metamars
12-13-2012, 06:19 PM
(this is a repost of a diary of mine at my.firedoglake.com)
Metamars has emphatically noted, from at least as early as February of this year, that
Exxon-Mobil is the dog that DIDN'T bark
and has threatened to write a diary on the subject. A more recent reminder was issued by your favorite, irrepressible climate dilettante, on November 18, 2012, right here at MyFDL, via a comment in my diary Speaking evil of Australia’s Carbon Tax can cost you a $1.1 Million Fine (http://my.firedoglake.com/metamars/2012/11/17/speaking-evil-of-australias-carbon-tax-can-cost-you-a-1-1-million-fine)*
Well, on Nov 16, 2012, Newsday reported, in Exxon backs Obama plan to impose climate change fees (http://newyork.newsday.com/news/nation/carbon-tax-exxon-backs-obama-plan-to-impose-climate-change-fees-1.4229894)
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) is part of a growing coalition backing a carbon tax as an alternative to costly regulation, giving newfound prominence to an idea once anathema in Washington.
....
Exxon is the biggest U.S. natural-gas producer. A carbon tax could boost demand for natural gas in U.S. power plants, as gas emits half the carbon dioxide as coal when burned to make electricity. Natural gas futures fell 1.5 percent to $3.703 per million British thermal units today. Gas prices fell to a 10- year low in April after mild winter weather crimped demand for heating fuels while production rose to a record.
(emphasis mine)
Never mind the fact that fracking will emit more methane into the atmosphere, and never mind the fact that Chinese per capita CO2 production shot up 9% last year (making minor decreases of green house gases by Western countries of little use),..... metamars will again CHALLENGE PROGRESSIVES WHO WILL LOOK UPON A CARBON TAX WITH GREAT JOY TO NOT GET SO SNOOKERED THAT NONE OF THAT EXTRA GOVERNMENT BOODLE GOES TOWARDS R & D OF REVOLUTIONARY, TOTALLY NON-CARBON, DENSE ENERGY SOURCES.
E.g., Eric Lerner, whose Focus Fusion effort has beaten the fusion big boys wrt a max temperature parameter (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/08/1071933/-In-the-race-for-fusion-a-dark-horse-takes-the-lead), has to waste time and energy soliciting funding. Australia has had a $2,500/per year/per family of 4 carbon tax since earlier this year, but Lerner is still grossly underfunded.
And if LENR's (so-called "cold fusion") (http://discovermagazine.com/2012/nov/27-big-idea-bring-back-the-cold-fusion-dream#.UMprUHf08aM) is developed, but the sheeple are still bleating within the veal pens dictated by their more clever masters, what makes you think that those LENR's will actually be allowed to be sold in the US?
Oil, gas and coal aren't just about energy - they're also about control. People who pretend otherwise, or keep putting their faith in 'authority figures' that are known to have lied about climate, have themselves to blame, most of all. They will have stupidly contributed to their own serfdom.
* a comment of mine from that diary:
The way I see things, we are on a trajectory where we’re going to get a carbon tax, and essentially next to no global mitigation of CO2! How dumb is that! That tax will also come packaged with yet more ‘globaloney’ – in this case, loss of sovereignty to unelected bureaucrats.
I know cap and trade is supposed to be dead, in the US, but as I’ve noted elsewhere, Exxon Mobil is the dog that DIDN’T bark. They are NOT using their ample cash to educate the public about the science against CO2 catastrophism – nor even (for those who don’t believe such science exists; Al Gore is still saying “the science is settled”) to just LIE, and LIE, and LIE, and LIE, AGAIN. (Certainly no problem for a ‘denialist’ company, right?)
In other words, the elite financial establishment is on the side using CO2 catastrophism for continuing their process of turning 95% of us into serfs. The elite establishment has been very successful, so far….. Maybe Obama and the Republicans will put on another dog and pony show, a default will threaten, and just in the nick of time – a carbon tax that will also SAVE THE PLANET EARTH! Yay! Yipee! Oh, how some of us will cheer!! (And if we’re not careful, we won’t even get a carbon tax. Instead, we’ll get cap and trade, perhaps with a chump change transaction tax to help Uncle Sam keep the lights on. Oh, well! The D’s and R’s tried, didn’t they?)
