB5/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-5&keywords=rabb+marcellus

I don’t know much about autism, but I’ve been on the planet a long time and I notice things. When I was a child in school, back in the 50s and 60s, I never encountered a child with autism. During those years I lived in California, Florida, and Tennessee. I don’t remember the condition ever mentioned. So what has changed? One thing that comes to mind is corporal punishment. There is nothing that will stimulate a child’s mind quite like a good spanking on the butt. I can say from personal experience as a child. I realize my observations about this is not main stream, but I notice what I notice and I believe the concept is worth investigating. Just an idea. https://www.amazon.com/Other-Side-Tomorrow-Rabb-Marcellus-ebook/dp/B07KGHKQB5/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1542196239&sr=8-5&keywords=rabb+marcellus