this post was submitted on 13 May 2026
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Okay so let me go over this again as I have an idea...
Nation that's struggling with dependency on petroleum and unreliable supply chain turns to renewable energy. The solar energy is clean, reliable, requires little maintenance, and is helping that country become less reliant on foreign petroleum.
If that works for Cuba, a tiny nation with few resources, perhaps it would work in other more wealthy nations also. Perhaps if a nation were, say, reliant on petroleum to the point that they start multiple multinational wars to ensure their own access to oil, costing literally $trillions, it might be cheaper to put some or all of that money into renewable energy. Presumably China will sell their solar panels to whoever's buying, yes? So why wouldn't a larger, more developed country purchase them in great quantity so spending $trillions on military actions in the Middle East would no longer be necessary?
If a country like this has some of their own domestic oil production, wouldn't it be a desirable future to just walk away from the Middle East entirely, let the oil assholes kill each other without our involvement, and run the country for a few decades on sunshine? Use that money to buy solar panels literally by the boatload / container-ship-load (or buy the tech and manufacture them ourselves), and then national security is improved through removing foreign dependencies?
Or is this just crazy talk?
Hi there, I'm definitely not from the CIA, can I have your address please?
(Oh, btw, I just want to have a chat. There definitely won't be any murdering shenanigans).
Now, just take that analysis a little bit further by adding the consideration that those elected to manage the nation aren't actually doing that and wondering why.
I bet it will yield interesting results about whose interests such people really serve.
OR, we could build those solar panels right here in America, and not only relieve the pressure on oil reserves, but kick off a new big American industry, backed by a national energy initiative, backed by tax incentives. There would be lots of new small businesses around the country selling and installing solar, creating thousands of new jobs.
Yes, it's crazy talk because the sane thing is to have a cabal of pedophiles running your country and then bombing poor defenseless countries around the world to distract people from all the money they're stealing.
All oil lobbiests, oil barons, and dipshit right-wingers whose primary source of info is focks nooz, blowroganexperience, and other propaganda outlets: it'd take 30 years to get the infrastructure in place for rEnEwAbLeS!
So what you're saying is if we started during the oil crisis of the 70s, we'd be celebrating 25 years off our dependency on petroleum? If we started at the turn of the millennium we'd already be in the home-stretch toward completion?
The US govt has a responsibility to keep the PetroDollar in tact since Nixon killed the gold standard, otherwise the global dependency on USD is no longer maintained and other currencies have a chance to replace it.
This is currently happening, ofc, with ships crossing Hormuz by paying Yuan instead of Dollars.
Now that UAE has shown other countries how to leave OPEC, USD (read: everyday Americans) might be royallyfucked but at least USA might be able to move away from microplastics and pollution.
It's infuriating how successful the oil companies have been at turning solar vs oil into a fucking culture war.
If you switch to Solar, THE COMMIES WIN.
I know! Oil is just a fiction and we can totally grow crops and fertilize them and make pesticides and plastics and chemicals with sunshine and rainbows which is why the population reached 8 billion by 2000 BC!
Not crazy talk, Australia currently leads with the highest per-capita uptake of solar panels and it’s having a noticeable impact on our overall energy costs:
https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/household-solar-electricity-generation-australian-national-accounts
We actually produce so much excess solar during peak times that households without panels can opt for electricity plans which offer free electricity between midday and 3pm every day (inc. weekends).
We’re also rolling out a heap of household batteries to better help take advantage of this surplus production and offset peak demand times too.
The world is rapidly approaching a post-fossil fuel world; the transition will be slow at first, and then drastic all of a sudden.
Australia is also central to renewables because of the number of articles on grid storage.
Have you even said thank you to the oil companies?!
I've said Fuck You, and that's pretty close.
For what? Helping fertilize crops with synthetic fertilizers? Pshaw, all we need is more wind and puppies!
Good point. They made oil prices so high I bought a Tesla. Thanks guys you really did me a solid, best car ever :D
Out of all EV manufacturers, why tf did u decide to get a Tesla?! Hope you got yourself a used one, at least.
There was a point in time where Teslas really were the only good EV worth talking about.
Unfortunately, that’s arguably still true, in the us. Given the current administration’s desire to roll back the calendar, outside EVs have been effectively banned, and many of the choices we were finally about to get were cancelled.
If I were looking for a new EV today, Tesla is still by far the most compelling choice available to me.
I bought it back in 2022ish, before Elon's association with Republican politics.
That said- I'd buy another one in a heartbeat, new or used. The self driving feature is light years ahead of anything else. And unlike other manufactures (looking at GM) they don't sell their customers driving habits to insurance companies. The security is actually pretty good unlike most automakers who institutionally don't understand computers so they outsource most of it to their suppliers like Bosch, Delphi, etc.
If that's your best car ever, you haven't driven many cars.
It's a 2023ish car so pre-refresh. The suspension is stiff and it lacks a lot of luxury creature comforts. But it's FUN AS HELL to drive, tons of chargers everywhere, the nav system is top notch, and the self driving system is light years ahead of anyone else's. Plus they don't sell their customers data like GM and some others or show ads on the display like Stellantis.
Fun to drive? I've never experienced that. You drive a car. They're all pretty much the same. I never take it above about 75. I wouldn't call that fun. What's fun about it?
Yes but what about the oil companies’ profits? Have you even considered their feelings?
Or said country simply likes killing people around the world and oil is a convenient excuse.
But like diversified not controlled by a single entity, let's see how the shareholders feel about that first.
But what would the shareholders of oil and MIC companies do if we stopped spending that money on oil wars? Won't someone please think of the shareholders!?