But even with RE sources, the 'ease' of which it arrives may be taken for granted: solar panels do their work silently on the background, hydro or wind turbines also do their job without your interference (as long as they work).

To really start appreciating the value of a 'watt', generate the energy yourself (e.g. bicycle generator). When cycling for fun on my bike genny, I was amazed how much work it takes to generate just a few lousy watts, just enough for a 40W telly and a small CFL lamp...

And to think that wind & solar provide all that energy for free (to extract it though will cost you!), just for the taking....

I wonder how much longer it will take for various governments to start taxing people based on the amount of PV panels they have, or the size/height of your windgenny.

But hey, once governments realize something is taxable, perhaps we may face fewer restrictions :-)