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Green New Deal: The Cure for All That Ails Us?

What’s wrong with the economy? It’s the climate, stupid – never mind the Coronavirus panic.

Make no mistake, the U.S. economy isn’t in the best shape these days. The Coronavirus panic and subsequent shutdowns left millions of Americans jobless. Then there’s the government solution: Double down on the mistake that caused so much trouble to begin with and follow up by spending money we don’t have. But that’s okay; a solution has been found. According to Robert Reich, a Berkeley public policy professor and climate alarmist who served in the Clinton administration, the Green New Deal is the cure for all that ails us.

The Clock Is Ticking

Before we dive into the good professor’s four-step fix, let’s skip down to the end of his blog post – which Salon dutifully published – and consider this dire warning:

“If these solutions sound drastic to you, it’s because they are. They have to be if we have any hope of keeping our planet habitable. The climate crisis is not a far-off apocalyptic nightmare – it is our present day.”

Fires have raged in Australia and California and storms wrack the land more fiercely than ever. In short, the end is nigh. Remember Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez’s (D-CA) 12-year doomsday clock? Well, now it’s ten. For those of you wondering how we lost a year from 2019 to 2020, evidently the initial warning wasn’t scary enough, so the clock had to be sped up a bit.

“We deserve a world without fossil fuels,” Reich writes. “A world in which workers and communities thrive and our shared climate comes before industrial profits. Working together, I know we can make it happen. We have no time to waste.”

Well folks, there you have it. The clock is ticking. Without further ado, let’s see this four-step program to saving the world.

Go Green to Make Green

“First, create green jobs.” Anyone familiar with FDR’s New Deal should have seen this coming. The Civilian Conservation Corps saw millions of unemployed men hired by the government to work on a variety of environmental projects across the nation. The CCC lasted for nine years. In that time, those once-jobless fellows planted billions of trees and built parks across the nation that are still enjoyed today. Sure, the various bills and executive orders signed by their president drastically expanded the scope and budget of the government and increased the national debt by a higher percentage (1,048%) than any other president in history to this day – which we’ve never even come close to paying off – but that’s fine. Spend today and let tomorrow pick up the tab – that’s the liberal way.

 

But back to Reich, who avers that “a Green New Deal could turn the climate crisis into an opportunity – one that both addresses the climate emergency and creates a fairer and more equitable society.” How? By investing in green energy, of course. Though as Liberty Nation’s Onar Åm explained, what we have considered green for so many years isn’t all that great for the environment after all. It takes a lot of energy to build things like windmills – not to mention the mining of raw materials. As Onar put it, “both in terms of energy and cost-efficiency, wind power has made little sense.”

Who Gets Coal for Christmas?

Steps two and three are “stop dirty energy” and “kick fossil fuel companies out of our politics.” Onar already cleared up the confusion about allegedly green tech, but what about that old lie that only fossil fuel companies are influencing politics?

Well, LN’s Andrew Moran burst that bubble almost a year ago. Of course green energy businesses lobby the government – and they get a lot of tax-funded subsidies in return. “By championing climate change and promising feel-good paper pushers to help us transition away from fossil fuels, many of these niche companies will be granted millions of your tax dollars to make politicians look benevolent, cut fancy red ribbon, and eventually shutter their doors without achieving anything touted in their mission statements,” Andrew explained. Let’s have a look back at step one for a moment: When Solyndra, a so-called green company propped up by the Obama administration and our tax dollars, filed for bankruptcy, how many working-class Americans were helped?

 

And … Reparations.

The fourth and final step is an interesting idea: “Require the fossil fuel companies that have profited from environmental injustice compensate the communities they’ve harmed.” Here, of course, the author conflates the alleged climate change disasters – hurricanes, floods, and fires – with the Flint, MI water crisis. So, Reich wants reparations for the environment and human suffering caused by fossil fuel companies? That sounds fair. Let’s apply it also to the green companies – hell, any business – that has profited off the suffering of our citizens. And don’t forget about those politicians whose neglect, in Flint and around the nation, destroyed the lives of their constituents.

Save the World – Sacrifice Freedom

If these solutions sound drastic to you, it’s because they are – and not in a good way. As LN’s Graham J. Noble wrote, “The much talked about Green New Deal is so much more than a proposal of measures to protect the natural environment. It is nothing less than an all-encompassing social justice manifesto which would pave the way for federal government control of almost all private industry, private property, transportation systems, and food production, as well as most other aspects of American society.” Total control and an end to individual liberty – is it any wonder that statists are chomping at the bit?

~

Read more from James Fite.

For home study students and young people, Liberty Nation recommends…

The Truth About Wind Power

High School: Wind Power: Not So Green After All?

Middle School: Wind May Not Be the Perfect Power Source

Elementary School: How Good is Wind Power for the Environment?

The Trouble With Climate Models

High School: Most Climate Models Tripped Up By Tropical Weather Patterns

Middle School: Climate Models are Missing Something Big

Elementary School: What Are the Climate Models Missing?

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