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McCain’s Utter Cluelessness on the Economy |
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Frank Rich has a scorching op-ed in the New York Times today that lays bare McCain’s utter incoherence on the economy. McCain has switched his views on the Bush tax cuts (used to oppose, now supports), how Americans have fared under Bush (he changed his tune on this during a 24 hour period), offshore drilling, and the mortgage bailouts (the Times described his reversal here as a “pivot”). He has relied on advisors like the recently deposed Phil Gramm, who called Americans’ concerns about the economy “whining” and thinks a former AT&T exec who “only” got a $158 million pay package instead of the billions Gramm says he deserved is “probably the most exploited worker in American history.” Ordinary Americans who are facing tough financial times are whiners, but multimillionaire executives need our help and sympathy. (Maybe Gramm can turn next to rehabilitating the reputation of Marie Antoinette).
Getting economic policy wrong is nothing new for McCain, or the Republicans. Every single Republican in Congress, including John McCain, voted against Bill Clinton’s first budget, threatening to scuttle Clinton’s presidency before it got started. Republicans predicted doom if Clinton’s plan passed, and McCain himself argued that the plan was unconstitutional and the “height of unfairness”. McCain and the Republicans were absolutely wrong. Clinton’s plan got the economy back on track (nearly 3 million jobs were created a year), while also cutting the budget deficit (ultimately producing a surplus that Bush promptly squandered).
Just 9% of Americans believe that the Bush years have left the country better off. 75% think we are worse off after 7 years of Bush. Maybe they’re whiners, or maybe they have seen that borrowing money to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy isn’t such a great idea. McCain continues to flounder around on economic issues, and his best hope for establishing any economic bona fides seems to be choosing a running mate he said lacks the experience and judgment to be commander in chief.
Dear Editor,
My son is a decorated Soldier in the U.S. Army. And has served three (3) consecutive tours
in Iraq. They P.T. over there every day in no humidity. When he came back to N.C., he had
a heatstroke while P.T.. Well, now he is on a year long watch, and if it happens again they will kick
him out of the Army that is his life.
This brings me to the root of the problem, the Environment! We
need Clean Renewable Energy resources. Please find attached my plea to our law makers. By the
way, I am a 48 yr young woman who had surgery last week and wrote “wecansoleit.org” on her IV arm
so everyone would see it and join.
Michelle Miller
The We Campaign Advocate
The people are looking for leaders who will open with a strong Renewables Package.
Leaders who will pass SOLID bills and mandates to clean up our planet and save a better tomorrow.
We Can%u2019t Afford to Wait for a Clean Energy Economy
more than 1,368,272 have joined %u201Cwecansoleit%u201D.
Four dollar gas? Skyrocketing energy bills? Our fossil fuel-based economy is not only harmful to the climate, it%u2019s expensive! Our leaders need to know that we want a clean energy economy based on renewable energy.
How many of you have seen %u201CAn Inconvenient Truth%u201D by should of been Pres. Al Gore ? Well he was right then
and right on know. The truth does not lie.
“In this time of $4 gasoline, I strongly support the transition to a clean energy economy. We need an economy powered by highly energy-efficient industries, based on modern infrastructure, and fueled by clean, renewable resources like wind, solar and geothermal energy. Our planet %u2013 and our wallets %u2013 can%u2019t afford to wait.”
http://www.wecansolveit.org
We believe there are solutions for addressing the crisis and we can transform our economy and add millions of new
jobs by reorganizing ourselves to meet this challenge. We need leaders at all levels, business and government,
national and local, to act boldly to adopt policies and practices to dramatically reduce greenhouse gases.
We understand that the time to act is now.
We are committed to act with other people from all walks of life to
enact the changes we need to solve the climate crisis and reach a tipping point
in order to get leaders to recognize the need for bold change. What%u2019s missing?
The political will and leadership to solve the climate crisis! Fortunately, solutions for
addressing climate change exist and are within reach today.
Right now Florida%u2019s Energy Agenda is to have 80% Gas, and 19% Coal between 2005 - 2014
They don%u2019t even leave room for any renewables. You say Florida has done something, well if you say so.
All I see is the same implementation occurring that Jimmy Carter put forth. Turn off the lights turn back
the thermostat, just one (1) fleet of government trucks on proposed biodisel. A lot of lip flapping if you
ask me. And just not me, a lot of others to. People are scared, REALLY scared of the weather.
It%u2019s something they have absolutely no power over and is invading there way of life.
