The latest Politically correct buzz-word these days if going "GREEN".

Generally this means using new technologies to eliminate America's (and the worlds) dependence of environmental damaging technologies - these NON-GREEN technologies abound but the most commonly mentioned ones are Americia's dependence on fossil fuels and the inefficient use of our energy reserves in genneral.. In a way many of the "SOLUTIONS" offered by the "EXPERTS" are not really solutions at all.

I cite below three exaamples:

1. Carbon Credit Trading for example simply allows "greener" technologies to sell the value of unproduced pollution ( below the limits of their environmental permit) to those industries that exceed their environmental permit. Nothing is accomplished other than lining the pockets of the Carbon Trading Cartel. The same amount of pollution is being produced into the environment, regardless.

2. Solar power - particularly photo-voltaic semiconductors -  may produce power in a very unpolluting fashion but the production process to make photovoltaic cells is extremely hazardous to the environment. Many of the chemicals are highly toxic and corrosive and need to be transported to the manufacturing locations usually by rail in tanker cars. A spill of some chemicals (SILANE BEING THE WORST) would be similar to a spill of SULPHURIC ACID or CHLORINE - resulting in full neighborhood evacuations and a certain number of deaths and injuries. Safe disposal of the waste products of the manufacturing process is another entirely different and more complicated environmental issue that I won't delve into here.

3. Wind power is actually a great idea -but just try buldling one where the required constant wind supply is located. All attempts to build wind power facilities along windy shorelines have be thwarted by the NIMBY ( Not in my Backyard) Hypocrites that feel that they need to protect their "VIEW" anmd property values more than protect the earth.  Fortunately wind farms in the midwest have had better luck in getting built.

Now for MY SUGGESTION.

CLOCKS - by my estimation these are approximately 20 BILLION ELECTRIC CLOCKS ( excluding watches) operating in the world right now.  In an admittedly over-simplified calculation - assuming that each clock uses 1 kilo-Watt of power in a year - this would anount to a power consumption of approxmately 20 Billion kW of power every year or a grand total of 175,000,000,000,000.kWh every year. The average worldwide price for electric power including the inherent demand charges  (as of 4/1/09) is approximately  21 cents per kWh. The equivalent in cost to the public is $36,790,000,000,000. annually.  In addition at industry standard thermal efficiencies, the production of this amount of electrical energy in todays average power plant will cause the consumption of over 854,000,000,000,000,000 BTU;s worth of Fossil Fuels. This is equivalent of 776,000,000,000 barrels of No. 2 grade Fuel oil.

A tremendous dent in the massive consumption of the earth resources can be accomplished if pepole would return to using "muscle power" to support their time keepoing requirements. There are still many old clocks available so that the cost of producing new wind-up clocks can be avoided.  If only 10% of all household electric clocks were replaced with antique or vintage manually wound clocks the environmental savings would be significant. I estimate it to be over 78,000,000,000 (thats 78 TRILLION) barrels of oil every year.

Now if I had more time I would start on wristwatches but in this case I will be brief. I have probably bored you to death aleady. Very reliable and cheap wind-up watches - whether vintage or new will eliminate the need for a new battery every year or two. The power needed to charge all those batteries in the world is astronomical - so this astromonical need of power consumption can be eliminated. There is also the issue of battery disposal and all the inherent environmental issues that arrise from that situation. But that an whole 'nother article. 

Thus I have stated my case albeit briefly:

DO YOUR PART  TO BE ' GREEN" IN A SIMPLE AND EASY WAY - BUY OLD WIND-UP CLOCKS AND WATCHES AND SAVE THE WORLD.

Dave - the clock guy from Dave's Clocks and Stuff