Metamars has emphatically noted, from at least as early as February of this year, that
Exxon-Mobil is the dog that DIDN'T bark
and has threatened to write a diary on the subject. A more recent reminder was issued by your favorite, irrepressible climate dilettante, on November 18, 2012, right here at MyFDL, via a comment in my diary Speaking evil of Australia’s Carbon Tax can cost you a $1.1 Million Fine (http://my.firedoglake.com/metamars/2012/11/17/speaking-evil-of-australias-carbon-tax-can-cost-you-a-1-1-million-fine)*
Well, on Nov 16, 2012, Newsday reported, in Exxon backs Obama plan to impose climate change fees (http://newyork.newsday.com/news/nation/carbon-tax-exxon-backs-obama-plan-to-impose-climate-change-fees-1.4229894)
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) is part of a growing coalition backing a carbon tax as an alternative to costly regulation, giving newfound prominence to an idea once anathema in Washington.
....
Exxon is the biggest U.S. natural-gas producer. A carbon tax could boost demand for natural gas in U.S. power plants, as gas emits half the carbon dioxide as coal when burned to make electricity. Natural gas futures fell 1.5 percent to $3.703 per million British thermal units today. Gas prices fell to a 10- year low in April after mild winter weather crimped demand for heating fuels while production rose to a record.
(emphasis mine)
Never mind the fact that fracking will emit more methane into the atmosphere, and never mind the fact that Chinese per capita CO2 production shot up 9% last year (making minor decreases of green house gases by Western countries of little use),..... metamars will again CHALLENGE PROGRESSIVES WHO WILL LOOK UPON A CARBON TAX WITH GREAT JOY TO NOT GET SO SNOOKERED THAT NONE OF THAT EXTRA GOVERNMENT BOODLE GOES TOWARDS R & D OF REVOLUTIONARY, TOTALLY NON-CARBON, DENSE ENERGY SOURCES.
E.g., Eric Lerner, whose Focus Fusion effort has beaten the fusion big boys wrt a max temperature parameter (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/03/08/1071933/-In-the-race-for-fusion-a-dark-horse-takes-the-lead), has to waste time and energy soliciting funding. Australia has had a $2,500/per year/per family of 4 carbon tax since earlier this year, but Lerner is still grossly underfunded.
And if LENR's (so-called "cold fusion") (http://discovermagazine.com/2012/nov/27-big-idea-bring-back-the-cold-fusion-dream#.UMprUHf08aM) is developed, but the sheeple are still bleating within the veal pens dictated by their more clever masters, what makes you think that those LENR's will actually be allowed to be sold in the US?
Oil, gas and coal aren't just about energy - they're also about control. People who pretend otherwise, or keep putting their faith in 'authority figures' that are known to have lied about climate, have themselves to blame, most of all. They will have stupidly contributed to their own serfdom.
* a comment of mine from that diary:
The way I see things, we are on a trajectory where we’re going to get a carbon tax, and essentially next to no global mitigation of CO2! How dumb is that! That tax will also come packaged with yet more ‘globaloney’ – in this case, loss of sovereignty to unelected bureaucrats.
I know cap and trade is supposed to be dead, in the US, but as I’ve noted elsewhere, Exxon Mobil is the dog that DIDN’T bark. They are NOT using their ample cash to educate the public about the science against CO2 catastrophism – nor even (for those who don’t believe such science exists; Al Gore is still saying “the science is settled”) to just LIE, and LIE, and LIE, and LIE, AGAIN. (Certainly no problem for a ‘denialist’ company, right?)
In other words, the elite financial establishment is on the side using CO2 catastrophism for continuing their process of turning 95% of us into serfs. The elite establishment has been very successful, so far….. Maybe Obama and the Republicans will put on another dog and pony show, a default will threaten, and just in the nick of time – a carbon tax that will also SAVE THE PLANET EARTH! Yay! Yipee! Oh, how some of us will cheer!! (And if we’re not careful, we won’t even get a carbon tax. Instead, we’ll get cap and trade, perhaps with a chump change transaction tax to help Uncle Sam keep the lights on. Oh, well! The D’s and R’s tried, didn’t they?)