In the Pipeline: 9/11/12

Wow!  A win, win, win.  Unless you are poor, in which case an energy tax is regressive.  Or unless you consume anything that uses energy when it gets made, or grown, or transported.  Or unless you think the link between carbon dioxide and catastrophic climate change is tenuous at best.  In those instances, it is a loss, loss, loss. Common Dreams (8/28/12) reports: “While noting the raising taxes is never embraced by the mainstream of US politics, a new study released by researchers at MIT on the impact of a national carbon tax claims that such a scheme could be “a potentially a win-win-win solution.””

Is anyone surprised?  How could anyone be surprised? Reuters(9/10/12) reports: Nearly two years after the introduction of the path-breaking plug-in hybrid, GM is still losing as much as $49,000 on each Volt it builds, according to estimates provided to Reuters by industry analysts and manufacturing experts. GM on Monday issued a statement disputing the estimates.

It is a challenge to remain outraged.  After all, the federal government has already mandated that we buy enough insurance to top off our tanks.  And John Roberts said that was OK. Committee on Science, Space, and Technology (9/10/12) reports: “The EPA has no business telling Americans how much fuel they must purchase,” the lawmakers said.  “This unprecedented attempt to remedy the consequences of EPA’s E15 waivers will not prevent widespread misfueling of millions of vehicles and products already owned by Americans that are not covered by the waiver decisions and introduces an unacceptable intrusion into the daily lives of drivers.”

Just about everybody was wined and dined by the energy scarcity myth. The important thing is that the dinner tables are starting to turn on this horribly misguided mindset. Politico (9/10/12) reports: “Years before becoming famous as an advocate of fiscal restraint, Paul Ryan supported a now-controversial Energy Department loan program aimed at developing greener cars — and even called for DOE to hand out lump-sum payments to companies.”