Sunday, July 31, 2011
Cap and Trade Down Under, Part 4
In the middle of a world-wide food storage, Australia is converting farm and grazing land over to carbon sequestration as part of its ill-advised "cap and trade" scheme. Why is this a good idea?
Eye on Detroit
CNBC covers the triage Detroit is undertaking to decide which neighborhoods to save and which to plow under in their dying city. I will continue to suggest Detroit Free City and the new Hanseatic league as long as I am allowed to type.
(Via InstaPundit)
(Via InstaPundit)
Follow the Money: Foundations and Politics
Katherine Kersten writes in her Sunday column in the Minneapolis Star Tribune about the rise of leftist independent political groups in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and elsewhere.
Union money is funding much of the effort, but as I documented in this post about the donations of the non-profit Tides Foundation to two of these political groups, non-profits are another important source of money.
Of course, in the fever-swamp world of the Star Tribune comments section we hear about the same handful of right-wing groups. Truth be told, the reason you hear so much about the Koch Brothers, etc. is that these are the only folks on the right. For every Koch brother, there are 100 billionaires on the left funding all manner of causes.
But here is the point: in theory, unions are answerable to their members, corporations answer to their shareholders, but to whom do foundations answer?
Union money is funding much of the effort, but as I documented in this post about the donations of the non-profit Tides Foundation to two of these political groups, non-profits are another important source of money.
Of course, in the fever-swamp world of the Star Tribune comments section we hear about the same handful of right-wing groups. Truth be told, the reason you hear so much about the Koch Brothers, etc. is that these are the only folks on the right. For every Koch brother, there are 100 billionaires on the left funding all manner of causes.
But here is the point: in theory, unions are answerable to their members, corporations answer to their shareholders, but to whom do foundations answer?
Soaring Debt and the Decline of the American Empire
Margaret Wente writes in the Globe and Mail about how America's out-of-control debt is contributing to the decline of the empire. Wente observes,
"The only thing that unites the Democrats and the Republicans in Washington today is their mutual desire to suppress the truth. Nobody wants to come clean about how deep the fiscal hole really is. None of the players trying to negotiate a deal has anything to say about entitlement programs such as social security, Medicare or Medicaid. Together, these account for more than 40 per cent of all federal spending."
Plus: bonus Walter Russell Mead quote.
(Via Hot Air)
"The only thing that unites the Democrats and the Republicans in Washington today is their mutual desire to suppress the truth. Nobody wants to come clean about how deep the fiscal hole really is. None of the players trying to negotiate a deal has anything to say about entitlement programs such as social security, Medicare or Medicaid. Together, these account for more than 40 per cent of all federal spending."
Plus: bonus Walter Russell Mead quote.
(Via Hot Air)
Saturday, July 30, 2011
George Will on the "Declaration of Independents"
George Will has a great column on the new book Declaration of Independents by libertarians Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch. The thesis seems to be that the generation that grew up with the iPhone and the Internet will not stand long for the incompetence and sloth of government.
Great quote of " 'politics is a lagging indicator of change,' a sector of top-down traditions increasingly out of step with today’s 'bottom-up business and culture' '.
Rebuilding from the bottom up!
Great quote of " 'politics is a lagging indicator of change,' a sector of top-down traditions increasingly out of step with today’s 'bottom-up business and culture' '.
Rebuilding from the bottom up!
Aspirational Conservatism: The Independent Worker Society
Picking up on the Charles Moore challenge from the last post, I am looking to expand my thoughts on "Aspirational Conservatism" from last December.
Walter Russell Mead's most recent essay, "Where are the jobs?" is his first attempt at describing where the new jobs will come from, as the old models break down. He describes a number of high-end, personal services and references this post from Matthew Yglesias on The Yoga Instructor Economy.
While I think Mead has done a service by sketching out a few future profession possibilities, I believe we can expand the concept into a broader "Independent Worker Society".
Call them "free agents," independent contractors, free lancers, telecommuters, or what have you, entrepreneurs working for themselves will be the wave of the future. What we need to do is to foster policies and incentives to encourage people to take charge of their own lives and their own livelihoods. The days of the lifetime corporate or government job are over: careers will look very different going forward. But it can be a good future, one with more personal fulfillment and more control.
