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We are looking for an across-the-board solution for our present exorbitant consumption of gasoline and it seems as though there is none, at least for the present. We are looking at Ethanol additive to our present gasoline formulas, but this will only give us better miles per gallon and of course, much cleaner bi-products with its use.

Ethanol becomes a temporary fix…at best. The reason, of course is the need for the corn base sugars(and other similar sugar and starch crops) to produce it. It is a simple deduction that it will eventually begin to deplete the food stock of our nation and also hurt our exports of these grains. We could, with the anticipated increase in need of our corn crop, grow the extra acreage that
would be needed to meet any anticipated needs. We must keep in mind the amount of labor that would be required to accomplish this task. The question remains…

Will the Ethanol approach keep the price below our present gasoline prices?

All in all, we must accept the fact that we will not be able to have our gas and eat our corn muffins too. There are also other crops which can be used to derive the Ethanol fuel, such as soybeans, sugar beet, raw sugarcane, etc.. The fact still remains…the choice will be gas for our automobiles and along with this will eventually come a vast depletion of one or more of our key domestic and export crops. It does not mean that this scenario will eventually come to be, but without other renewable energy fuels developed in tandem, such as the Hydrogen based fuel cell to assist the Ethanol fuel approach, this could lend itself to some key food staple shortages.

Will You Buy a Solar Powered Car In The Future?

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The final question may be…”Do we prefer wheels beneath our feet, or food in our stomachs.” Common sense tells us that at this point in time, we must proceed with great caution. Granted, the very large south American country of Brazil has embarked on their Ethanol program for approximately a decade now, with fairly good results and have enjoyed the weaning from foreign oil. Will it ever be 100% remains to be seen.

Solar energy is one possible approach being tinkered with to produce Hydrogen in order to power our future power plants and it is hoped that electricity, which now helps to deplete our fossil fuels will help us to deliver the fuel needed to produce power for advanced “Fuel Cells” being developed to power the automobiles and trucks, etc. of the future.

Will You Switch Your Home To Solar and Wind Power In The Future?

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• Solar and Wind Power Cost To Much
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Unfortunately, producing Hydrogen by using solar energy electricity is very inefficient. This being said, solar energy is fully renewable and therefore must be considered. Along with the Hydrogen fuel from Solar approach comes recent announcements of some reakthroughs holding great promise using Solar to economically produce the hydrogen needed for fuel cells for both the automobile and our industrial needs and not using up all of our food resources in the process.

Should Hydropower Be Used as a Green Energy Source?

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Slowing economy, oil prices help send Dow into 358-point tailspin

U.S. stocks tumbled, sending the Dow Jones industrial average to its worst June since the Great Depression, as record oil prices, credit-market write-downs and a slowing economy threatened to extend a yearlong profit slump.

The Dow dropped 358.41 points, more than 3 percent, to close at 11,453.42 - its lowest finish since Sept. 11, 2006.

Investors contended with the barrage of bad news that also included warnings of trouble in the key financial, automotive and high-tech industries:

* General Motors Corp., the largest U.S. automaker, plunged the most in three years as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. advised selling the stock, and crude rose by $5 a barrel.

* Citigroup Inc. led the KBW Bank Index to an almost 10-year low as Goldman said the lender may report an $8.9 billion second-quarter charge and cut its dividend.

* Research In Motion Ltd., maker of the BlackBerry, posted its biggest drop since 2001 on concern competition with Apple Inc.’s iPhone is reducing earnings.

* Oil futures shot past $140 for the first time after the head of OPEC predicted the price of a barrel of crude could rise well over $150 this year, and Libya said it may cut oil production.

That increases the odds that gasoline prices, which crossed a nationwide average of $4 a gallon weeks ago, will extend their advance and that goods and services across the economy will get ever more expensive.

“Most investors are going to sit on the sidelines until they’re more certain the sharks have left the waters and it’s safe to go back in,” said Bruce McCain, the Cleveland-based head of investment strategy at Key Private Bank, which oversees about $30 billion.

All the bad news overshadowed a report by the National Association of Realtors that sales of existing homes edged up in May for only the second time in the past 10 months.

It also wiped out any positive impact from the Federal Reserve’s widely expected decision Wednesday to leave interest rates unchanged.

