This Cartoon Perfectly Encapsulates the Limited Usefulness of Wind and Solar

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words, and this cartoon definitely fits the bill.

The next time someone delivers a sermon to you on the virtues of wind and solar power, ask them this one easy question: “Do you dry your laundry on a clothesline, or do you use a dryer?”

If they use a dryer, ask them why. After they’ve explained the reasons why they prefer their dryer, kindly inform them that, in Minnesota, their dryer is powered by electricity, 39 percent of which was obtained by burning coal, 23 percent came from nuclear power plants, 17 percent from wind, and 15 percent was generated by burning natural gas.

We use appliances like dryers, that run on electricity largely generated from fossil fuels and nuclear generators, because they dry clothes faster and because they can operate under any weather conditions.

Hopefully you can use this cartoon as a powerful analogy that helps people understand that they value the on-demand services provided by dispatchable power sources like coal, nuclear, and natural gas far more than they may realize.