I don’t agree that food prices should be increased, because that hurts the poor in this country. I believe any changes to the energy / transportation industries should be (as much as possible) limited to those industries.

Nanosolar has shown that clean energy CAN be cheaper than burning fossil fuels, so hopefully, we can acheive these changes without steep cost increases.

I too like the big jump in fuel economy standards, because that actually levels the playing field for the US automakers. Both foreign and domestic makes have to completely retool, and incorporate completely new technologies, so we have essentially leap-frogged what other nations were already doing. This takes away any advantage foreign automakers had.

The only part that I am not wild about is the ethanol portion. I have no problem whatsoever with “bio-waste” fuels – spent cooking oil, agriculture waste (discarded plants after harvest), etc., being converted into fuel – why pump fossil fuel from the ground while you put bio-waste back into the ground. I do have a problem with growing crops specifically for ethanol production (unless it is sugar cane, which gives you an 8 fold return on energy conversion). For starters, you’ve just raised the price of all food items that use corn significantly. You’ll also have to convert more natural land for agriculure, infringing on animal habitat, and adding more nitrates into the water.

Comment by muckdog — December 5, 2007 @ 9:09 pm

There’s more to cost-benefit analysis than money.

I can’t believe I never read Georgie’s Wiki Quote entry before:

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_W._Bush

Pay especial attention to “grammatical errors”, but, make sure you aren’t drinking. Enjoy!

Comment by Snowball — December 5, 2007 @ 9:35 pm

yes, but suckdog and his neadertal buddies have a right to drive SUVs.

I thought that’s how wingnuts like their government to be financed.

Comment by muckdog — December 5, 2007 @ 9:09 pm

You think that corporate welfare and what lobbyists do today is not passed onto you?

Comment by muckdog — December 5, 2007 @ 9:09 pm

and you. Boohoohoo. suckdog, you shoot yourself if you’re that eager to die.

Maybe Muckdog thinks we we aren’t already paying for it now?

Just check out the oil industry profits. Heck, we’ve more than financed Cheney’s retirement with Haliburton profits from the Iraq occupation.

Vote for the presidential candidates who are aware of the corporate takeover and who talk about it. All the others are part of the problem.

“Japan, Italy and Spain face fines of as much as $33 billion combined for failing to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions as promised under the Kyoto treaty.”

So if this bill is passed into law, which it won’t be, but down the road then when companies have to pay money to buy credits, the prices will be passed along to you.

Would these be like stocks that rise and fall in value and be tradeable?