I Told You 8 Years Ago, What Needed To Be Done

[sartre play]

So what is that optimal balance of addressing all environmental issues while not compromising or hindering the economy? I dont expect any of us to have that answer but my sense is that the current administration and their party go beyond what is necessary when it comes to environmental policy.

Even if that is true, is it not better to try to do some thing about the pollution?
than deny what most can see is happening.
Total denial seems worse than the over kill, of those trying to force us to start looking Hard at solutions.

 

[LeftofLeft]

Here is thing you keep pretending isn't happening. While you are "erring on the side of conservatism", you're already spending $200 billion per year on climate change catastrophies - wild fires, floods, hurricanes, so you're gonna spend that money either way. And that $200 billion is going up by more than $20 billion per year.




The nation of Africa and Asia aren't building for carbon fuelled energy, they're building for green energy because that is the future. Elon Musk just signed a deal with China to build his EV's there for the Asian market. Nobody is drilling for oil, these days, because it's too expensive. Europeans are already paying $8 a gallon for gasoline.

Here is a list of gasoline prices in the G20. It's based on retail price per litre (1 gal. = 3.79 litres). Any nation paying more than $1.05 per litre, is paying $4.00 per gallon. Europeans are paying more than $8 a gallon for gasoline.

Gasoline Prices - Countries - List

This page displays a table with actual values, consensus figures, forecasts, statistics and historical data charts for - Gasoline Prices.

tradingeconomics.com

The US Government has bailed out the US auto industry twice because of bankruptcies, which happened because the US government didn't hold American car makers to the same mileage and emissions standards that the rest of the first world was mandating, so their cars couldn't be sold in Europe or Asia. Now you're going to stubborning cling to gasoline powered automobiles while the rest of the first world moves to EV's.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

How China Became the World’s Leader on Renewable Energy

China has achieved stunning growth in its installed renewable capacity over the last two decades, far outpacing the rest of the world. But to end its continued dependence on fossil fuels, it must now move ahead with planned reforms to its national electricity system.

e360.yale.edu

Analysis: Clean energy was top driver of China’s economic growth in 2023 - Carbon Brief

Solar power, along with manufacturing capacity for solar panels, EVs and batteries, were the main focus of China’s clean-energy investments in 2023

www.carbonbrief.org

China Invests $546 Billion in Clean Energy, Far Surpassing the U.S.

China accounted for nearly half of the world's low-carbon spending in 2022, which could challenge U.S. efforts to bolster domestic clean energy manufacturing

www.scientificamerican.com

Bring me viable alternative energy that keeps the economy running. I could care less about whether the source is fossil based or green based. Until we are ready, policies that punish the economy are unnecessary.

 

[LeftofLeft]

Even if that is true, is it not better to try to do some thing about the pollution?
than deny what most can see is happening.
Total denial seems worse than the over kill, of those trying to force us to start looking Hard at solutions.

Again, I’m not advocating for absence of environmental policies. I’m advocating for a balance. What is happening now is overreach.

 

[protectionist]

Trump's record is one of 4 years of failure to accomplish any of the stated goals of his administration. He just went around the nation declaring National Emergencies and then doing nothing about them, until the nation was in chaos and the economy collapsed - again.

This ludicrous post was refuted yesterday in Post # 132. Ho hum.