And it drove home anew how much U.S. companies stand to be hurt by the prolonged housing slump, the credit crisis and the soaring price of oil.

The great fear on Wall Street has been that rising prices and worries about their finances will force Americans to curb spending and reinforce the economic decline.

That fear was backed up by the latest reading on the gross domestic product. The Commerce Department said the economy grew at a 1 percent annual rate in the first quarter - a slight improvement from earlier estimates but still anemic.

The tale of the tape:

* The Nasdaq composite index sank 79.89, or 3.3 percent, to 2,321.37, its worst loss since January.

* The Standard & Poor’s 500 index plunged 38.82, or 2.9 percent, to 1,283.15, its biggest drop in three weeks.

* All 10 industry groups in the S&P 500 retreated at least 1 percent as Nike Inc. said U.S. earnings dropped and Oracle Corp. predicted the slowest sales growth since 2006, adding to concern that consumers and businesses are cutting back as the economy expands at the weakest pace in five years.

* The Dow has slumped 9.4 percent this month, its worst June since an 18 percent tumble in 1930 during the Great Depression.

* All 30 companies have posted losses in the month as oil surged, the unemployment rate jumped to the highest since 2004, and concern grew that global financial firms will add to $400 billion of subprime-related write-downs.

OPEC President Chakib Khelil was quoted as telling a French television station that oil could rise to between $150 and $170 per barrel this summer before pulling back later in the year.

That and a falling dollar helped send light, sweet crude as high as $140.39 and to a record settlement of $139.64 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Staff writer James Paton contributed to this report.

Four factors that drove the market

Oil

Oil futures shot above $140 Thursday before settling to a record $139.64 close after OPEC’s president said crude prices could rise well above $150 a barrel this year and Libya said it may cut oil production.

Automotive

General Motors Corp., one of the 30 stocks that compose the Dow industrials, sank to its lowest level in more than 30 years, after a Goldman Sachs analyst cut his rating on the stock to “sell.”

Financial

Citigroup Inc. fell sharply after an analyst placed a “sell” rating on the stock and warned investors to expect less from the brokerage sector in an uneasy economic climate.

Technology

Technology bellwethers Oracle Corp. and BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. made the tech sector one of the steepest decliners after issuing disappointing forecasts.

What they’re saying

“Investing is a marathon. You should not approach it with a sprinter’s mentality. This is how opportunities are created. A consumer-driven recession is something we haven’t had in a long time. You want to make sure you own companies that will come out of this recession stronger.

Vitaliy Katsenelson director of research Investment Management Associates

“The CBOE volatility index was up 13 percent today, which shows there was some serious fear on Wall Street, but at 23 it is still a long way from the 30s it traded at in January and again in March, which may mean the markets have further to fall in the short term.”

Fred Taylor principal at Northstar Investment Advisors

“Oil may be the single factor that ends up tipping the U.S. into recession. More pressure on the consumer is the last thing the banks need right now. The good news is that all these events have been known for a while, so the market may be close to discounting them.”

Greg Denewiler Denewiler Capital Management

“Most investors are going to sit on the sidelines until they’re more certain the sharks have left the waters.”

Bruce McCain head of investment strategy at Key Private Bank

“We’ve been saying for over a year that the emperor has no clothes, and today the market woke up to that. The weak dollar, skyrocketing oil and food costs, combined with the collapsing credit markets, will crush corporate earnings far worse and far longer than many predicted. Solid companies will be unfairly beaten down. This may present the buying opportunity of a lifetime for savvy investors.”

Jeff Wilson Wilson Advisory Group president

“The greater question for investors is what is the health of the economy? It’s clear it is not good, and the chances the economy simply has a bad cold is losing credibility. Goldman Sachs downgraded General Motors and Citigroup today and did so for good reasons.”

Todd Gervasini Wakefield Asset Management

“It’s another ugly day. Until we get through another round of disclosures and through earnings season, the safest place is on the sidelines.”

James Dunigan PNC Advisors chief investment officer

“It’s the end of the quarter, oil is up and you’ve got a continued bashing of financials. Plenty of fuel for the fire.”

David Heupel portfolio manager at Thrivent Financial

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