I could never understand what the big deal was. "Just put a windmill on your land!" I would tell my uncle.
He could get paid every month, use his heart's desire of windmill-harnessed electricity, and then sell what's left to the electric company. Not too shabby.
Plus, these windmills are so trippy to look at. They are futuristic and larger than life. You feel like maybe you are navigating another planet when you run into one... or a thousand. Was I missing something?
Yes!
Last week, for the first time in my life, I saw the beautiful state of Wyoming. Sadly, it was covered in windmills.
This progressive step in clean energy is stoking Greens and libertarians alike. But, windmills, as rosy as they seem, have become a thorn in my side.
Imagine rolling up along the countryside, holding your breath to gaze upon the next mystic vista that haunts so many parts of America, and seeing windmills loitering around the mountaintops.
This was the gripe Amish people had when electricity shat out a web of power lines that stuck to the roads, the trees, and the homes of their neighbors. Thing is, we barely recognize the power lines now. But, that's not because the times have changed. It's because we've changed.
As a Former Citizen, I don't want to change in a way that makes me mindless to the electric clutter that will soon invade our horizons.
Here's to my uncle for having the sense to see into the future, far beyond this out-dated windmill fiasco.
There must be some better-looking electric power up ahead. Am I dreaming?
Photo by Liz Lux
Ahh, a question of design. This is where i can chime in. What if they were more like the old Dutch wooden windmills? That might make them more charming.Personally, I think the windmills in your pic are sleek and beautiful, but they are huge.
The problem is having too many in the wrong places. I suppose the answer is to keep them in isolated areas, and please, God, not on Mount Rushmore or near the Grand Canyon.
I don't know - the alternative (smog, post-apocalyptic post-peak oil wasteland) would likely be less aesthetically pleasing. The pic you provide is actually quite beautiful (though perhaps this is due to the skill of the photographer).
But what if the alternative was something else? Well-hidden horizontal solar panels, perhaps.