Quote:
Originally Posted by guller
When in actuality, Obama didn't saddle himself with these regulations at all. They were purposely over-reaching to elicit the planned emotional response that they got when they were rejected, and it worked.
You think telling coal mining companies they cannot dump their waste into streams and rivers is over reaching?
Quote:
Originally Posted by guller
Coal may be slowing down, but is slowing down because of market forces. Natural gas burning is presently cheaper (due to fracking), so we will move to that for a while until something else becomes even cheaper. Perhaps that will be solar or wind, but perhaps there will be other innovation as well. Maybe someone develops a complete carbon capture/scrubber system that makes coal viable again, who knows. One thing I do know is that having the government pick winners and losers (solar right now) will create a market distortion that will hinder natural innovation.
See, I think this let the market decide stuff is absolute nonsense, because I see how well the market works for the poor, minorities, the environment, etc.
Waste water injection from fracking is causing earthquakes all over the south, this is causing damage to many people's residencies. Why should oil and gas companies be able to reap record profits while causing earthquakes which damages other people's property with absolutely zero repercussions?
The thing about the government doing things like subsidizing solar, or implementing MPG regulations for passenger cars, is because the beautiful free market leaves lots of bodies in its wake, one of which that is being killed is our planet. If all we care about is exploiting the Earth's natural resources for every dollar that we can, then we're certainly going to destroy our Earth prematurely. As it is right now, we can change direction and save our planet. This is why things like prohibiting mining companies from dumping waste into streams and rivers is so important. Do you disagree?