Articles by David Roberts
David Roberts was a staff writer for Grist. You can follow him on Twitter, if you're into that sort of thing.
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Offering a balanced policy would mean admitting that some of the groups they’ve demonized are right
Via Ezra Klein , I see that periodically contrarian conservo-blogger John Cole has good post up about energy policy (also read through the comments on both posts -- there's some good stuff). Here's Cole's proposal for a balanced energy policy:
1.) Domestic drilling 2.) Research for alternative fuel sources other than the outrageous slush-fund known as ethanol subsidies, which should be exhibit A in any argument against having the Iowa Caucus first. 3.) Increased Cafe standards 4.) Radical improvements to Clean Coal 5.) Nuclear plant construction and research in storage of nuclear waste, as well as an administration and Congress with the political will to actually store the waste somewhere, rather than the rag-tag temporary storage everywhere in the country. 6.) Tax credits and incentives for fuel efficient vehicles, energy efficient appliances, energy efficient homes 7.) Increased refining capacity 8.) Increase oil exploration and smart extraction policies 9.) Conservation campaigns 10.) And for goodness sakes, end the tax loophole for SUV's. Are we out of our damned minds?
I don't agree with all of it -- in particular, drilling in the Arctic Refuge for symbolism's sake is just dumb -- but here's the thing: If a U.S. administration came out pushing for this policy, I would dance a friggin' jig (though not, perhaps, as Ezra says, " kill the goddamn caribou myself to help it pass").
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Some not-entirely-coherent thoughts on nuclear power.
I've been pondering the question of nuclear power, about which there is, as Gristmill readers well know, impassioned debate. Here are some random, rambling thoughts:
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Sen. Orrin Hatch takes a swing at reasonable energy policy.
Mike at Green Car Congress brings news that Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) has re-introduced the CLEAR (Clean Efficient Automobiles Resulting from Advanced Car Technologies) Act, a package primarily composed of tax credits and incentives designed to encourage purchase of cleaner cars. Mike's got the details.
(Mike -- like the Worldchangers -- has made the unfortunate web design decision to present long excerpted quotes in italics, which makes them substantially harder to read. Just say no to squinting, fellas.)
