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The interesting thing is I often spend time with my friends who all seem to be called Glen. Let's see there is Glen Fiddich Glen Livet and Glen Dronach. Most of these Glens are quite young let's say 10 to 15 years old!

I doubt that petrol and diesel cars will disappear completely. In perhaps 20 years I would imagine that IC cars will be an enthusiast's hobby. When the car became popular horses didn't disappear. Although diesel and electric trains now dominate train travel you can still travel on a steam train for recreational reasons. I dont think most of us on this forum will have to purchase an EV in our lifetime if we don't want to. The phase-out timetable for Australia is 2035 and this means a ban on the sale of NEW petrol or diesel cars. You could buy a new petrol car in the mid-30s and perhaps run it for 10 years or so although it may be the expensive option.

Distillation works. Home distillation units can be purchased reasonably cheaply. VEVOR Water Distiller Purifier Pure Water Distiller Filters Water Distillation $86. Another possibility is to harvest your own rainwater. I get that you think you should not have to and I do have some sympathy with that idea but to me taking control of the situation is a better way to go. Distilled water never contains fluoride as the distillation process effectively removes fluoride and a host of other contaminants that are harmful to your health. In fact, water distillation is so effective that the process is capable of removing just about anything from water.

There are many things where the science is contradictory. As an example a certain moderate intake of wine daily. There have been many reputable studies suggesting that a couple of glasses of wine a day are beneficial. Over recent times there have also been studies to show that even a moderate intake is bad for you. I have read many of these studies and what I have learned is that it is very difficult to study these things given the numerous confounding factors. I do conclude however that the benefit or harm must quite small otherwise its effects would be easier to detect. When I have a glass or two of my favourite red I accept that I might be marginally improving or marginally harming my health.

Traditional fuel companies are moving into the EV charging business. Oil companies and utilities are buying up all the electric car charging startups The idea that there is a rabid campaign to make people change to EVs in the short term is not really true. I know many countries have set aspirational targets for around 2035. In my view, this is probably not necessary due to the natural uptake of EVs. It will be a long long time before there are no IC vehicles on the roads. These batteries can store electricity when it is cheap and also be in the business of selling power back to the grid. A charging plaza with 258 fast-charging stalls is now a reality, but when will we see these here? Presumably, you don't install 258 fast chargers at a facility if only a few can be used at once. Many other countries are way ahead of us for various reasons. Norway is an interesting example. It is important to note that Norway still exports a lot of oil and is therefore not blameless. I do think however Norway is somewhat of an earlier adopter which in the long run benefits us all. Whilst Norway does not have the vast distances we have in Australia it still shows that some of the criticisms are not justified. What's the EV Charging Infrastructure in Norway Really Like? The world’s most electric city | Future of Cities There are many reasons why EVs are unsuitable for many people at the moment. This will probably not be the case in 10 years. The thing that bugs me is that although there are pros and cons to all new technologies, the anti EV folks are happy to go to quite extreme lengths to attempt to stop or slow down change. Most of this anti-stuff comes from financial self-interest and anxiety over change. The future, even in the shorter term can be hard to imagine. Some years ago when I bought my first PC and modem I used to connect to so-called bulletin boards (with my 28k modem). I think the suggestion that in a few years, most of the world will be connected by a worldwide network and we will carry around in our pockets the means to instantly communicate with someone on the other side of the world would have been hard to imagine.

Tesla crash repairs still far above ICE vehicles, but other EVs near parity: study

To be clear I don't think questioning fluoridation of drinking water is nutty. There are valid questions about dosages and whether or not the decision to ingest fluoride in water should be taken out of the hands of the individual. There are folks around who do however make wild claims about fluoride causing just about every illness you can think of. Most of the studies that I have read that are negative about fluoride talk about dose. I do think that as OME said the "big brother" vibe does upset some people especially because water is such a basic substance. There could be legitimate questions about adding anything to food such as iodine to salt. I wonder if some of the residents of Port Fairy and Portland campaign to get the naturally occurring fluoride filtered out of the water. Anyway, this could become one of those threads and honestly, I don't have much passion for this subject. If folks want to filter out the fluoride out of their water that's fine, I would not disparage it I am not sympathetic to the notion that they should not have to and people who feel they would benefit from fluoride could add it themselves. As always I am open to having my opinion pushed one way or the other by good-quality evidence, especially in epidemiological studies.

