by publius
So I was a little late getting to the “blogger lounge,” so I missed Michelle. But I did catch the New Republic’s environmental panel earlier today — “the Politics of Green.” It was a good group — Rep. Ed Markey, Sen. Bingaman, a Sierra Club bigshot, Cass Sunstein, the Obama energy advisor, and a Third Way polling guy (lost the sheet with the names). Anyway, the thrust of it was about whether and how comprehensive energy reform was politically possible.
It was a friendly audience, but I thought the Third Way guy made the most important point. He explained that while the public was both generally aware of (and concerned about) climate change, the numbers “dropped radically” when people were asked whether they would support higher energy prices to do something about it. (Hopefully, the question was phrased in a less leading way).
It’s actually worse than that though — I think that, whatever the polls says, the numbers could easily drop lower under sustained political pressure shrieking “higher gas, higher gas.”
Another important takeaway of the panel is that Markey is planning on pushing a pretty comprehensive reform bill in the near term. The million dollar question is whether the political groundwork has been sufficiently laid though. My sense though is that it hasn’t. The drilling fever that apparently swept the nation this summer didn’t give much comfort on that front.
My hope is that pushing for reform will at least open political space for future legislation. It could, however, cause a backlash. And sorry that I couldn’t get closer for the picture. I’ll have some more thoughts on this later.
Michelle was incredible.
Michelle was SPECTACULAR.
My secret wish was that she’d be introduced as Barack Obama’s first wife, but I guess we can’t have everything 🙂
— TP
“…under sustained political pressure shrieking ‘higher gas, higher gas.'”
What’s “higher gas”?
Gary,
Talk about elitist! Prices, of course.
It was a friendly audience…
At the Democratic National Convention? I’m shocked! 😉
He explained that while the public was both generally aware of (and concerned about) climate change, the numbers “dropped radically” when people were asked whether they would support higher energy prices to do something about it.
After almost 20 years of hype, the number of Americans who say “they worry about it a great deal” has remained almost the same. Only about a third believes that immediate, drastic action is needed.
On supporting higher energy prices:
Forty-eight percent of Americans are unwilling to spend even a penny more in gasoline taxes to help reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new nationwide survey released today by the National Center for Public Policy Research.
The poll found just 18% of Americans are willing to pay 50 cents or more in additional taxes per gallon of gas to reduce greenhouse emissions. U.S. Representative John Dingell (D-MI), chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, has called for a 50 cent per gallon increase in the gas tax.
It’s a non-starter as a political issue.
It’s a non-starter as a political issue.
I think that’s exactly right.
If you disagree, consider the image of Jimmy Carter in a sweater.
Which means, basically, that we are screwed, because kicking our feet and holding our breath until we turn blue is not going to change the basic reality of the situation.
What I think will happen is that we will do nothing until the general anxiety level reaches the shrieking freak-out stage, and then we will do stupid things, and most likely stupid things that will make small numbers of people lots of money.
I’m pretty pessimistic on this one. It’s not a problem with a simple solution, and the political leadership to address it is not there. From any party.
Anecdotally, we had our first $1,000 oil tank fill-up a couple of weeks ago. It’s not even September and we’re already seeing evenings below 60 degrees. We’re going to have a long winter to get through, and it’s going to cost a lot. We’re not spending anything on extras these days, in fact we’re looking for expenses to shed. We’re looking to get out of debt and put a good cushion in the bank.
The scary part here is that, environmentally, energy is just the tip of the spear. Without getting into anything remotely exotic or controversial, there’s also water and food production. If you think people scream when you tell them they can’t drive their car, wait until they face limits on water and food.
It’s gonna get a lot worse before it gets better. Doesn’t have to, but it most likely will, because nobody’s taking the bull by the horns.
Thanks –
I live in Maine, in an apartment that’s the top floor of a 12-year-old 2-story building. It’s well (if not super) insulated. I keep the temperature in the low 60’s during the day in the winter, and (unless it’s so very cold that there’s a danger of pipes freezing) let it drop into the 50’s at night. I wear an inner layer of ski long johns and shirt (very very light weight, and if I choose the fabric carefully, not irritating to my easily irritated skin), and several layers of shirts on top of that. I sleep under layers of quilts/blankets, with a nightcap on (in effect).
The thing is, I have been doing this for years already, so I’m not sure I have much room left to save on heating costs, short of getting a roommate, which would be difficult in this particular dwelling. (Maybe I should fall in love, right? Candidates are scarce on the ground….)
So — for now I’ll try to economize on other things. But I recommend the ski underwear route to anyone willing to try lowering the thermostat to what most Americans would consider unlivable levels. And sleeping under a pile of quilts is actually quite nice.
