Can the importance of today's events be overstated? Probably, but not from this author's perspective. For far too long we Americans have been living beyond our means. The past eight years have been devastating for the environment, not only due to the lack of progress on changing to a sustainable energy economy, but also due to the impact of Greenhouse Gas on Global Climate Change. Two wars and now a broken world economy have served to distract us from regressions on all fronts. The Bush government's War on Science quelled alternative viewpoints and repressed data. Ideology replaced Reality.
Ahhh, what a difference a day makes.
Can we spend or grow our way out of economic hardships? Unlikely. Can we turn technology on our climate and scrub the atmosphere? Again, unlikely -- we ignore the rules of unintended consequences at our peril. However, the population craves a better, safer, healthier, cleaner world and businesses that in the end must be profitable to survive wish to save money. In other words, it takes a willing population and dedicated leadership to effect change. Perhaps, the former begs for the latter.
With sound investments in clean technologies, we can make these things happen. Over time, supply-side Clean Tech (solar, wind and geothermal) will inevitably become more efficient and cheaper. Meanwhile, non-sustainable fossil fuels will continue to get more and more expensive. Likewise, demand-side Clean Tech will continue to improve (lowering per capita demand) through mandated and cost effective energy improvements and again these technology improvements will get cheaper and simply become part of all new and renovation projects.
All of this with the change in government at Noon Eastern Time to a President who is willing to see the world as it is.
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