TRUMP ACCOMPLISHMENTS
1. RECORD positive numbers on the economy, record highs in stock market, despite Covid shutdowns
2. stopped the absurd practice of giving China unrestricted access to our valuable market, and reduced the amount of imports coming from China.
3. holding China accountable for cyber theft,
4. taking Mexico and Central American countries to task for illegal immigration,
5. created 10 million jobs in 4 months, created over 400,000 manufacturing jobs,
6. unemployment claims hit 50 year low,
7. lowest unemployment for blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and disabled in US history, 8.lowest unemployment for women in over 70 years,
9. lowest unemployment rate ever recorded for Americans without a high school diploma,
10. 4 million Americans off food stamps,
11. vocational training topped 4 million - highest ever,
12. highest median wage in US history .
13. Obamacare individual mandate penalty GONE,
14. FDA approved more affordable generic drugs than ever before in history. > drug companies are freezing or reversing planned price increases,
15. reformed the Medicare program to stop hospitals from overcharging low-income seniors on their drugs—saving seniors hundreds of millions of dollars,
16. Signed Right-To-Try legislation,
17. $6 billion in NEW funding to fight the opioid epidemic (the most ever),
18. Signed VA Accountability Act,
19. expanded VA telehealth services, walk-in-clinics, and same-day urgent primary and mental health care (I got surgeries and benefits from this myself),
20. United States was a net natural gas exporter for the first time since 1957,
21. withdrew the United States from the job-killing Paris Climate Accord,
22. pressured NATO allies, and they're spending $69 billion more on defense since 2016,
23. made the Space Force the 6th branch of the Armed Forces,
24. withdrew from the horrible, one-sided Iran Deal, 25. moved U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem,
25. protected Americans from terrorists with the Travel Ban, upheld by Supreme Court, 26. issued Executive Order to keep open Guantanamo Bay,
27. MCA deal,
28. reached a breakthrough agreement with the E.U. to increase U.S. exports
29. greatest number of heavily attended rallies in US history
30. net exports increased $59 Billion in 2018,
31. improved vetting and screening for refugees, and switched focus to overseas resettlement,
32. we were BUILDING THE WALL.
33. provided quality detention centers for migrant children in Southwest Key Programs
34. created 8,700 Opportunity Zones with investment incentives for companies to invest in distressed communities
35. Got Israel/UAE/Bahrain aggreement (the Abraham Accord), establishing Middle East peace
36. Defeated ISIS and killed their leaders incl. # 1 al Baghdadi.
37. Killed Iranian terrorist leader Sulemani.
38. Stopped domestic terrorist mobs by sending federal troops & National Guard
39. record of number of regulations cut, further boosting the economy
40. opened ANWR and approved Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipelines thereby making America # 1 energy producer in the world (no other president ever did that),
41. rebuilt the US military to a $721 Billion/yr budget
42. increased wages for military personnel
43. Through the COVID pandemic, our Covid mortality rate was REDUCED from over 17,000/week in April. to about 2000/week in June. and remained very low throughout the year, as a result of the many smart things that the president has done.
90% REDUCTION. > HUGE SUCCESS.
44. Massive production of Ventilators - These were left in short supply after the Obama/Biden admin (we now have so many we're exporting them),
45. the Navy hospital ships sent to New York,
46. the stimulus checks,
47. The Task Force advice (ex. social distancing),
48. opposition/criticism of New York's dumb nursing home policies,
49. federal aid to hospitals, rapidly expanding production & distribution of medical supplies
50. travel bans (which Democrats called Trump a "racist' for),
51. Trump's advocacy of Hydroxychloriquin (now proven to be effective, despite criticism from Democrats), and Regeneron.
52. fast, continual development of a vaccine, and rapid success of Operation Warp Speed.
53. Created & signed the MISSION ACT, replacing the failed Obama Choice Act
54. Presided over the largest GDP growth (35.2%) in US history.
55. Got $ 250 Million/year to black colleges.

 

[Dragonlady]

So what is that optimal balance of addressing all environmental issues while not compromising or hindering the economy? I dont expect any of us to have that answer but my sense is that the current administration and their party go beyond what is necessary when it comes to environmental policy.

Making a 20 year transition to green energy doesn't hinder the economy, it's a boon to the economy. Jobs are created in building the green energy infrastructure, ands the costs come down.

Ontario's green energy push toppled the Liberal government as prices skyrocketted. The incentives for energy producers were insane and the price paid for the power created was ridiculous, but today 92% of our energy is from green sources, including hydro-electrice and nuclear. The windmills are lasting far longer than the predicted 15 years. Once the original construction contracts expired, market rates applied to the power produced, and we have some of the cheapest electrical power in North America.

My county has more than 200 wind turbines, mostly just back a couple of miles from the shores of Lake Erie. The wind turbine companies lease 5 acre parcels from farmers for $60,000 per year, with a maintenance access. It's been a boon to farmers who can rent out a parcel and receive enough in rents to cover his/her family expenses for the year, or the costs of planting their crop without bank loans, without depending on the vagarities of weather, or sale prices for the crops.

As an added bonus, when the last of the coal fired plants closed, or had scrubbers installed, air quality improved, and there were fewer emergency room visits from the effects of high levels of air pollution in the Hamilton and Toronto during the summer months. I went from 1/2 dozen ER visits per year to none. The government noted the drop in these costs in its budget.