Wednesday, June 03, 2009

The New Green Economy: Subsidzed Shell Game of Declining Productivity

SWNIDish kudos go to Hudson Institute Fellow Alex Alexiev for his superb piece at National Review on the economics of so-called renewable energy.

While the media trumpet the President's determination to remake the American economy around green energy, the recent experience of our European cousins shows exactly how miserable are the prospects for a green economy. Germany and Spain, not long ago enthusiastic supporters of solar power, are now running away from the expensive government subsidies necessary to prop up inherently inefficient solar power operations.

Globally, solar power developers are going out of business, albeit more quietly than American auto manufacturers. Were it not for lavish government subsidies, such developers would not exist at all. American infatuation with European policies are often little more than romantic utopianism. In this sad instance, it appears that Americans will ape an Old World model at the very moment that it passes from the scene.

1 comment:

Fozzie Bear said...

An analogy is the military industrial complex and warmongering (or the allegation thereof). The subsidized industry (defense contracts) make money at the expense of everybody else (costly war).

So the greens are proposing that the environmental industrial complex make obscene profits while being subsized by the government, and while doing something worthless (similar to war).

Meanwhile consumers (and business consumers) pay through the nose in higher taxes (to pay for the worthless "technology") and get expensive energy and expensive "green" products to boot.

The only green here is found in the pockets of those who convince the government (and the public) to pay them for the privilege of sticking it to the taxpayer and consumer (me).