Randwick,
Real change in society requires... change. For as long as we rely on grid connected/centralised electricity generating (again and I will not hesitate to throw in the disclaimer that this ignores 64% of the sources of global GHG emissions) we will remain facing transmission and distribution losses.
And base load can be met via a combination of sustainable biomass, solar, solar thermal, wind and tidal power. Energy conservation and efficiency, and DECENTRALISED domestic power, are paramount to a sustainable future.
http://www.melbourne.foe.org.au/documents.htm

If real world investment is based on growth and potential, it's renewables all the way.

http://www.votenuclearfree.net

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....... To MichaelK.
about the Bushehr reactor , as far as I know ,the Russians are holding back the Bushhehr fuel even though the reactor is complete since six months at least
, officially about money , unofficially for fear of loosing control of the situation .
This is the last serious news I've heard of it
http://en.rian.ru/world/20070406/63236781.html
If you have details , please send them , I'm following this one with deep interest

Atom1 ,
yes this is the crux of the matter , in a centralised society , massive units make sense to feed a grid
the type of lifestyle has only the external trapping of democracy ,it is in fact a technocracy run for the elites
with a consumption level guarantying the acquiescence of the masses , some sort of bribe
If one want to go off grid , then the power production is less rigid ,
but the politics and economics not necessarily better ,
it would have to be tried , with a certain amount of probable failures , the price of experimentation

I believe in the overwhelming importance of the flows of energy in a society ,
it shape and dictate its forms , goals and needs , people must submit to its laws

The great age of carbon will end soon enough , nuclear is not a long term solution either ,
but can be useful as a stepping stone , toward what is the question .
If we mess up we will fall back into the maws of darkness , never to rise again ,
the available resources will have been squandered in a couple of centuries .

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According to open sources, ATOM1, uranium to Iran had been supplied till the very recent days of August-2007
http://www.utro.ru/articles/2007/08/09/670338.shtml

No clear information of amounts ALREADY supplied is being provided but Iranian officials assertions that 100 kg is available only.

And this article does not cover sources of Kazakhstan and other CIS-states as well as amounts shifted under confidential agreements.

I just thought that in terms of nuclear weapon, it is extremely dangerous to have the nuclear deal with India.

First of all, India with its Islamic background is a potential Islamic extremism foster.

Another reason is India is producing missile which can reach US.

Hopefully, India will not be another Iraq, which US supported in 1980's to against Iran, because US is gonna support India to again China.

However, China is actually becoming an actual capitalism country and the majority of Chinese, which is Han Nation, has not invaded other country for more than 500 hundred years. Furthermore, Chinese seems really interested in business and earning money.

Please read the article written by a Canadian correspondent, http://www.ericmargolis.com/archives/2007/08/happy_birthday_1.php

Thanks for the link , MichaelK , no movement on this one basically , the reactor hasn't been loaded yet ,
so it's wait and see
if the Irannians have 100Kg at 5% enrichment ,it's not nearly enough
under the deal the Russians would get back the spend fuels rods , so no plutonium either

Mark.elista , I totally agree that supplying yellow cake to India would be , immoral ,dangerous , bad economics and terrible diplomacy
but India can hardly be called an Islamic state and I doubt very much if their Agni3 missile can reach anyone of note but Pakistan and China
the Asian links were Russia-India and Russia-China ,
The Russians attempted a reconciliation India-China and thus an Asian triangle ,it did not quite got off the ground and the Indian government instead got close to the U.S. last year , the nuclear treaty and the promised delivery of nuclear fuel are their reward , John Howard is only doing what he is told
the Canadians can be upset about India , they gave them a Canadian designed reactor and the Indian made a bomb with it , behind their back in spite of all the signed promises

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Atom1

"And base load can be met via a combination of sustainable biomass, solar, solar thermal, wind and tidal power. "

Why did I waste time and energy getting a degree in Electrical Engineering with all that hard work studying maths and physics and work for 10 years on design of power stations when I could have just listened to your wisdom. And those websites which you recommend are so much easier to follow than those difficult technical papers text books and journals covered with mathematical equations.

Sigh, if only I had my life again. So much easier.