Walter Russell Mead's most recent essay, "Where are the jobs?" is his first attempt at describing where the new jobs will come from, as the old models break down. He describes a number of high-end, personal services and references this post from Matthew Yglesias on The Yoga Instructor Economy.
While I think Mead has done a service by sketching out a few future profession possibilities, I believe we can expand the concept into a broader "Independent Worker Society".
Call them "free agents," independent contractors, free lancers, telecommuters, or what have you, entrepreneurs working for themselves will be the wave of the future. What we need to do is to foster policies and incentives to encourage people to take charge of their own lives and their own livelihoods. The days of the lifetime corporate or government job are over: careers will look very different going forward. But it can be a good future, one with more personal fulfillment and more control.
Conservatism for the People
Charles Moore has a great piece in the Daily Telegraph on how conservatism needs to get back to its Reagan/Thatcher roots as a movement for the masses.
Writes Moore,
"But our present [UK] government, though perfectly sensible about the desperate need to control its own spending and borrowing, never seems to encourage the capacities of the rest of us. Its self-presentation is still obsessed with not seeming nasty. It doesn’t dare identify with those (“the workers, not the shirkers” – Thatcher, 1975) on whose efforts the general prosperity depends..."
"So the priorities and incentives are wrong. They reflect the preoccupations of the elite rather than the aspirations of the multitude."
Writes Moore,
"But our present [UK] government, though perfectly sensible about the desperate need to control its own spending and borrowing, never seems to encourage the capacities of the rest of us. Its self-presentation is still obsessed with not seeming nasty. It doesn’t dare identify with those (“the workers, not the shirkers” – Thatcher, 1975) on whose efforts the general prosperity depends..."
"So the priorities and incentives are wrong. They reflect the preoccupations of the elite rather than the aspirations of the multitude."
Saving Life on this Planet as We Know It
Nancy Pelosi has famously described the debt ceiling debate as nothing less than "trying to save life on this planet as we know it today." It's one of those gaffes that inadvertently reveals the truth: for many on her side of the debate, it really is about preserving a way of life.
Mark Steyn picks up the thread in his weekly syndicated column, and not too far from David Strom's piece discussed earlier, before taking it global.
Steyn's thesis,
"For dominant powers in decline, it starts with the money, for Washington as for London and Rome before it. But it never stops there. The horizons shrivel. Two-bit provocateurs across the map pick off remnants of the old order with ever greater ease."
Not quite on topic, but I love this quote,
"Meanwhile, the Lockerbie bomber has been appearing at delirious pro-Gadhafi rallies. Remember the Lockerbie bomber? He was returned to Libya because he was terminally ill and only had three months to live. That was two years ago. It's amazing what getting out of the care of the Scottish National Health Service can do for your life expectancy."
Mark Steyn picks up the thread in his weekly syndicated column, and not too far from David Strom's piece discussed earlier, before taking it global.
Steyn's thesis,
"For dominant powers in decline, it starts with the money, for Washington as for London and Rome before it. But it never stops there. The horizons shrivel. Two-bit provocateurs across the map pick off remnants of the old order with ever greater ease."
Not quite on topic, but I love this quote,
"Meanwhile, the Lockerbie bomber has been appearing at delirious pro-Gadhafi rallies. Remember the Lockerbie bomber? He was returned to Libya because he was terminally ill and only had three months to live. That was two years ago. It's amazing what getting out of the care of the Scottish National Health Service can do for your life expectancy."
Republicans playing hardball
Fresh from his triumph in the pages of the Wall Street Journal, David Strom has an opinion piece appearing in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune (Saturday seems to be his lucky day). David muses on why Republicans seemed to have found a backbone of late.
In short,
"Republicans are determined to avoid insolvency -- the point at which we can no longer pay all our bills. The only way to do that in the long run is to scale down spending. And the only way to scale down spending is to start insisting that our political establishment give up the illusion that we can continue business as usual..."
"Republicans have to play hardball in the current environment. We see the country speeding toward a cliff others have already gone over."
The comments are just what you would expect them to be from the readers of the paper known as "The Star and Sickle." Commenters seemed determined to prove the adage that "bad discourse drives out good."
The scores of angry comments directed at David are very illustrative of the "shoot the messenger" quality of our political discourse these days. From Greece to Ireland to St. Paul many folks just cannot admit that the modern welfare state has run its course. Something new will take its place, but change is scary. David is just the man delivering the message.
