Date:         Sat, 15 May 2004 13:10:43 -0400
Reply-To:     David Brodbeck <gull@GULL.US>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         David Brodbeck <gull@GULL.US>
Subject:      Re: Diesels on NPR this morning
Comments: To: tmiller <tmiller@VCMAILS.COM>
In-Reply-To:  <40A62F01.5020405@vcmails.com>
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

On Sat, 15 May 2004, tmiller wrote:

> Vanagons on veggie oil don't increase the CO2 in our air.  I can't wait
> for Al Gore to figure out a way to put catalytic converters on
> volcano's.  One eruption puts out more green house gases than all the
> tailpipes have since they were invented!

Sure, but volcanos have been erupting for billions of years...they're part
of the natural carbon cycle, and there's been no increase in eruptions in
the modern era.  The danger is that we've suddenly (over the last few
centuries) started adding more carbon to that cycle.

To use an oversimplified analogy, if you have 20 gal/minute going into a
bathtub from the spout, and 20 gal/minute going out the drain, dumping a
cup of water once an hour will seem like an infintestimally small change.
But if you keep doing it long enough, the tub will overflow.


David Brodbeck, N8SRE
'86 Volvo 240DL wagon
'82 VW Vanagon Westfalia Diesel