Energy Independence for the United States

In today's USAToday, you can read a story on OPEC lowering production (raising prices because they are greedy) and on each candidates plans for energy independence in this country. See the USAToday article here: http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2008-09-10-candidates-energy-policy_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip ... At any rate, I read the article and considered what each candidate had to say on the environment. Since I disagree with both of them, I guess I'm a logical person to point out the obvious. The first obvious statement (even though the majority of people have had their heads in the sand and the wool pulled over their eyes) is that while climate change is real, man-made global warming is not. If you'd actually bother to do the research yourself rather than listening to the media and politicians, you'd discover this to be true as well. At any rate, both candidates believe it is real and want to impose a carbon trading system on the country similar to what exists in Europe. The European carbon trading system has not been successful at lowering carbon dioxide emissions and it has been very successful at raising energy costs across the continent. So, why would any of us want this? I can only hope that Congress begins to sober up and defeats any measure to enact this by the time either of these guys proposes such legislation (faint hope).

So, who is more right? It isn't really a question of who is more right. They are both wrong. Obama focuses on government action to force companies and polluters to give up their evil ways. However, this achieves only one goal. Higher prices. McCain wants to focus on market influences to achieve similar goals. While this is unlikely to result in higher prices, it also ignores the fact that the market will not create the necessary incentive without continued 4 dollar a gallon prices. People have changed their driving habits and their buying habits in recent months due to 4 dollar gas. They've even begun to insist on more fuel efficient cars and the market is responding, but gas prices have also fallen over recent months and as long as that trend continues, the market will cease to insist on immediate options for gas prices. Both candidates also want to use biofuel. While I'd love to see biofuel use, it can't be done with any traditional fuel. Also, biofuels are actually causing more harm than they are helping. How you ask? Well, in the U.S., ethanol is made from corn and we are the world's largest corn producer. Do you wonder why the price of corn has gone up and why there have been significant food shortages worldwide this year? That's right, because the world's largest corn producer has diverted the corn to ethanol rather than providing the world with food. Hmm... so we should all get sugar cane ethanol from Brazil you argue. Sounds great doesn't it, although Obama would make it horribly expensive by placing a tariff on it and McCain would simply import it. Both believe in subsidizing it. Ouch. Secondly, Brazil's dirty little secret when it comes to ethanol is that they produce more and more ethanol (not by diverting current crop use as is the case in the U.S. but ...) by cutting down the rain forest and using the land as crop land for their sugar cane. Hmm... not so inviting to environmentalists anymore, is it? At any rate, the true answer to energy independence is being ignored by both candidates in order to get votes from their constituents. I guess I can't blame them for that, but I do hope that once in office they'll wise up. It is a slim hope, especially if Democrats control both houses of Congress and the Presidency, but it is a hope nonetheless. So, what's the answer?

ALL OF THE ABOVE! You have to drill for oil, NOW! You have to build more nuclear power plants, NOW! You have to research and provide incentives for alternative energies, NOW! (Oh and by the way, you have to allow them to be built as well, ask Massachusetts and Ted Kennedy about not allowing alternative energy to be built if you really want to know what I'm talking about) You have to provide government incentives to people and companies to try new things (this is not government regulation and spending) I'm talking tax credits and cuts. This is also not a carbon trading scheme which would only raise prices. Finally, you have to let the market do its work as well by not regulating, by getting people to understand that electric and hydrogen powered cars are the future and by providing incentives for "gas" stations around the country to start changing pumps for hydrogen and to make other infrastructure improvements nationwide. Oh, you also have to drill in Alaska, sorry folks. Any drilling that doesn't include the nation's largest known oil reserve simply wouldn't make a dent. That's it. Neither candidate wants to do all of this, or even any of it. Anyway, that's how I see it.