As for the rest: it puts me into deep despair when I hear otherwise seemingly sensible, aware, and even generous people say, essentially: “I worked hard and I deserve this lifestyle.” The suggestion that the lifestyle is not sustainable on a worldwide basis seems to go flying right past their ears, or they respond in a way that implies that since they are so virtuous and hard-working and have what they have, other people who don’t have what they have must be … the opposite. And of course it’s those other people who can go ahead and bear the brunt of what’s coming. Because they’re clearly not deserving and hard-working…
Flannel sheets. Down comforter. I’ve done that. I haven’t gone all the way to 0-degree mummy bag, though. You get yourself a nice thick futon bed with stout flannel sheets and a good down comforter with a flannel cover, and you may never want to get out of bed again. Especially if it’s 50 degrees in the bedroom. And the thing is, I think a down comforter is both much lighter and (I think) much warmer than the pile of quilts.
You can always put more clothes and bedding on, but there’s a limit to how much you can take off. I’d be quite happy sleeping naked under a rapidly spinning ceiling fan, thermostat set to 82 degrees or higher, here in Florida. But my wife, she can’t do that.
But I can sleep pretty much under any conditions. My wife needs a particular kind of box fan running, for the noise only, and pretty much still air other than that.
Slarti — I used “quilts” loosely, but you’re right, a down comforter is much lighter and probably warmer.
I actually use a “quilt” (no feathers) and some number of fleece “throws” (which my mother sends me in embarrassing numbers). There was a time when I slept with an unzipped down sleeping bag thrown over me. But these days, feathers, or probably the side effects of the critters that live in them, make me cough badly.
I would have a harder time in Florida than I do here. Muggy heat flattens me, though maybe if I lived in it for a year I would acclimate. But who lives in muggy heat? No one that I know. I have lots of relatives in Florida, and they live and work in air conditioning.
My daughter uses a box fan at night too….
it puts me into deep despair when I hear otherwise seemingly sensible, aware, and even generous people say, essentially: “I worked hard and I deserve this lifestyle.”
I was talking with some friends recently who were all fired up about carbon offsets because, to them, it seemed to mean that they could pay a few bucks and not have to make any changes in how they live. Guilt free, naturally.
Lovely people, very good friends of ours, wonderful kids, firmly in the “politically progressive” camp.
It kind of made me want to cry.
I think the rules of the game are changing, and there isn’t much anyone can do about it. It’s not just energy, or the environment, or any one thing. It’s a lot of very large scale, fundamental things, all at the same time.
Energy, climate change, changes in the basis of our economy, global scale changes in where things are produced and where they are consumed. Changes in international power structure, from a world dominated by one or two superpowers to a world where there is no clear global hegemon.
Change isn’t good or bad, it just is. But your response to it can be good or bad.
Here in the US, I don’t think the light has yet dawned on Marblehead. We keep thinking that we just need to tweak a few things and everything will go on as usual. Some carbon offsets, a little cap and trade, buy a Prius, recycle your glass and cardboard, maybe shop at the farmer’s market now and then, and we’re good to go, right?
If only.
By the time we get around to responding to all of this, we may not have lots of options left. That’s when the bad stuff starts.
We could come out of it OK, but we need to get ahead of the changes, instead of just responding to them when they make something blow up (literally and figuratively). I don’t really see that happening. Not in the sense of “it ain’t gonna happen”, but in the literal sense of I don’t see it happening, present tense.
Does anyone else? Who’s doing the strategic analysis? Who’s setting the direction, not for this year or next year, but 20 years from now?
Obama at least is a pragmatic guy. I really hope he wins. The stuff McCain is selling just seems like nostalgia to me.
Thanks –
then we will do stupid things, and most likely stupid things that will make small numbers of people lots of money.
Ethanol and wind turbines come immediately to mind.
Ethanol and wind turbines come immediately to mind.
Who’s getting rich off of wind turbines?
Thanks –
Move to San Diego. You need neither an air conditoner nor a heater for about 350 days a year.
And I purchased a place a year ago, so demand pushing property values up is finally a plus for me.
“Who’s getting rich off of wind turbines?”
A lot of folks.
Russell – mostly developers. Between the carbon tax credits and the guaranteed power purchases, it can be quite lucrative. The local governments (and some of the local officials – google “wind farms cuomo”) make out quite well also. The farmers also get a little, but not enough that I’d regard it as “rich”.
Aaaggg, Gary (as usual) beat me to it!
Russell – mostly developers.
Arggh. Gary, thanks for the link.
I like how big ugly industrial infrastructure always gets dumped on poor people. The strongest and most consistent wind source in MA is off of Nantucket. Nobody there wants turbines, because it will wreck the view from their million dollar front lawns.
I give up.
thanks –
“Who’s getting rich off of wind turbines?”
The bloom is finally off the rose: T. Boone Pickens endorsed John McCain — or so it seemed in the foggy, flu-induced sleep I had yesterday.
The TV on for background, I heard the words “drill, drill, drill” and said to myself, “Shut up, McCain.” But then I lifted an eye lid and, yes, it was Pickens in one of those ubiquitous wind-power ads of his, saying, “drill, drill, drill.”