Mother Jones, I guess they would be the opposite of Reason Online in that they're leftist while Reason are libertarian, ponders the Green economy here.
It's strange to me that governments justified bailing out banks and other corporations by claiming if nothing was done a catastrophe would take place. Yet, and I may be off here, the green economy looks set to basically eliminate entire sectors of the economy. If gas and oil prices shoot up (supply and demand, taxes etc.) what will happen to people who work in industries that need these resources? Think Caterpillar. Think John Deere. Work backwards from there. It was the same rationale used to send cash to car companies; if they went under an army of suppliers, dealers and so on would sink with them.
When cars replaced the horses some blacksmiths just closed shop while others became mechanics and made car parts.
ReplyDeleteThose who cling to the past are doomed, those who embrace the future and gear for it will survive and thrive.
Thomas L. Freedman called to let the lame ducks die while protecting the victims (i.e. the employees). Obviously we have not found how to do it humanely so we keep the ducks on respirators..
I think he's right and I think I've hammered this point enough over the years; except people take this to be "survival of the fittest." What's the line between that and progress?
ReplyDeleteThings change and people don't or can't go along with it. C'est la vie.
BUT, my point is I see a little tiny contradiction. As I said, we bailed out the banks. Most people said, let them fail so that they learn. The counter-argument was we "can't" let them fail lest it corrodes the rest of the economy.
So we preserve bad practices and weed out industries like transportation that still a valuable if not crucial role?
I don't get it. And that's if you except oil is the root of all evil which I'm not convinced of.
Dunno if I'm explaining myself well.
Oil may not be THE root of all evils but the oil industry and the sharqs around it are nevertheless doing all they can to slow progress toward other energy forms even buying up patents to keep them off the market, unless I'm mistaken.
ReplyDeleteSure if I had a choice between saving a bank and keeping a train line in service and at affordable prices I'd go for the train. Problem is our economists and people in power have that fancy notion that a public service has to self finance ...and even better be profitable.
Ah what a tangled web we weave...or something like that!
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