Reid: Coal & Oil are Making Us Sick
Senate majority leader points out that solar energy is only considered three times as expensive as coal because no one factors in all the hidden costs of coal & other hydrocarbons.
And imagine, they are fighting major wars and planning more wars in order to get more of the poison out of the ground!
I wouldn't sink a lot of money into that beach front home if I were you.
And news that seems as though it is out of science fiction flashes on our television screens. No ice in the arctic!
"Experience keeps a dear school, but fools will learn in no other." - Benjamin Franklin
posted by Juan Cole @ 7/01/2008 01:18:00 PM
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4 Comments:
Good for Reid, then, because I concluded that it was somehow against the Law to factor in hidden costs in analyzing our economy, except when doing so allows right wingers and libertarians to pursue "takings" lawsuits.
A good portion of the entire U.S. "defense" budget consists of controlling the international oil trade and who produces, ships, and receives it, so probably that should be factored into petroleum / gasoline prices domestically.
I live in Nevada and don't care for Reid at all. He's another in a long-line of wimpy democrats who rarely finds the backbone to openly fight the republicans.
However, Reid HAS consistently fought and voted against the plan to establish the hyper-toxic Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Depository in Nevada. The overwhelming majority of Nevada residents do not want that poisonous garbage stored here so I will give Reid credit for resisting that project (even though the mountain has been hollowed out already and is prepared to receive nuclear waste shipments). So Reid is to be commended for recognizing that we must live in a manner that's more in harmony with the earth's natural processes and stop, ah, how do I say this politely -- defecating in our own nest.
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It's good that Reid puts an emphasis on our well-being and that includes the well-being of our world. Health is priceless.
Where dollars and cents are concerned, there are very many costs that are not reflected in the price of fossil fuel energy. The economists refer to these as externalities. In plain terms, firms--businesses--push these costs back into the economy. There is nothing invisible about these hands in the marketplace. Pushback about environmental regulation, toxic site cleanup, etc are concrete examples. Then there is the cost of securing access to oil--the Iraq War being a prime example. Then we have all the subsidies and tax breaks and the corruption that goes with that plus the distortion in economic priorities. The price is kept artificially low for the consumer who is then taxed or otherwise charged for the costs. You pay for all this one way or another.
I could not quickly find current estimates that try to add everything up although I could find estimates for various aspects. However, if you were to include these costs using sound engineering economics, the cost of solar and other forms of alternative energy looks pretty attractive and you get the non-quantifiable benefits related to health, the environment and reduction in war plus possible removal of some major sources of corruption. The economists even have a name for economic arrangements that foster corruption: They call it a moral hazard.
I live in a state that had a very agressive alternative energy program. Then Ronald Reagan became governor and it was largely gutted. Reagan went on to the White House and tore down the solar panels Carter had installed. Where did Reagan get his backing and many advisors? Bechtel, a large construction company that did a lot of business in the Middle East. Winning Texas was instrumental in his political strategy and Texas was the home of beneficiaries in the S&L scandals. With GWB, we get the Enron stuff. Our current Governor, a Republican, will go to Texas to raise money for some of his political projects in the state.
With energy costs rising dramatically again and a whole generation raised with some sensitivity to environmental issues, we are finally seeing business and even Harry Reid show some interest.
Meanwhile, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continue and warmongering with respect to Iran is kept on the front burner. Let's hope the big money decides that oil is a bad investment and goes green.
When considering the possible effects of global warming, it is very important to understand that it will take only very marginal changes in climate patterns to wreak havoc upon our civilizations. Think Darfur; apply that scenario to our Midwest.
Brain dead Cheney-niks like to scoff at the idea of massive changes, "What, it will take centuries for the sea levels to rise 100 feet." First, they are wrong, the best scientists are alarmed at how quickly and how uncertain rapid changes might occur, but it won't require drastic changes to ruin us all. One foot of sea level rise, which could occur in a decade, will ruin our financial systems, displace hundreds of millions and lead to regional wars over living space and food.
It's the economies, stupid.
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