Adoption of Renewables
We can help break our addiction to fossil fuels like coal and oil by switching to renewable energy. In fact, with upgrades to our electricity grid, the United States could meet all of its power needs, with renewable energy and support a significant portion of our transportation needs, too.
* Wind Power: The United States added enough wind power in 2007 alone to provide electricity to more than a million homes. Texas is the fastest-growing wind power state and about 15% of the country has excellent wind, especially the Great Plains. Today’s efficient wind turbines are sleek and powerful, and can be taller than the Statue of Liberty with blades longer than the wings of a Boeing 737. When connected together through a national grid, wind power could provide at least one-third of our total electricity needs.
* Solar Thermal: Solar thermal power — which uses solar energy to drive turbines — already produces enough electricity in the United States for about 100,000 homes, but several utilities have announced projects to provide enough power for 10 times that many homes in the next several years. And, because solar thermal power plants can store energy to produce electricity at night, they can be installed in place of new coal power plants. Just a small area of solar thermal in the Southwest could supply all of the US electricity needs.
* Solar Photovoltaics: States like California and New Jersey are already implementing programs to encourage communities to install solar panels in new homes, buildings, and even on parking lot roofs. Solar photovoltaics, which can now be integrated into roof tiles, have no moving parts and can even produce electricity on cloudy days. It will become more common as global installations of photovoltaics grow by an expected 800% in the next 10 years. If these systems were installed on all sunny buildings in the US, we could supply at least one-quarter of our electricity needs.
* Geothermal Power: Today, the United States is the leading producer of geothermal power, producing enough electricity from underground hot rocks for more than 2 million homes. Experts say that we could have 15-30 times as much power over the next few decades thanks to recent advances in geothermal technology.
These technologies are just a few of the opportunities available today. All across the country and around the world, companies, governments, universities, and individuals are working to make renewable energy even more affordable and widely available.
The tide is turning toward renewable energy, but progress has been too slow. Individuals acting alone can’t halt the 100 new coal power plants currently being considered. And they certainly can’t build new solar thermal power plants by themselves. That’s why we need our leaders at all levels to do more to promote renewable energy.
Some government and business leaders are already taking a leadership role and considering the long-term costs of fossil fuels. Recently, three of the nation’s largest investment banks — Citi, JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley — announced that they will begin using new climate-based principles when considering loans for proposed coal-fired power plants. This is a first step towards investors choosing efficient and clean alternatives — which will create new jobs in important sectors.
Mounting windmills or connecting grids onto existing cell towers, it cuts costs of a small wind project
by1/2. Wind needs steep hills to create a thermo alley, I say lets build us some hills.
If Okeechobee adopted downtown Seattle%u2019s no car ban, just think of the co2 omissions
we could get rid of. Park and ride. Tax them if they don%u2019t comply, that in itself will
get the ball rolling. Just a few of my ideas.
A LITTLE know secret is putting us to shame this very day. LAKELAND, FL. The city of
Lakeland Electric & Water Department under both state and federal law has; any generator
which uses renewable resources is allowed to sell any or all of it%u2019s electric output to a utility
for %u201Cfull avoided cost%u201D.
Full Avoided Cost is defined as; the cost of the next increment of power that the utility
would have incurred if it had produced the power. Thus, as electricity production cost increase%u2019s,
renewable generators have an economic incentive to sell to the grid!!
The people are still looking for leaders who will open with a strong Renewables Package.
And they are still scared of the weather. The ole saying goes, %u201Cyou don%u2019t know what it%u2019s like, till
it%u2019s in your own backyard%u201D. Well, we are here to tell you to wake up and remember the 2004-2005
Hurricane Season and the devastation it caused to human lives, not withstanding the impact it had
on the economy and it is in your own backyard. Right now! Just think back 10ys, season changes.
Not anymore, just stays hot and gets hotter. So we need leaders who will pass SOLID bills and
mandates to clean up our planet and save a better tomorrow.
To ensure greater adoption of renewable energy, each of us needs to urge our friends, utility companies, and government officials to more aggressively promote and integrate renewable power into all sectors of the economy. Together, we can stop the building of new dirty power plants and instead ensure that future energy projects take advantage of the clean renewable resources available. Please get involved today. And please NO coal!!!!
Thank you for you time,
Michelle Miller
WeCanSoleIt Advocate
863-801-5240
901 S. E. 8th Drive
Okeechobee,FL.34974