Winning Our Energy Independence: An Energy Insider Shows How [Paperback]

S. David Freeman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 7, 2007

Winning Our Energy Independence shares energy solutions from S. David Freeman, a man who has spent his life at the forefront of energy policy. Freeman explains how the sun, wind, biomass, geothermal, and hydrogen resources we have right now can be the fuels that solve energy issues and create a sustainable future for our planet. These alternative energies will heat and cool our homes, run our cars, power our factories, and do all the things that our civilization requires-but only if we make it happen! We have the renewable resources we need-now we simply need the awareness, passion and drive from the people to make sure our politicians and business leaders respond. Winning Our Energy Independence provides action plans for showing us how to influence change.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

WAR. TERRORISM. GLOBAL WARMING. LEAKING NUCLEAR WASTE DUMPS. HIGH OIL PRICES.
We are facing an international energy crisis of unprecedented proportion. The foreign policy of the United States is uncomfortably associated with our dependency on foreign oil. Carbon-based fuels are creating a greenhouse effect that is wreaking havoc around the world. Nuclear power is not only dangerous, but it is also not an economically feasible solution. The earth needs an answer and it needs one fast.
The answer for the energy crisis is in renewable resources. Solar and wind power, ethanol and other biofuels, geothermal energy, hydrogen, and other renewable resources will preserve life as we know it. The United States-indeed, every country in the world-needs to be able to produce, use, and store its own energy. There is no time to delay. The technology exists today to make substantial changes in our energy production and use. Long-time energy insider S. David Freeman challenges the United States and the world to create a high-energy global civilization where each nation has its own homegrown, carbon-free renewable source of energy. It is not a hope or a dream. Freeman explains how the combined action and voice of ordinary people can make a difference and can save the world from destruction.
Freeman has an answer to winning the energy war, and everyone should listen. s. david freeman has had the ear of federal officials since the days of JFK. He helped bring about the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Nixon. He headed the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation's largest nuclear program, under Jimmy Carter. From New York to Los Angeles, Freeman has headed agencies and utilities companies, continually working to make utilities more environmentally safe, more efficient, and more cost-friendly to the customer. He authored Energy: The New Era. He has three children and nine grandchildren. He is currently president of the commission overseeing the Port of Los Angeles and lives in neighboring Marina del Rey.
Jacket design: Grace Cheong, Black Eye Design

From the Back Cover

s. david freeman has had the ear of federal officials since the days of JFK. He helped bring about the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Nixon. He headed the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation's largest nuclear program, under Jimmy Carter. From New York to Los Angeles, Freeman has headed agencies and utilities companies, continually working to make utilities more environmentally safe, more efficient, and more cost-friendly to the customer. He authored Energy: The New Era. He has three children and nine grandchildren. He is currently president of the commission overseeing the Port of Los Angeles and lives in neighboring Marina del Rey.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: Gibbs Smith (September 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423601564
• ISBN-13: 978-1423601562
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #299,436 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Freeman's latest is a good read, December 13, 2007

By 

Jerald Cole "Clean Air Guy" (Long Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Winning Our Energy Independence: An Energy Insider Shows How (Paperback)

"Winning our Energy Independence" is exactly what it purports to be: a series of well-considered opinions and recommendations from a 40-plus year veteran of the U.S. energy industry. As anyone who has dealt with the author in person can attest, Commissioner Freeman doesn't espouse ideas unless they are solidly backed with fact and hard-earned experience. The book logically lays out the problems resulting from our current energy base, including economics, health and environmental issues, and national security. He then leads the reader through a series of suggestions to improve the situation, discussing the pluses and minuses of each technology while avoiding the pitfalls posed by one-size-fits-all solutions.

The book does contain a couple of minor technical errors. For example, the brief description of electrolysis is not quite accurate. There are also a few typographical errors such as kW instead of kWh, but these are minor and most people should recognize them. The book avoids detailed science and statistics in favor of readability. However, for those wanting charts and graphs and other background data, the author has thoroughly referenced his facts chapter by chapter.

The book is written in an easily accessible style, similar to the plain-speak the author is well known for. It should be of interest to and easily understood by a wide range of readers, including policy makers, technologists, students and the general public.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Speaking Truth to Power, January 6, 2008

By 

Jim Harrigan "the dirt man" (Arizona) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Winning Our Energy Independence: An Energy Insider Shows How (Paperback)

"The United States has a lot to learn from the rest of the world."

Bold and true. No one convinced Freeman it is polite to lie in order for America appear good. No one convinced Freeman it is for Americans to drive SUVs everywhere just because they need to express freedom. One can express freedom by farting out loud in a cafeteria, but I wouldn't be proud if I did it. I would be embarrassed. No one convinced Freeman that by holding onto your arrogance and downright stupidity that one shows a measure of authority necessary to keep the world in line. No one convinced Freeman it is necessary for troops to die in Iraq so that their deaths would not be in futility, and that this simpleton logic deserves no further exploration. Freeman is not convinced that America is not above learning. Freeman thinks America will actually benefit from learning. If one is so smart to be beyond all help then don't bother reading this book.

In the last three years there have been many books on the subject of energy independence, and while there is some agreement there are also distinctions. Freeman's positions are pro-Hydrogen, pro-Lithium, and anti-nuclear. Freeman will admit that Hydrogen fuel cells need work, but believes that work here will be worth the effort. I'm not sure how hydrogen fuel cells will work in a place like Phoenix if there are 2 million cars on the road giving off water vapor when it is 120 degrees in the shade. Water vapor emissions will cause an increase in humidity and also increases temperature as it is a strong greenhouse gas until it precipitates. Hydrogen is not ready for the market. Hydrogen needs a good deal of work to make it inexpensive for manufacture and available to the public.

While I like Richardson's plan, I welcome discussion of Freeman as it has become well beyond time to get on with a new energy plan for America. Let's stop taking down the solar panels from the White House and do something right for a change.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Inspring Overview of our Clean Energy Future, January 15, 2008

By 

Geoffrey Holland (Portland, Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Winning Our Energy Independence: An Energy Insider Shows How (Paperback)

This is a terrific book for anyone who is interested in understanding why a clean energy future is not only possible, it is inevitable. We don't need oil, coal, and nuclear. We can get all the energy we need from the sun, the wind, and other limitless renewable sources. Dave Freeman has been an energy executive for nearly six decades. You can take what he says in his book to the bank. A very worthwhile read.