Going back centuries alchemists were convinced they could turn base metals into gold, despite none of them being able achieve this, these days we laugh at them for their obvious foolishness and ignorance.
Going forward in time, as machinery and technology advanced, a new breed of people were convinced they could invent a perpetual motion machine, like the alchemists – they failed and today we consider them bonkers.
The madness of so called intelligent people stretches back through history, no doubt the Neanderthals and cave men probably had their share of nutty people who, no doubt, thought they could kill a mammoth by throwing peanuts at it.
So fast forward to today's global insanity from the alleged, sane, elite. Today's madness is the equally impossible task of obtaining 'Net Zero'. The great and the good are convinced the world is warming up and it is all the fault of mankind. Due to their aim to reduce carbon in the atmosphere they are forcing massive change on people globally which in many cases is creating, at best, inconvenience and at worst, great hardship – all in in the cause of an impossible goal just like the alchemists and mad inventors of the past.
Anyone with an ounce of common sense will be able to tell you that the planet, whether mankind is here, or not, is not 'Net Zero and all through the history of the planet the climate has changed without mans influence. We have had both warm and cold periods ever since life first evolved.
We all remember when the Icelandic volcano, Eyafjallajokull (don't try to pronounce it!) erupted in 2010 and the global chaos which followed. Then in 1980 Mount St Helens erupted pushing such vast quantities of ash and other pollutants into the atmosphere the whole planet was affected. I personally remember that summer and one or two after being cold and miserable due to the sun's rays being blocked by the volcano's debris. Currently there is lava and pollutants coming from Iceland again in the Grindavik volcanic activity.
The main pollutants spewing from volcano's the world over, including those such as Mount Etna on Sicily and Vesuvius near Naples, as well as many others around the world, are: sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide and hydrogen fluoride. The world's volcanos' pump out so much of this stuff mankind can't hope to compete.
As part of the mad alchemy of trying to find 'Net Zero', especially here in the UK, across Europe and the USA, life is being made impossible for people who run businesses and who drive cars, especially the less well off who have to drive older cars. The Mayor of London has made lives impossible for the poorest in London and its suburbs with the daily, rip-off ULEZ charge for those who can't afford newer cars and have to drive none compliant older cars.
The irony is, which as politicians and the bureaucracy do everything possible to get older cars off our roads, these older vehicles are probably the most environmentally friendly. When taken into consideration the amount of raw materials and energy used to produce a new vehicle, even more so to produce an electric car, the older a well maintained car gets it becomes ever more environmentally friendly due to not using masses of energy and raw materials to replace it. Most older cars, which are looked after by their owners, will perform just as well when old as when new. Sadly, the environmental alchemists are determined to get these older, environmentally friendly cars, off our roads.
As a driver of a fifteen year old diesel car which performs every bit as well now as when it was new, I care about the environment in what I consider to be a logical way. I am not against wind generated energy as long as it is not subsidised by the taxpayer, I also know the amount of power wind turbines can generate is limited and cannot be relied on, the same goes for solar. However, if these technologies can help generate power then why not use them? It is in the interest of people to attempt to improve and develop this technology but we have to remember it will always be limited and can never be fully relied on.
Like many I am happy to recycle, I worry about the destruction of the Amazon and other rainforests around the world, we need to preserve and protect them. We also need to stop breeding and reduce the global population as there are far too many of us using the world's resources, we should be careful what we do with our discarded plastic bags and other items, these are all sensible worries as my logic goes, but trying to create 'Net Zero' is, like trying to turn base metals into gold or invent a perpetual motion machine – it is today's impossible fantasy.
