Have any of you been to Germany lately? What they have accomplished with solar power there is quite amazing.
Likely has something to do with the cost of fossile fuels in Germany. I just looked up the average price for a gallon gas there, it is double the price in the US. Probably the same with coal natural gas and other fossile fuels.
Anytime that the cost of alternative fuels become cheaper than the cost of fossel fuels alternative fuels will replace fossel fuels as the standard. That is a natural capitalistic result.
Personally, I would have no issue with huge taxes being placed on fossel fuels to create the capitalistic result of a migration to renewable energy - as long as that additional tax is a trade off for offseting lower income taxes for the lower income tax brackets.
There is actually no downside to this:
1) Our aggregate taxes will remain the same thus having no negative effect on our economy
2) The economy will naturally adjust to accomidate any effect on individuals at varying income tax brackets and/or useage of fossil fuels
3) Our enviroment will be improved
4) Our dependace on foreign fuels will be reduced
5) We will tend to make personal lifestyle decisions which will enhance our life (small things like only driving to the grocery store once a week instead of twice a week, moving closer to our work or working closer to hour home, etc)
6) Our gov will have less need for expenditures for maintance of roads, for driving law enforcement, etc resulting in even lower taxes on income
7) Our overall health will tend to improve due to an improved enviroment
8) we will have less traffic deaths and injuries
9) health care cost will be reduced
10) we will spend less on vehicle maintanance
11) we will spend less on insurance
12) higher prices on fossil fuels will provide capitalistic demand for non-fossil fuels
13) with lower taxes on working, working is thus encouraged instead of our current policy of penalizing people for working.
etc.
There is no down side other than for peoples ignornant emotional knee-jerk reaction against higher fossil fuel prices.
Now that said, I in no way support cap and trade or cap and tax as both of those concepts are intended to have the end result of enriching certain special groups and have no provision for an offseting reduction in other taxes.