I am open to the argument about whether fluoride should be added to the water supply or not. Whilst fluoride like anything else can be toxic in large enough doses this applies to anything. As they say "The dose is the poison" It is reasonable to question its use but there is a lot of nonsense put about by some people. I suspect that many people are more concerned about the addition of fluoride to water rather than the fluoride itself. People I know who are anti-fluoride don't seem to be worried about the fluoride that is in water naturally or for example tea which has high levels. And yet the average life expectancy continues to grow. Look I am not a passionate fluoride advocate however, I have not seen studies to show the ills that some claim. Since not everywhere in the world fluoridates its water and of course folks who drink only rainwater you would think that epidemiological studies would be able to point to adverse outcomes when comparing populations where water is fluoridated compared to those that are not. I think this is a reasonable rational position to take. Anyway, it is one of those subjects that people get passionate about and personally, I will continue to drink water and tea and eat fish etc.

Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral that is in food and in many water supplies (naturally occurring). Port Fairy and Portlands water supply have a level of fluoride between 0.7 and 1.0 PPM this is NOT added but is naturally occurring. I have not seen any credible evidence that fluoride is toxic at the levels it appears naturally or the level that is added to water. Four myths about water fluoridation and why they're wrong

Yep, the phone I had before the one I have now had a replaceable battery. Non-replaceable battery phones have made phones lighter and thinner and also help with dust and water protection however I would suggest most customers would prefer to be able to put a new battery in, I know that that is my preference.

Weight has become more of an issue over the years with modern cars of all types getting chubbier. Near us, a new dealership has opened up selling these monstrosities at over 3000kg. I think there should be a financial penalty for excessively heavy vehicles of any sort. I think range anxiety may abate somewhat as infrastructure improves. Most of us most of the time don't travel long distances daily. This of course is not the case in country areas. Aa the Drive article says SUVs are the most popular cars sold and their sales exceed sedans and hatchbacks. I am not saying weight is not an issue but it is often put forward as a reason why EVs are bad but not applied to other heavier vehicles.

Here is another recent video on battery swap. I think battery swap will be a part of the way we operate. A Nio is designing its cars for battery swap but of course, you do not have to do that. It is a little like a 9kg gas cylinder, you can refill it or swap it.

Probably it is a bit late for that. The legislation has been passed and the timetable set. It is not and probably can not be instant. If a particular company drags its feet, it only takes one company to get a phone on the market with a replaceable battery to corner the market. The consumer wants this and will vote with their feet. It is not like it involves massive development costs. It was not that long ago that phone batteries were replaceable. I say, take the win, pessimism doesn't achieve anything. Newly approved EU Battery Regulation explained

It is not correct to say that there is "no current ability" to recycle EV batteries. Whilst the industry is in its infancy there may not be many batteries recycled (partly because of lack of demand). I posted a video earlier in this or another thread showing in detail the process of recycling valuable constituents. often the EV doomsayer folks like to quote from the past. The fact is that the ability to reuse or recycle anything will always lag behind the product in its earlier days. It is a fact that EV and phone batteries "Can and are being recycled" and the industry is growing. One of the biggest battery recycling plants in the US is up and running Eramet and Suez choose Dunkirk for their electric vehicle battery recycling plant Redwood Materials announces $3.5 billion EV battery recycling plant in South Carolina Glencore plans Europe’s biggest electric car battery recycling plant Ford signs deal with Redwood Materials to recycle EV Batteries Redwood Materials Will Recycle VW EV Batteries I could go on posting links. The fire thing is much exaggerated according to the stats. People get all excited when there is a vehicle fire but tend to not be interested if the vehicle is petrol or diesel-powered. Land/Range Rovers Keep Catching Fires But EVs Are The Problem? The recent fire at Luton Airport car park is now believed to have been started by a diesel Range Rover. But many continue to believe it must have been an EV. If I were worried about fire and purchasing an EV I would probably opt for the less flammable battery chemistry such as the litheum ferrophosfate chemistry. I (I am ashamed to admit) have been in this situation. Although I have not had an incident or accident in 44 years of driving I did badly dent my sons (3 month old) Tesla. The repairs were not a nightmare and in fact no different from any other car. It is always possible to search for the few cases where things go badly. My bro in laws Suzuki Swift engine grenaded quite early on in its expected life. The reality is there are genuine questions to be asked about any technology. Certainly, EVs are not yet the best choice for everyone, perhaps we are in the early adopter stage. Countries like Norway are way ahead and it I think is rational to analyse these countries to see what costs and benefits are being derived and what negative consequences there may or may not be.