In short,
"Republicans are determined to avoid insolvency -- the point at which we can no longer pay all our bills. The only way to do that in the long run is to scale down spending. And the only way to scale down spending is to start insisting that our political establishment give up the illusion that we can continue business as usual..."
"Republicans have to play hardball in the current environment. We see the country speeding toward a cliff others have already gone over."
The comments are just what you would expect them to be from the readers of the paper known as "The Star and Sickle." Commenters seemed determined to prove the adage that "bad discourse drives out good."
The scores of angry comments directed at David are very illustrative of the "shoot the messenger" quality of our political discourse these days. From Greece to Ireland to St. Paul many folks just cannot admit that the modern welfare state has run its course. Something new will take its place, but change is scary. David is just the man delivering the message.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Congrats to the Beckhams
The Wall Street Journal adds their best wishes to those congratulating David and Victoria Beckham on the birth of their fourth child, Harper (the editorial is available to all on the net). Others have managed to turn the occasion into a screed against carbon consuming humans. I especially liked this quote from the Journal,
"It's hard to argue with the logic that forgoing new life will avoid the problems it brings. But this also ignores that young Harper Beckham might grow up to be more than a bundle of carbon emissions clamoring for more resources to consume. Humans create many of our own problems, but we're also the only hope of solving them."
Indeed.
"It's hard to argue with the logic that forgoing new life will avoid the problems it brings. But this also ignores that young Harper Beckham might grow up to be more than a bundle of carbon emissions clamoring for more resources to consume. Humans create many of our own problems, but we're also the only hope of solving them."
Indeed.
The Decline and Fall of Los Angeles, Part 1
Joel Kotkin has a great piece in today's Wall Street Journal on "How Los Angeles Lost Its Mojo" (subscription only). Once a great economic and industrial powerhouse, government policies have chased away much of the industry, a great deal of the economy, and now, many of the people. If you suspect that "smart growth" lurks amongst the culprits, you're right. But the problems often begets the solution, as this quote shows, from Ron Kaye, former editor of the Daily News, based in the San Fernando Valley,
"There are the places [the Valley] that reflect the whole idea of L.A., as opposed to the [Mayor] Vilaraigosa vision of a city of apartment dwellers."
Keep fighting back!
"There are the places [the Valley] that reflect the whole idea of L.A., as opposed to the [Mayor] Vilaraigosa vision of a city of apartment dwellers."
Keep fighting back!
Follow the Money: Oops, They Did it Again
The Minneapolis Star Tribune published another story by Dan Haugen at Midwest Energy News. The article appears as straight news, on page D5 of today's business section.
As you recall, Midwest Energy News is a program of RE-AMP, a initiative lavishly funded by some of our nation's largest philanthropic foundations and operated by the Minnesota-based environmental advocacy group Fresh Energy.
The article reports on how profitable to energy utilities the state-mandated energy efficiency programs have become. Generous, ratepayer-funded incentives have allowed utilities to develop their conservation programs as profit centers. No report on how customers feel about this development.
Also unreported is how Midwest Energy News' parent was the organization lobbying for these policies.
So we have an advocate journalist reporting on how well the policies pushed by his advocate group paymaster are working out. No conflict there.
As you recall, Midwest Energy News is a program of RE-AMP, a initiative lavishly funded by some of our nation's largest philanthropic foundations and operated by the Minnesota-based environmental advocacy group Fresh Energy.
The article reports on how profitable to energy utilities the state-mandated energy efficiency programs have become. Generous, ratepayer-funded incentives have allowed utilities to develop their conservation programs as profit centers. No report on how customers feel about this development.
Also unreported is how Midwest Energy News' parent was the organization lobbying for these policies.
So we have an advocate journalist reporting on how well the policies pushed by his advocate group paymaster are working out. No conflict there.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
America's Decaying Infrastructure
Our decaying infrastructure is the subject of this post by Walter Russell Mead on his blog. It's a subject I have bored audiences with across the state. If we had only spent the stimulus money on this problem.
We need more bad jobs
The folks from the Institute for Justice have an opinion piece in today's Wall Street Journal entitled "Want Jobs? Cut Local Regulations" (subscription only). I was introduced to this group at the Right Online Conference in Minneapolis this year. They file lawsuits on behalf of small business people fighting city hall red tape. The example they gave was this video for food truck vendors in El Paso.
