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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
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Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
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Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
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Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
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January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Dec. 5, 2007
/ 225 Kislev 5768
Let the market solve our energy problems
By
Robert Robb
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
It's hard to imagine a sillier approach to energy policy than the one
Congress is concocting. The recent experience with ethanol illustrates the
problem with such silliness.
To jumpstart a market for domestic corn ethanol, Congress passed very
generous tax credits for its production, erected tariffs against the
importation of foreign ethanol and mandated that gasoline be blended with
billions of gallons of the stuff.
The result, of course, has been a sharp rise in the price of corn. This has
food producers and other farmers and ranchers angry, and even the Mexican
government, which blames the ethanol mandate in part for the high cost of
corn tortillas in its country.
And now environmentalists are beginning to question whether ethanol is such
a good idea after all. It uses lots of land and water. And fertilizer,
which increases the emissions of nitrous oxide, considered an even more
destructive greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Burning gasoline mixed with
ethanol increases ozone levels.
So, has Congress learned the lesson about the limitations on its ability to
micromanage energy markets? Of course not. The bills under consideration
offer a blizzard of subsidies (credits, loan guarantees, research grants,
usage mandates) for a cornucopia of energy sources (wind, solar, hydrogen,
biomass, nuclear).
There is even under consideration an increase in the ethanol mandate,
although with some of it coming from President Bush's magical switchgrass
rather than corn. Farm wastes seem to be the fuel source du jour. There are
even subsidies for looking into generating energy from ocean waves.
Maybe we will surf to our energy future on ocean waves. I don't know. And
the more relevant point is, neither do the members of Congress.
The silliness of all this is best seen by stepping back and contemplating
what all these subsidies and mandates are supposed to accomplish.
There are two problems that are cited as creating the exigent need for an
energy bill. The country is excessively dependent on foreign oil. We emit
too much of environmentally destructive greenhouse gases.
Both of these problems can be dealt with very directly, in ways that would
be effective and efficient.
The extent to which the United States relies on foreign oil, particularly
from the Middle East, is usually exaggerated. Persian Gulf oil supplies
less than five percent of the overall energy consumption of the United
States. The principal vulnerability is in the price of gasoline, not
industrial production.
Nevertheless, if Congress believes that foreign oil imports represent an
unacceptable strategic vulnerability, it can directly limit them. Declining
import quotas could be adopted, reducing oil imports to whatever point
Congress decides adequately diminishes the strategic risk.
Likewise, greenhouse gas emissions could be directly limited, either
through a cap-and-trade program or, preferably, through a tax on carbon and
other such gases.
That's all Congress would need to do. The American people spend nearly $900
billion a year making things run and go. The energy market is plenty big
enough to attract private investment to meet the fuel needs of the country
within whatever constraints the federal government imposes for security or
environmental reasons.
Congress doesn't need to figure out the alternatives. The market will do
that, more effectively and efficiently.
However, it will do that through the price mechanism, and therein lies the
political problem. If Congress, for example, were to directly limit oil
imports, the price of gasoline would go up. And people don't like that.
So, instead of directly and simply limiting supply, Congress is attempting
to manage demand, through fuel efficiency standards and subsidies for
alternative ways of making things run and go.
The problem is that while it may be within Congress's competence to decide
that foreign oil imports are an unacceptable strategic risk or that the
environmental damage of greenhouse gases needs to be limited, micromanaging
the energy market response lies beyond its competence as the ethanol
story so amply demonstrates.
The American people will pay for the decisions one way or another if not
through rising fuel prices, then through higher food prices, less choice
among automobiles or washing machines that don't really get clothes clean.
While Democrats are currently in charge of Congress, the silliness isn't
limited to them. The energy proposals of President Bush and Republicans in
Congress tend to be milder, but are similarly afflicted.
It would be far better for national leaders to just do directly what they
think is important for the country, limit foreign oil imports and
greenhouse emissions, and let markets and the American people figure out
the rest.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Robert Robb is a columnist for The Arizona Republic. Comment by clicking here.
Robert Robb Archives
© 2007, The Arizona Republic
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