hi freefall and bill,
ff .... the point of that detuning was significantly the life of the engine and parts. drano is not the answer ... as if there was a single 'the answer' ... bill is correct with that emphasis. the social production of energy v individual is the political and conceptual issue in this case but it requires comprehensive and historical analysis. i admire your experimental efforts and i do many myself since i've chosen a simple, low monied lifestyle. hydrogen will be in the mix of our systems some way. one of my first public installations in the early 70's was a piece called 'hydrogen economy'.
you're both right about population but the consequences and causes of attendant problems are not well served by 'sound bite' analysis. as you may guess, i'm in the camp that says birth rates change / reduce generally as social [not simply 'individual'] realizations of material security increase life expectancies. the implication of this is that the most likely way to generally enjoy the rich earth is to be sure that everyone, no matter what their ideological bent, is well fed, housed, informed and cared for. this is how you all would treat your families and i always ask that we take that ethic and apply it universally.
fear mongering for economic benefit and social control is the most effective political tool in the propagandists' armamentarium. our willing promotions of 'wedge issues' and black and white generalizations amounts to carrying the water for exactly the folks who many on this list seem to object to.
bill's clever variations on jonathan swift's 1729 essay, 'a modest proposal' ..... kill 'em and eat 'em .... contains the hobbesian projection of leviathan and the 'red of tooth and claw' concept of nature. 'threats' projected instrumentally about population and the 'unwashed masses' have been used for a very long time. the barbarians are at the gate? i'm more of a pogo fan .... for those too young to remember .... 'we have met the enemy, and he is us'.
returning to metros .... if you all had a simple little plug in, trailer mounted, electric 'pusher' that would horse ['cart before the horse' in this case] your car down the road respectably and safely, would you use it? would it work?
guns or butter ..... or do we continue to imperially demand the whole pie?