The focus in the WSJ piece is on state occupational licensing as a barrier to entry into the workforce,
"Only one in 20 workers needed the government's permission to pursue their chosen occupation in the 1950s....Today that figure is nearly one in three."
"In Alabama, it takes 700 hours of training to become a manicurist."
This is along the same lines as Walter Russell Mead's call for more "bad" jobs,
"When politicians talk about creating jobs, they always talk about creating “good” jobs. That is all very well, but unless there are bad jobs and lots of them, people in the inner cities will have a hard time getting on the ladder at all, much less climbing into the middle class."
The focus in the WSJ piece is on state occupational licensing as a barrier to entry into the workforce,
"Only one in 20 workers needed the government's permission to pursue their chosen occupation in the 1950s....Today that figure is nearly one in three."
"In Alabama, it takes 700 hours of training to become a manicurist."
This is along the same lines as Walter Russell Mead's call for more "bad" jobs,
"When politicians talk about creating jobs, they always talk about creating “good” jobs. That is all very well, but unless there are bad jobs and lots of them, people in the inner cities will have a hard time getting on the ladder at all, much less climbing into the middle class."
Rural US disappearing?
That's the AP headline now linked on Drudge. Rural America is not disappearing, it's still there, but with fewer people. In 1910, rural America housed 72 percent of our total population, now we are down to 16 percent. The share of Americans living in suburbs is at an all-time high of 51 percent. We are a suburban nation.
It seems likely that this population shift has had profound implications for our society and our economy that we do not fully understand.
It seems likely that this population shift has had profound implications for our society and our economy that we do not fully understand.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
California's War on the Suburbs
At New Geography, Joel Kotkin posts a dispatch from California's war against the single-family home. Yes, you guessed it, the culprit is the quest for "density".
Life in AA America: 'The Ship Be Sinking'
Bear with me a moment.
My all time favorite sports locker room quote comes from former NBA-star Michael Ray Richardson, commenting on the poor play of his early-1980's New York Knicks team,
Richardson: "The ship be sinking."
Reporter: "How far can it sink?"
Richardson: "The sky's the limit."
I recalled the Richardson quote (he's now a successful minor league coach) while listening to this interview on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" yesterday, while driving around town. NPR interviews Bill Gross, the founder of PIMCO, an investment management firm, on the ongoing debt ceiling crisis in Washington. Gross has predicted that the U.S. will eventually lose its AAA credit rating. In yesterday's interview he reaffirmed his view of U.S. credit as "AA moving toward A".
Reflecting on the national debt crisis, I can't move past my Lewis Carroll observation from earlier: our political class seems extraordinarily capable of "believing impossible things." Namely, they seem able to believe that we can continue to spend at a rate that requires borrowing 43 cents for every dollar we that goes out, indefinitely.
I will follow Walter Russell Mead's advice and ignore the hour-to-hour twists and turns in the debt ceiling crisis. But the general trend of events gives me a sinking feeling.
For a counter-point, Mead recommends this piece by Robert Samuelson in the Washington Post. Samuelson argues that the elites are beginning to pay attention and the latest events represents nothing less than "a crisis of the old order."
My all time favorite sports locker room quote comes from former NBA-star Michael Ray Richardson, commenting on the poor play of his early-1980's New York Knicks team,
Richardson: "The ship be sinking."
Reporter: "How far can it sink?"
Richardson: "The sky's the limit."
I recalled the Richardson quote (he's now a successful minor league coach) while listening to this interview on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" yesterday, while driving around town. NPR interviews Bill Gross, the founder of PIMCO, an investment management firm, on the ongoing debt ceiling crisis in Washington. Gross has predicted that the U.S. will eventually lose its AAA credit rating. In yesterday's interview he reaffirmed his view of U.S. credit as "AA moving toward A".
Reflecting on the national debt crisis, I can't move past my Lewis Carroll observation from earlier: our political class seems extraordinarily capable of "believing impossible things." Namely, they seem able to believe that we can continue to spend at a rate that requires borrowing 43 cents for every dollar we that goes out, indefinitely.
I will follow Walter Russell Mead's advice and ignore the hour-to-hour twists and turns in the debt ceiling crisis. But the general trend of events gives me a sinking feeling.
For a counter-point, Mead recommends this piece by Robert Samuelson in the Washington Post. Samuelson argues that the elites are beginning to pay attention and the latest events represents nothing less than "a crisis of the old order."
