Originally Posted by
Mobile 155
It would have been shorter if you just said, no, practicing what I preach isn't necessary.
Who said I don't practice what I preach? What makes you think that?
How many people do you know that believe like you do?
What does 'belief' have to do with it? How does what people believe influence the reality of how things like heat/energy and other natural resources, which are also economic commodities, work? And, before you answer, please considering moving this discussion to P&R before mods get upset.
Have you added any layers of foam? Do you have a roof full of solar panels?
I live in a pretty warm area, so I don't really need heat anyway, but at some point I want to install solar panels to run a chest freezer. I just have to figure out how to achieves the start up voltage needed each time the compressor comes on. If I didn't already have a grid connection, though, and I was building a cottage to live in, I'd invest in a solar panel before paying to have a new electrical connection to the grid installed.
Have you explained to anyone that it is good for them to walk 3 hours to get medical help.
Many people only want sympathy and not advice when they present themselves as in-need. I had a lady come to me one day asking for money for a bus pass with the story that her children needed medical help. I told her politely that there's no way to discern lies from honesty when people ask for money, so I make it a rule not to give money but I suggested that she try to walk them if possible and if they were too sick to walk, their condition probably warranted calling an ambulance.
Have you ever tried to explain to someone that children that are getting cold or too hot simply need to know that it isn't a problem for mammals?
Not only that, I explain that children are conditioned to be more vulnerable to temperature change if they aren't adequately acclimated to the seasons by spending time exercising outdoors regularly.
Just how large is your circle of friends and do any believe like you do?
Sure, many people I talk to understand the value of natural living. We talk about how crazy people are to constantly fight against the natural temperatures with artificial climate control systems. We talk about how organic lifestyles support the body's natural immunities and coping mechanisms, which are our natural defense and healing abilities.
Have you ever gone to live like some of the people I am talking about have Lived? If not how do you know what they need to stay cool.
Because shade is universal. Even the bible mentions shade in the story of Jonah, at the end. I don't say this to preach religion, but as a historical example of ancient knowledge about shade cooling.
If you don't have a roof full of solar panels how do you expect someone in Africa or India living in a house they built by themselves to have them to solar change a stove?
By promoting mass production of such products by popularizing them in middle class markets where people can afford to invest in expanding their production with higher sales. The more affordable, efficient technologies are produced and bought for the global middle class, the more access the global poor will get to them as second-hand and surplus production items.
Do you even know how many watts a electric stove takes? Do you know how many solar panels it takes to make 1000 to 3000 watts? No don't answer, I can guess. You are not a doer it seems.
Yes, electric stoves, ovens, water cookers, microwaves, etc. are intense electrical appliances. A 200W solar panel running for 4 hours on a sunny afternoon could store up 800wh of electricity, which could power a 1500w heating element for about a half hour. Another solution might be to design a pressure-cooker that sits within a solar oven, nested in a hole in the ground for insulation, which could rise to pressure-temperature by focusing several mirrors onto it.
Many people don't think of such solutions because they haven't learned to see the resources around them and use their imaginations creatively to plan innovations and refine their efficiency to something they could apply. The only reason I don't build many of the ideas I come up with is because it would be a waste of money for things I already have, but if you were in the business of assisting poor people with an imperative to spend as little money as possible, you would think of such solutions. Unfortunately, the programs that are funded are usually overfunded in the interest of filtering the money through to businesses that provide expensive solutions and then pat themselves on the back for saving people from their poverty, when they should also consider that they put the people in a state of dependency by diverting them from more efficient/affordable solutions that they could manage more independently of external help. But, again, this keeps getting into P&R territory, so why don't you ever want to discuss things there instead of here?