Book Review: Freedom From Oil, The I’s Have It
....Imagination...Innovation...Inspiration
Freedom From Oil: How the Next President Can End the United States’ Oil Addiction, by David Sandalow, was free from the normal bounds of the few books in the new energy genre. It was far from the traditional dry technical and policy wonk content that normally goes with this very complex and serious issue. David Sandalow got out of the box and used his imagination to solve problems and write a book. He created a "novel-approach" to describing the current energy predicament of the United States, and what the President would need to say and do to help the nation crawl out of its energy rut and get up to speed for a successful sprinting finish.
Sandalow takes a very innovative story telling approach mixing real facts and some fiction (although a very traditional political approach in Washington) to create a fascinating view from inside the White House, for which Sandalow has some experience. The reader gets the close-up and personal inside scoop on the research, cooperation, collaboration, compromise, and political risk that it takes in Washington – just to write a speech – much less make new policy. I grew up in Washington area and I have been following energy issues for the past 30 years. I still gained many insights, I was entertained, and I got some needed inspiration from Sandalow’s success in hitting the publishing mainstream with this topic. Public energy illiteracy may be the biggest hurdle standing in the way of Sandalow’s vision for some shock and awe-inspiring Presidential leadership to solve our nation’s energy woes.
Sandalow accumulated and presented an innovative and sobering laundry list of solutions (which included ethanol, biofuels, E85, cellulosic ethanol, and flexible fuel vehicles) the United States would have to implement to make progress towards ending the nation's oil addiction. Some books in the new energy genre pick a favorite technology and ride it hard (e.g., nuclear, hydrogen, fusion, etc.) and/or leave out the consumer or government in the equation. Sandalow throws everything at the problem including the one cleaning the kitchen sink. Telecommuting, smart buildings/traffic/cars/consumers, diplomacy, domestic policy, batteries and biofuels, as well as un-plugging and plug-ins. In typical State of the Union fashion, Sandalow even throws in some bows from the House Chamber balcony by real life people working everyday to kick nation’s oil habit. The footnotes are great, I found it to be a fun and fast read, and very informative. While the primaries are not over, I cast my vote -- David Sandalow for President[ial speech writer].
This book would make a great inaugural gift.
A few other Freedom from Oil book reviews.
http://sustainablog.org/2007/12/09/book-review-david-sandalows-freedom-from-oil/
http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2007/10/18/145634/15
http://www.wired.com/cars/energy/news/2008/01/oil
Burl Haigwood
CFDC
Nice article on David Sandalow. Thank you for mentioning the site. Sandalow accumulated and presented an innovative and sobering laundry list of solutions (which included ethanol, biofuels, E85, cellulosic ethanol, and flexible fuel vehicles) the United States would have to implement to make progress towards ending the nation's oil addiction.
Posted by: Jesmi | March 07, 2008 at 02:03 AM