At last, a move back to replaceable phone batteries. A new EU law will require all mobile devices to have user-replaceable batteries by 2027. In this episode we take a look at the law, it's consequences and right to repair. EU Just Changed Smartphones Forever

I have Woolworths (Telstra) and it works everywhere my Vodaphone used to work but much cheaper.

NSW public housing solar Over 1,500 social housing properties across NSW were retrofitted with rooftop solar panels in 2021, helping social housing tenants in those properties slash their power bills by up to $1,000 per year.

Often positive things are happening and the pessimists are unaware. https://www.dpie.nsw.gov.au/land-and-housing-corporation/news/slashing-social-housing-power-bills-with-rooftop-solar

https://onestepoffthegrid.com.au/new-scheme-uses-rooftop-solar-grid-renewables-to-slash-social-housing-power-bills/

I agree. Public housing tenants are the last group to be considered when it comes to access to solar rebates etc. This is changing though and I suspect in the next few years rooftop solar will be available to public tenants. Victorian public housing advocates push for solar panel pledge before state election

I totally agree. The uptake is probably going as fast as it reasonably can. The uptake figures are impressive aren't they?

There does not seem to be a problem with the uptake of rooftop solar. The figures I linked to previously show record uptakes of rooftop solar. Whilst insisting that every new build must have solar would be good in my opinion it is just not necessary given the already strong growth in rooftop solar. Stunning leap in rooftop solar PV smashes renewable records across the grid

The installation of solar on new builds is already quite high. Australians are choosing new homes and solar PV in record numbers Nearly 1 In 3 Homes In Australia Covered In Solar Panels

I don't really see why we can't pursue more than one thing at once.

I think the thing with plastic shopping bags is the sheer number that we are using In the US 5 trillion a year.. https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/population_and_sustainability/sustainability/plastic_bag_facts.html It is difficult to just outright ban every single source of plastic, you have to start somewhere. 10 Facts About Single-Use Plastic Bags Americans use 5 trillion plastic bags a year.3 Americans use an average of 365 plastic bags per person per year. People in Denmark use an average of four plastic bags per year.4 It only takes about 14 plastic bags for the equivalent of the gas required to drive one mile.5 In 2015 about 730,000 tons of plastic bags, sacks and wraps were generated (including PS, PP, HDPE, PVC & LDPE) in the United States, but more than 87% of those items are never recycled, winding up in landfills and the ocean.6 About 34% of dead leatherback sea turtles have ingested plastics.7 The plastic typically used in bottles, bags and food containers contains chemical additives such as endocrine disruptors, which are associated with negative health effects including cancers, birth defects and immune system suppression in humans and wildlife.8 It takes 1,000 years for a plastic bag to degrade in a landfill. Unfortunately, the bags don't break down completely but instead photo-degrade, becoming microplastics that absorb toxins and continue to pollute the environment.9 Chemical leachates from plastic bags impair the growth of the world’s most important microorganisms, Prochlorococcus, a marine bacterium that provides one tenth of the world’s oxygen.10 There were 1.9 million grocery bags and other plastic bags collected in the 2018 International Coastal Cleanup.11 In 2014 California became the first state to ban plastic bags. As of March 2018, 311 local bag ordinances have been adopted in 24 states, including Hawaii.12 As of July 2018, 127 countries have adopted some form of legislation to regulate plastic bags.13