It’s a freaking WINDMILL!

[sparkindarkness]

The NIMBYs are out in force again and it really makes me wish I had a ready supply of axes to run around the countryside with merrily chopping at anyone wearing tweed.

See, they’re always trying to put wind farms in our area (“why oh why are we persecuted!?” scream the NIMBYs. Because it’s freaking WINDY here, you muppets. We have a nice, strong prevailing wind.) and a group of people have gathered together as “dedicated environmentalists” to stop it.

Yes, that’s right. They even lurk on corners with clipboards asking you to sign petitions to stop “hideous industrial buildings polluting our pristine wilderness.” They’re talking about wind turbines.

These hideous polluting buildings are WINDMILLS. White, elegant WINDMILLS. These are polluting industrial buildings? Because I think they’re pretty.

But, y’know what, let’s look at our options here, shall we?

Option 1: We give up on the whole electricity thing, it’s not like we need it right?
Option 2: Pretty pretty windmilll
Option 3: Coal fired power plant. You can have it in your back garden - because that's better right?

Comments

[being-here.livejournal.com]

Turbines are so elegant. They amazed me the first time i saw them. I would love to have them near me!

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

They're soooooo pretty. I love them :)

[brownkitty.livejournal.com]

I'm not a fair advocate. My husband just researched to find out whether we could literally put a windmill in our back yard. (Not enough room for proper anchoring and such. Damn and blast.)

If they want to stop hideous industrial buildings polluting their pristine anything, why aren't they picketing coal plants? Manufacturers of any sort? Anything having to do with automotive travel? For that matter, why are they using the electricity from the sources they despise?

::pries hypocrite rant button up, climbs down from soap box, tells choir that they can go home and the preaching is over::

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

Ah but coal power plants aren't HERE. They're in another patch of nature, not their's. Because they're NIMBIES!

[tinimaus.livejournal.com]

Northern Germany is absolutely sprinkled with them. I think they are quite pretty.

And if I hear the phrase 'spoiling our glorious British countryside' once more, I'm going to vomit. Having half of it under salt water is not spoiling it much worse?

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

They are, so much

And it's not like we're talking pristine forests, we're talking farm land and tamed fields. It is sio much better than the alternatives

[suryaofvulcan.livejournal.com]

Yes, yes, yes! I'm amazed to find someone who actually agrees with me on this. A phalanx of tall, elegant, white windmills all turning in the sunshine is a truly magnificent sight.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

Exactly! They're beautiful and so much better than other power plants

[cuglas.livejournal.com]

A motorcycle dealership in my town just built a huge new facility and showroom and repair shop. They put one of those tall white windmills in when they built it. It doesn't look bad and it's not loud. I really like it. I now think that every new commercial building should have one.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

It's a great idea - I think all new commercial buildings should and all new houses should have solar pannels on the roof for that matter

[solid-squid.livejournal.com]

While I don't entirely agree that a wind farm is all that elegant (one, yes, but a wind farm has somewhat more than one and is less pretty because of it), it is *far* nicer than most types of power plants.

Is there any way you could counter picket them? Maybe with a survey that mentions the negative effect that acid rain caused by coal power plants has on the pristine wilderness and how wind turbines could help solve this problem?

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

As far as alternativers go they really are the best

We're already getting our own petitions, especially near them to make it clear how ridiculous they are

Actually some people are doing a mock "sign up for more coal power plants, want global warming?" And then point at them "sign there!"

[solid-squid.livejournal.com]

There's also tidal power and wave power, since the uk is an island. Wave power is more viable on the east coast though, as the channel between ireland and the mainland usually makes the sea somewhat calmer. Wind is the most viable across the board though, you're right.

