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In Europe, they have had high taxes on gasoline for decades and the result is that they are far less dependent upon foreign oil than the U.S.
THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN:
Quote:
Unlike America, Denmark, which was so badly hammered by the 1973 Arab oil embargo that it banned all Sunday driving for a while, responded to that crisis in such a sustained, focused and systematic way that today it is energy independent. (And it didn’t happen by Danish politicians making their people stupid by telling them the solution was simply more offshore drilling.)
What was the trick? To be sure, Denmark is much smaller than us and was lucky to discover some oil in the North Sea. But despite that, Danes imposed on themselves a set of gasoline taxes, CO2 taxes and building-and-appliance efficiency standards that allowed them to grow their economy — while barely growing their energy consumption — and gave birth to a Danish clean-power industry that is one of the most competitive in the world today. Denmark today gets nearly 20 percent of its electricity from wind. America? About 1 percent.
And did Danes suffer from their government shaping the market with energy taxes to stimulate innovations in clean power? In one word, said Connie Hedegaard, Denmark’s minister of climate and energy: “No.” It just forced them to innovate more — like the way Danes recycle waste heat from their coal-fired power plants and use it for home heating and hot water, or the way they incinerate their trash in central stations to provide home heating. (There are virtually no landfills here.)
There is little whining here about Denmark having $10-a-gallon gasoline because of high energy taxes. The shaping of the market with high energy standards and taxes on fossil fuels by the Danish government has actually had “a positive impact on job creation,” added Hedegaard. “For example, the wind industry — it was nothing in the 1970s. Today, one-third of all terrestrial wind turbines in the world come from Denmark.” In the last 10 years, Denmark’s exports of energy efficiency products have tripled. Energy technology exports rose 8 percent in 2007 to more than $10.5 billion in 2006, compared with a 2 percent rise in 2007 for Danish exports as a whole.
“It is one of our fastest-growing export areas,” said Hedegaard. It is one reason that unemployment in Denmark today is 1.6 percent. In 1973, said Hedegaard, “we got 99 percent of our energy from the Middle East. Today it is zero.”
Frankly, when you compare how America has responded to the 1973 oil shock and how Denmark has responded, we look pathetic.
It is very obvious that Ms. Jackson and her cohorts are ready to pound us on the price of gasoline. They are ready to attempt to force a cut in the amount of sulfur in gasoline and I believe that they are pushing this one as part of the failure of the Congress to pass Cap and Trade for the administration.
It is very obvious that Ms. Jackson and her cohorts are ready to pound us on the price of gasoline. They are ready to attempt to force a cut in the amount of sulfur in gasoline and I believe that they are pushing this one as part of the failure of the Congress to pass Cap and Trade for the administration.
In Europe, they have had high taxes on gasoline for decades and the result is that they are far less dependent upon foreign oil than the U.S.
THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN:
Windmills are impressive where their is sustained wind to support them. Why did our texas oilman Mr. Pickens abandon the idea, must be something in the numbers. In Europe they drive death traps.
Why do beaurocrats always believe they can tax us into prosperity?
We need to transform about 50% of our auto fleet to natural gas, -that is the ticket. We need to immediately suspend use of corn to produce ethanol and groceries will go down to more than make up for the cost of gasoline. What nit wit group of politicians believe a $6.50 bushel of corn can efficiently produce a $3.50 a gallon fuel? Incredible logic!
In Europe, they have had high taxes on gasoline for decades and the result is that they are far less dependent upon foreign oil than the U.S.
THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN:
Taxes are the reason, huh?
What about the difference in geographic expanse as compared to America? Think that has anything to do with it?
It is very obvious that Ms. Jackson and her cohorts are ready to pound us on the price of gasoline. They are ready to attempt to force a cut in the amount of sulfur in gasoline and I believe that they are pushing this one as part of the failure of the Congress to pass Cap and Trade for the administration.
Besides, in a couple of months the oil companies will raise the price of gas by MORE than 25 cents as they do EVERY spring and use the same "we have to change our formulation for the warmer weather" excuse they've clung to 30 years.
Good. Raise it 50 cents. Gas prices are way too cheap in the US. Use the extra money that we get to fix our crumbling bridges. If gas prices keep going up, I think there will also be more demand for natural gas vehicles.
Good. Raise it 50 cents. Gas prices are way too cheap in the US. Use the extra money that we get to fix our crumbling bridges.
We are already taxed to pay for the repair of crumbling bridges.
Why advocate for another revenue stream to be misappropriated, do you hate the working man that much?
Windmills are impressive where their is sustained wind to support them. Why did our texas oilman Mr. Pickens abandon the idea, must be something in the numbers. In Europe they drive death traps.
Why do beaurocrats always believe they can tax us into prosperity?
We need to transform about 50% of our auto fleet to natural gas, -that is the ticket. We need to immediately suspend use of corn to produce ethanol and groceries will go down to more than make up for the cost of gasoline. What nit wit group of politicians believe a $6.50 bushel of corn can efficiently produce a $3.50 a gallon fuel? Incredible logic!
^^^^^^ This is the most logical solution something our politicians will never do since it makes to much sense being that US has plenty of it and most states can get it.
Windmills are impressive where their is sustained wind to support them. Why did our texas oilman Mr. Pickens abandon the idea, must be something in the numbers. In Europe they drive death traps.
Why do beaurocrats always believe they can tax us into prosperity?
We need to transform about 50% of our auto fleet to natural gas, -that is the ticket. We need to immediately suspend use of corn to produce ethanol and groceries will go down to more than make up for the cost of gasoline. What nit wit group of politicians believe a $6.50 bushel of corn can efficiently produce a $3.50 a gallon fuel? Incredible logic!
Mr. Pickens abandoned the idea because he couldn't get taxpayer money to pay for all his transmission lines across the state to get the energy to the cities. He went on to try and steal the water from the ogallalla aquifier and get that to Houston not sure where that has gone. Then he switches to the nat gas and fracking game but havn't heard much howling from him since the cries about groundwater contamination came out. Hell probably end up back in the oil after he's run around sucking every taxpayer penny he can following around the green weenie agenda laughing the whole time.
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