A "Breakthrough" on the Climate Debate?
In an effort to move the climate debate onto more useful ground, the Hartwell group has issued a report on
"Climate Pragmatism: Innovation, Resilience and No Regrets". The group of 14 writers includes both principals of the Breakthrough Institute as well as Steven Hayward of Power Line blog and the American Enterprise Institute.
Although I don't think we should shut down all of America's coal plants, I believe moving the discussion away from global climate treaties to more practical work on innovation and adaptation is the right move.
Detroit Free City
The Detroit Free Press carries a story about downtown Detroit businesses offering cash incentives to employees who wish to live downtown, near work, under a "Live Downtown" program. It's being spun as an effort to create "smart growth"-style "density", but it is really an effort to repopulate a fast emptying city.
While an interesting idea, I prefer my Detroit Free City, free-trade, tax-exempt Charter City concept.
(Not to be confused with Detroit Rock City, the movie tribute to the rock band Kiss and coming of age in 1970's Detroit or the Detroit Free Press, the newspaper mentioned earlier in this post.)
Meanwhile, Detroit Mayor Bing is moving ahead with his plan to save the city one neighborhood at a time.
While an interesting idea, I prefer my Detroit Free City, free-trade, tax-exempt Charter City concept.
(Not to be confused with Detroit Rock City, the movie tribute to the rock band Kiss and coming of age in 1970's Detroit or the Detroit Free Press, the newspaper mentioned earlier in this post.)
Meanwhile, Detroit Mayor Bing is moving ahead with his plan to save the city one neighborhood at a time.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Believing Impossible Things
Recent events have remained me of the passage from Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass involving Alice and the White Queen,
"I can't believe that!" said Alice.
"Can't you?" the Queen said in a pitying tone. "Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your eyes."
Alice laughed. "There's no use trying," she said: "one can't believe impossible things."
"I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."
"I can't believe that!" said Alice.
"Can't you?" the Queen said in a pitying tone. "Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your eyes."
Alice laughed. "There's no use trying," she said: "one can't believe impossible things."
"I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."
Monday, July 25, 2011
Heirloom Electricity
I expanded an earlier post into a short essay, "Heirloom Electricity", which now appears as a separate page, above.
Why can't I buy electricity at the farmers' market?
Walmart, famous for low prices, is America's largest grocer. Yet farmers' markets seem to be more popular than ever. At the farmers' market I can buy an heirloom tomato, but not heirloom electricity. At Walmart I can buy "dolphin safe" tuna, but not "eagle safe" wind power.
The way consumers buy everything from fresh produce, to telecommunications, to books (name just about any consumer good) has undergone radical transformation in the past decade or two. But we are still buying electricity the same way we purchased it from Samuel Insull back in the 1920's.
As I noted in a previous post, despite his misgivings about the economics of small scale solar, software billionaire Bill Gates has solar panels on his roof, because they are "cute" and he is rich. So why not? Why not let the rich and fashionable buy bespoke electricity at haute couture prices? The rest of us can buy our power at Walmart.
Instead, much of our energy policy is centered around having all ratepayers pay for the energy production preferences of a few, elite consumers. We should make greater use of a tool that already exists: green pricing programs, which allow wealthier consumers to pay a premium to feel better about their energy consumption.
Although green pricing programs have been popular where tried, I think we could learn something from the "conspicuous nonconsumption" movement and market haute couture electricity as an ultra-premium product. We can then use the extra revenue to make electricity affordable for the rest of us.
I've already solved the conspicuous part: those who buy the premium product can display a small, discrete sign outside their homes signalling their earth-friendly purchase of electricity.
The way consumers buy everything from fresh produce, to telecommunications, to books (name just about any consumer good) has undergone radical transformation in the past decade or two. But we are still buying electricity the same way we purchased it from Samuel Insull back in the 1920's.
As I noted in a previous post, despite his misgivings about the economics of small scale solar, software billionaire Bill Gates has solar panels on his roof, because they are "cute" and he is rich. So why not? Why not let the rich and fashionable buy bespoke electricity at haute couture prices? The rest of us can buy our power at Walmart.
Instead, much of our energy policy is centered around having all ratepayers pay for the energy production preferences of a few, elite consumers. We should make greater use of a tool that already exists: green pricing programs, which allow wealthier consumers to pay a premium to feel better about their energy consumption.
