Congress must act now to support clean energy
Emerging clean-energy industries, such as wind and solar power, are not only taking steps toward solving global warming and America’s energy problems, they’re creating good jobs that help the economy and environment.
We should be making investments in clean energy so green innovations can make an even bigger difference in stopping global warming, cleaning our air and building the kind of economy that future generations can rely on.
Yet, Congress has to act now to deliver on the promise of a new energy future. Big Oil and its friends on Capitol Hill have been blocking the extension of critical clean-energy incentives. If these expire, an estimated $19 billion in clean-energy projects will be canceled, and America would lose more than 116,000 clean-energy jobs.
With today’s economy, threats to the environment and dependence on foreign oil, the worst thing we could do would be to impose a crippling tax increase on the fast-growing clean-energy industry.
For the second time in as many weeks, U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr voted to block the extension of these crucial clean-energy investments. We urge them to extend the clean-energy tax credits.
Margaret Hartzell
Raleigh
The writer is field organizer, Environment North Carolina.
Comments (8)
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Anyone know WHY Dole and Burr would vote to "solving ... America’s energy problems .. creating good jobs that help the economy ... "
I could not readily find it here:
http://www.environmentnorthcarolina.org/issues/energy
Posted on June 30, 2008 5:17 AM
vote to = vote against
Posted on June 30, 2008 5:19 AM
Big Oil is always handy, but I don't know the real reason they voted against it. I'll point and laugh at recycling and say it's hopefully because they recognized the program as not creating viable jobs.
From Pelosi's own site:
http://www.speaker.gov/legislation?id=0206
"A recent study showed that allowing the renewable energy incentives to expire would lead to about 116,000 jobs being lost in the wind and solar industries through the end of 2009"
Job creation through legislation. Look at Greensboro's own failure of a recycling program. Look at every single municipality in the country's failure of a recycling program, all supported by feelings and fines and such tremendous money losers that they're impossible to maintain without laws requiring it.
And President Obama intends to spend $150B on a "green collar" job creation plan. I look forward to seeing what it will cost ten years after the initial amount is spent and we have to duct tape it up with new laws every few years to keep the false market from falling apart.
Ms. Pelosi put it quite well. Just like Poverty or Drugs, we can't afford to solve our problems. Our economy depends too much on them.
Roger
Posted on June 30, 2008 5:54 AM
No problem with wind and solar as long as the wind is blowing and the sun is shining.
Check out their website
http://www.environmentnorthcarolina.org/
Global warming dominates the site.
"When it comes to global warming, the stakes are high for North Carolina. More than 3,000 miles of coastline make it the nation’s third most vulnerable state to rising sea levels."
My parents are relieved they sold their beach house.
Check out the staff, it's the director and Ms. Hartzell, who possesses a B.A. in geography from the University of New Hampshire. Naturally that makes her a global warming expert.
Posted on June 30, 2008 10:51 AM
Lots of logs and partisan eyes being poked out today. The other thread got me thinking, and sure enough this LTE was also magically written and published in an Ohio paper on June 12th:
http://www.dems.gov/index.asp?Type=B_PR&SEC=%7B2D7E6E08-EBA9-41F2-96E7-638CAE603CE3%7D&DE=%7B87F2DE83-2004-4C48-9A35-6E24FE29D5E9%7D
And here's Ms. Hartzell again (used loosely) from the 22nd of this month:
http://www.salisburypost.com/Opinion/062208-letters-sunday
Here's JR Tolbert from up in Roanoke:
http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/letters/wb/165947
Two on the same day. Ha. Those infinite monkeys are hard at work.
Roger
Posted on June 30, 2008 12:20 PM
Letter writing propaganda is the only way the Global Warming enthusiasts can achieve change.
Posted on June 30, 2008 2:07 PM
Dan & Hugh,
Your comments above pretty much sum up your narrowness. I would suggest that you both get a copy of Orrin Pilkey and Stan Riggs' book "From Currituck to Calabash, Living with NC's barrier islands" and read it cover to cover.
The book came out long before global warming was a phrase in our vocabulary. The facts are there--hate to burst your collective bubbles. In fact, Dan should thank his parent's for selling the house--they'd probably want the government to bail them out in the event of rising water anyway! LOL!
Posted on June 30, 2008 8:22 PM
Maybe you can join Ms. Hartzell and save our 3000 miles of coastline Demon Deacon. There is plenty of sand to make sandbags.
"Dan should thank his parent's for selling the house--they'd probably want the government to bail them out in the event of rising water anyway!"
Hate to burst your bubble again with facts Demon Deacon. My parents house got battered in 1996 by Hurricane Fran. Guess what Demon Deacon? They actually purchased insurance (and paid the premiums) and the insurance company actually reimbursed them for the damage!!
No govt. intervention. No victims. Imagine that!!
Posted on June 30, 2008 9:56 PM