On the up side for wind power, Donald Trump had his planning permission refused for his big golf project in Scotland. He'd effectivly been blackmailing the local council into cancelling an off-shore wind farm project that had been in development since before he had submitted his request, saying that he didn't want to build a resort of the wind farm was there. Hopefully the building of it can go ahead now

[suryaofvulcan.livejournal.com]

the channel between ireland and the mainland usually makes the sea somewhat calmer

Well, apart from the Severn Bore - it's been estimated that alone could provide 5% of the UK's energy requirements.

[yuuago]

I think they're pretty too. :)

... And these people are stupid. They need to be whacked upside the head with fishes.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

I don't have big enough fishes *sigh*

[fadethecat.livejournal.com]

Windmills are absolutely gorgeous, especially in large quantities. They make places look like they're living In The Future, if still sans personal jetpacks.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

see? shiny and evocative of jetpacks! What's not to love

[fadethecat.livejournal.com]

The continuing lack of actual jetpacks, that's what!

But besides that, nothing.

[phurie-dae.livejournal.com]

"Polluting our pristine wilderness"

But...but...they're for the GOOD of the environment...ANTI-pollution...I...

People make my brain hurt.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

People are so v3ery very depressing
Don't you just hate it when people hijack good causes for their own selfishness

[dontkickmycane.livejournal.com]

Goodness me. Don't even get me started. I'm a pretty die-hard environmentalist myself and if someone wanted to put a windmill in my back yard I'd ask 'how soon can you do it?'

And they are pretty!

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

Exactly, we're told over and over and over that we need to fix this NOW and we have NIMBYS quibbling over windmills? How are we ever going to woprk against global warming in these conditions?

[kirylyn.livejournal.com]

as Bender would say

Bite my shiny metal ass

bunch of luddities!!

WIND power rocks!!

so does Solar power

so when they shove a petition in your face, ask them if they WANT to go back to the pea-soup fogs?

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

Ah, but they like technology - so long as it's nowhere near them because they're rich and posh and don't have to deal with that kind of thing, right?

Aye, windmill on every gable, solar pannel on every roof!

[polarbee.livejournal.com]

Owie. My brain! You broke it!

*mumbles* It's too early for this amount of idiocy.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

They broke it first!

I have yet to find a time of day that makes their idiocy palatable. But early morning is a hard hard time

[seryan.livejournal.com]

Environmentalism my ass. I'd rather have a wind farm nearby than a coal plant. What they're really picketing against is change.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

It;s basic selfishness using some greenwashing

Yep, some people just want the world to remain stagnat. I never understand them

[tanarill.livejournal.com]

What does NIMBY stand for? Aside from idiot, I mean.

Because it takes a couple hundred square feet that you could otherwise farm to put up a harvester of one of the least environmentally harmful ways of producing power on the planet . . .

How about whales? I know technically they are mammals, but could you make an exception and slap someone with one?

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

Not In My Back Yard. They're happy for bad things to happen - so long as they only happen to other people.

I know, it's just incredible how thye can object to something so... inherently non-objectionable. It;s like hearing people object to kittens

I think it is the only appropriate response, though it's going to do my back in

[lilisonna.livejournal.com]

I will point out that at least over there you have folks actually trying to put the things in and get power from them.

Us? We still <3 our coal and smog and oil. Wind farms are dangerous! And they kill birds. And um, yeah. Other bad things. Coal is better!

[thisdaydreamer.livejournal.com]

I think the NIMBY folks are afraid of potential pollution and lowering of property values.

But then, I'm feeling a bit bitter.

[a-roar-a.livejournal.com]

what twats! I personally live just down the hill from a vast quantity of wind turbines, they are absolutely loverly, don't make any discernible noise, and after a rather amusing hike in search of piles of dead birds (the only argument I have ever heard against them) that resulted in not a single carcass being found, I have come to the conclusion that they are by far one of the best technologies to date. Of course I live in the occasionally sensible portion of the US that gets something like 80%-90%+ of it's electrical needs met through renewable sources and not a single ounce of coal (our vice is a touch of nuclear energy). ::passes you a sturgeon, as we don't have haddock::