Although green pricing programs have been popular where tried, I think we could learn something from the "conspicuous nonconsumption" movement and market haute couture electricity as an ultra-premium product. We can then use the extra revenue to make electricity affordable for the rest of us.
I've already solved the conspicuous part: those who buy the premium product can display a small, discrete sign outside their homes signalling their earth-friendly purchase of electricity.
Bill Gates on "Cute" Solar Power
In Wired magazine, there is a great interview with Bill Gates on energy. While interesting in its entirely, this passage on Solar Power has caught the eyes of many, including the Wall Street Journal,
[Gates] "Do we want everybody to have [solar power] on their roof? No. It’s just not going to happen."
[Wired] "So suffice to say we will find no solar cells on the roof of the Gates residence?"
[Gates] "Oh, we like to be cute like everyone. For rich people, this is OK. Rich people can do whatever they want."
Exactly. Rich people can do whatever they want, regardless of cost. The problem comes when we foist what is "cute" and fashionable and frightfully expensive on those of us who are not rich.
In the Wired interview, Gates makes a number of other goods points about energy policy. This passage should make the guys at the Breakthrough Institute happy,
"We’re putting 90 percent of the [solar] subsidies in deployment—this is true in Europe and the United States—not in R&D. And so unfortunately you get technologies that, no matter how much of them you buy, there’s no path to being economical. You need fundamental breakthroughs, which come more out of basic research."
Gates on efficiency,
"But can we, by increasing efficiency, deal with our climate problem? The answer is basically no. The climate problem requires more than a 90 percent reduction in CO2 emitted, and no amount of efficiency improvement is going to address that."
[Gates] "Do we want everybody to have [solar power] on their roof? No. It’s just not going to happen."
[Wired] "So suffice to say we will find no solar cells on the roof of the Gates residence?"
[Gates] "Oh, we like to be cute like everyone. For rich people, this is OK. Rich people can do whatever they want."
Exactly. Rich people can do whatever they want, regardless of cost. The problem comes when we foist what is "cute" and fashionable and frightfully expensive on those of us who are not rich.
In the Wired interview, Gates makes a number of other goods points about energy policy. This passage should make the guys at the Breakthrough Institute happy,
"We’re putting 90 percent of the [solar] subsidies in deployment—this is true in Europe and the United States—not in R&D. And so unfortunately you get technologies that, no matter how much of them you buy, there’s no path to being economical. You need fundamental breakthroughs, which come more out of basic research."
Gates on efficiency,
"But can we, by increasing efficiency, deal with our climate problem? The answer is basically no. The climate problem requires more than a 90 percent reduction in CO2 emitted, and no amount of efficiency improvement is going to address that."
Why Can't I Buy "Eagle Safe" Electricity?
The top article on page 1 of today's Minneapolis Star Tribune concerns the alleged threat posed to eagles by a controversial wind farm proposed for the southeastern part of Minnesota. "Avian mortality" is the industry term for bird and bat fatalities caused by wind turbines and associated structures. The "condor Cuisinart" of Altamont Pass, California, is perhaps the most infamous example.
If I can go to my supermarket and buy "dolphin friendly" tuna, why can't I buy "eagle friendly" electricity from my local utility. If I am willing to pay more to ensure that my tuna is sourced from dolphin friendly providers. I should have a similar option for electricity. This seems like a business opportunity that's gone begging.
If I can go to my supermarket and buy "dolphin friendly" tuna, why can't I buy "eagle friendly" electricity from my local utility. If I am willing to pay more to ensure that my tuna is sourced from dolphin friendly providers. I should have a similar option for electricity. This seems like a business opportunity that's gone begging.
Follow the Money: Democratic Accountability
This piece by Pranab Bardhan in Boston Review is getting some much deserved attention. Bardhan argues that NGO's operating in developing countries lack (small "d") democratic accountability for their actions. The piece is well worth reading on its own.
But I would extend Bardhan's argument to NGO's operating in developed countries. My experiences with environmental non-profits in America, in many aspects, mirrors those described by Bardhan in developing nations.
In democratic societies, elected and appointed officials are ultimately accountable to voters. For-profit corporations are accountable to their shareholders and to regulators. To whom are non-profit corporations and philanthropic foundations accountable? Often, the benefactors of these institutions are long dead. They have no shareholders or elected boards. They are subject to little or no regulation on their activities. Yet they spend millions of dollars lobbying to influence public policy.
