Regrets, Mr. President?
Take it from Dear Leader: “Our energy policy has not been very wise… we, frankly, have got policies that make it harder for us to become less dependent on oil.”
Well, five years ago (even six years ago), when the Dear Leader was obsessing with illegally invading a sovereign nation that posed no threat to our security, some of us were arguing that a better strategy, on many levels, would be an energy policy that released the United States’ dependence on oil. But no. Now the Dear Leader looks back and sees that “our energy policy has not been very wise.”
Higher oil prices will cost the U.S. economy approximately $200 billion in 2008. The war in Iraq has had direct costs approaching $1 trillion over five years, and ultimately may cost upwards of $3 trillion (including indirect costs, primarily borne by Iraqis). Now, suppose that an energy tax — equal, or nearly equal, to today’s energy prices, which appear to be at the limit in terms of the economy’s ability to readily handle — had been imposed in 2002, phased out if oil prices soared. Easily $1 trillion could have been raised over five years to support high-ROI investments in energy efficiency and renewables — and trillions of dollars could have been saved on an unnecessary endless war.
Oh, come now, Payton.
The guy has realized his mistake and apologized…
Uh… well realized his mistake, anyway. Or maybe it was someone else’s mistake, but clearly the foolishness has now been recognized…now.
So just sit back and watch the electrified cars roll in!
T.C.
Well, Bush’s latest idea of a “wise” energy policy is to beg for Saudi oil. Great. The “richest, most powerful nation on earth,” reduced to groveling at the feet of petty tyrants.
The Economist gives some perspective to just how in hock we are to these people: “Goldman Sachs reckons that some $3 trillion of wealth was transferred from oil consumers to oil producers between 2001 and 2007 and the pace of transfer is running at $1.8 trillion a year.”