Comments on: Gas tax holiday, Part 3: It is cynical and indefensible no matter who proposes it

By: paulm

paulm — Fri, 02 May 2008 05:02:05 +0000

from attitudes in UK we are/will be way off the mark in meeting targets…. people are not prepared to do what is required…

http://www.independent.co.uk/ environment/ climate-change/ the-green-tax-revolt-britons-will-not-foot-bill-to-save-planet-poll-shows-819703.html

By: Susan K

Susan K — Thu, 01 May 2008 21:58:51 +0000

I too am astounded that she would throw us in her policy wonk base under the bus!

Regarding this:

“She’s got some of the best policy advisers in the world on staff. ”

my understanding from Grist.org is she gets the great legislative ideas in her clean energy plan from advisors at The Center For American progress:

so isn’t that you: Joseph Romm?

By: Jesse Jenkins

Jesse Jenkins — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:46:14 +0000

Excellent post Joe. I haven’t been particularly partisan when it comes to the two Democratic contenders, but Clinton’s support for the gas tax here is indefensible and inexcusable. I’d expect this from McCain, but from Clinton? She knows better than this. She’s got some of the best policy advisers in the world on staff. They surely told her this was just plain stupid policy.

And that makes it even worse: this is pure political pandering.

Obama deserves considerable credit for standing with every energy and economics expert out there in opposing this dumb-as-rocks policy proposal and being honest with the American people that only a long-term, focused energy smart strategy will break our oil addiction and help save Americans money at the pump.

By: David B. Benson

David B. Benson — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:23:06 +0000

Pgosselin — Look at the linked graph of the 10-year average global temperatures since 1850 CE:

http://tamino.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/10yave.jpg

Joe — I don’t classify Senator Clinton as ‘progressive’.

By: Dan G.

Dan G. — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:05:57 +0000

Pgosselin Says: Go ahead and burn all the fuel you want now because we won’t pay for it environmentally for ten years. It’s a silly argument, global warming doesn’t start and stop in one year or even ten years. Just MAYBE some of the added heat each year will be mixed into lower ocean layers instead of being accumulated at the surface. It won’t help, it will hurt us because (if true) it will lead folks to delay taking needed action.

By: Brian D

Brian D — Thu, 01 May 2008 17:38:47 +0000

PGosselin, of course, forgets that global warming didn't stop in 1998 and that this prediction of a decade of no increase explicitly acknowledges AGW, claiming at best to be temporary (to say nothing of what the study's authors directly told the media releasing this). Additionally, that claim stems from a climate model -- the same models the inactivists have been decrying for years. If I remind you of a Japanese soldier, you remind me of Wonko the Sane. Now, returning to reality (sorry for the snipe, Joe). I'd also like to submit that McCain admits this is mostly psychological and won't have much economic impact. This is, as many realists have remarked, a move to get people through an election, not to get people through the summer.

By: Jeff Green

Jeff Green — Thu, 01 May 2008 17:31:46 +0000

I seem a Hillary saying of Barack Obama when he was criticizing her early on that he was a desperate candidate trying to catch up. It seems the tide has turned. Hillary will do whatever it takes to win the presidency. She can and will comproomise her values to win. This could turn on her later.

By: Pgosselin

Pgosselin — Thu, 01 May 2008 17:09:00 +0000

You all remind me of some poor WWII Japanese soldier marooned on an island still thinking the war is going on.
Hello! Warming stopped 10 years ago, and NOW is projected to be absent for at least another 10 years. This is all over the media.
See:
http://www.ifm-geomar.de/index.php?id=4192&L=1

What they are saying is: “Sorry all you activists! There won’t be any global warming for another 10 years. But we promise it’ll be back!”.

By: Tommaso Boggia

Tommaso Boggia — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:16:20 +0000

Thanks for posting on this. It is essential to put pressure on the candidates to make them stop feeding us populist ideas in their desperate pursuit of votes, regardless of party.

I would like to think that once the democrats make their choice, we will continue holding both sides of the aisle accountable to their promises.