There is a reason those homes are on the renovation shows! In the 50's, 60's and 70's, homes were built with little to no insulation and single pane windows. Most built since then are insulated with dual pane windows.

Migrate them all the Europe then!

When I first read how high your usage was, I couldn't believe it. Now that I see it is 4000 square foot, no wonder! That is almost 3 times the size of mine. How many kids you have, 12? Of my neighbors, I can't think of one house (except mine) that has less than 4 people living there.

Communal yards wouldn't work where I live because everyone has a dog.

Well, in Southern California we have these little things called Earthquakes that effectively prevent one from using brick as a construction material.

It is supposed to be 102 F today in most of Southern California.

In Southern California, they not only tried hard to kill it, they actually suceeded.

Not everyone has basements, let alone unfinished ones. Adding 3 additional bedrooms to such a house does require you to rob a bank.

I wish I had a basement.

The cheapest LED's that I have found for 40 watt equivalents is $80. That is about 40 times more expensive than CFL.

Here you go... http://www.ccrane.com/lights/led-light-bulbs/geobulb/ A steal at only $120 each for 60 watt equivalents.

But why is that? Why does the "artist" community get paid differently than anyone else? Sure, you say, it is in the contract. But no other industry would even consider putting something like that in a contract, so why does this "artist" industry? I am a civil engineer. I get paid to design the building. Once the design is done, my pay is done. I would love to get paid everytime someone looks at the building, or takes a picture of it, or goes inside. So, get a contract that states that? Find me an engineering firm on this planet that pays its employees that way. So, why do writers, artists, actors, etc get paid that way?

I have often wondered why the "artistic" community insists on getting paid differently from everyone else. Most industries, you get paid for the work you do. For some reason, "artists" insist on getting paid forever for the work they did. I am a civil engineer, I get paid to design the building. When the design is done, my pay is done. I wish I could get paid everytime someone looks at the building, takes a picture of it, or even goes inside. Why is a book, song, painting, illustration, screenplay, article, etc any different?

"And police officers are paid by my taxes. They dont need more revenue from stupid speeding tickets or red-light cameras." Then you are very uninformed. A simple google search will show you that revenue from tickets (and drug seizures) form a large part of the operating revenue for local police departments. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23710970/ is an article about Citys removing red light cameras because they worked too well and the revenue dropped.

I would place the blame entirely on the City's police force. I know for sure if the local police in my home town found out about people doing 50 in a 25 (School Zone speed limit) they would have half the force there ticketing people left and right. That is a huge cash cow your local police force is passing up.

And Bush, a "small government" conservative expanded the size and scope of the federal government more than any recent President. I was frequently called un-American for not supporting our "war time" President. Will those same people call themselves un-American for not supporting our "war time" President following the inauguration?