But I would extend Bardhan's argument to NGO's operating in developed countries. My experiences with environmental non-profits in America, in many aspects, mirrors those described by Bardhan in developing nations.
In democratic societies, elected and appointed officials are ultimately accountable to voters. For-profit corporations are accountable to their shareholders and to regulators. To whom are non-profit corporations and philanthropic foundations accountable? Often, the benefactors of these institutions are long dead. They have no shareholders or elected boards. They are subject to little or no regulation on their activities. Yet they spend millions of dollars lobbying to influence public policy.
Constitutional Convention in the Cards?
The Instapundit, Glenn Reynolds, writes the forward to the latest issue of the Tennessee Law Review, an issue devoted to the implication of having a federal Constitutional convention. I am still leaning toward thinking that this would be a good idea, if for no other reason than to affirm what is already in the document.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Reviving Upstate New York
In this weekend's Wall Street Journal (subscriber only), Jonathan Cohen and John Giardino of the New York Policy Forum have a great column on how to revive the economy of upstate New York, from Buffalo to Syracuse. What they write on the subject of economic (re)development is music to my ears. Some excerpts,
"Can the region revive? Not as long as it follows the failed top-down strategy its leaders have long pursued."
Referencing real estate deals disguised as economic development strategies,
"If there is one lesson to be learned from New York State's history, it's that people and ideas must precede bricks and mortar."
Their recommendations,
"First, everyone needs to stop running recklessly at mirage-like projects. Instead, resources should be invested in making communities work for the people who live in them now."
They also recommend developing the state's natural gas resources, reforming Albany to give cities more control over their employee costs, and pursuing "policies that encourage local entrepreneurship--not dependence on Albany and Washington."
"Can the region revive? Not as long as it follows the failed top-down strategy its leaders have long pursued."
Referencing real estate deals disguised as economic development strategies,
"If there is one lesson to be learned from New York State's history, it's that people and ideas must precede bricks and mortar."
Their recommendations,
"First, everyone needs to stop running recklessly at mirage-like projects. Instead, resources should be invested in making communities work for the people who live in them now."
They also recommend developing the state's natural gas resources, reforming Albany to give cities more control over their employee costs, and pursuing "policies that encourage local entrepreneurship--not dependence on Albany and Washington."
God and The New Lumpenproletariat
Walter Russell Mead continues his series on liberalism and urban policy. Read his prescription for rebuilding from the ground up.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Steyn on the New Austerity
Over in Europe anyway. In his weekly column, Steyn points out how Austerity is all the rage across the Atlantic, but over here, not so much.
Any column that can employ the "Cap of Maintenance" as part of a useful analogy deserves to be read.
Any column that can employ the "Cap of Maintenance" as part of a useful analogy deserves to be read.
EPA Power Grab in North Dakota
The Bismarck Tribune reports that the federal Environmental Protection Agency has filed to take over part of North Dakota's state government in a dispute over coal plant emissions.
Whatever the merits of the case, this sort of naked power grab does little to advance the cause of trust in government.
Whatever the merits of the case, this sort of naked power grab does little to advance the cause of trust in government.
"Reform is in the Air"
Minnesota's budget crisis has abated, for the time being, and "reform" is in the air. The West Central Tribune, a rural Minnesota newspaper, reports that legislative leaders and Governor Dayton are interested in pursuing ideas for reforming the way state government operates.
Quoting the Governor,
“I want to go top to bottom with us as a state and really transform how we deliver services and do them better,” Dayton said in a Forum Communications interview.
I hope so. Too many people have a strong vested interest in the status quo, no matter how disfunctional. Also, where will these new ideas come from? Let's not go from bad to worse.
Rest assured, this blog will be watching this space closely.
Quoting the Governor,
“I want to go top to bottom with us as a state and really transform how we deliver services and do them better,” Dayton said in a Forum Communications interview.
I hope so. Too many people have a strong vested interest in the status quo, no matter how disfunctional. Also, where will these new ideas come from? Let's not go from bad to worse.
Rest assured, this blog will be watching this space closely.
Return to the Suburbs
Over at New Geography, Joel Kotkin charts the return of young people to the suburbs. It turns out that just wishing for big demographic and geographic shifts don't make them so.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
"Ozymandias" in the News
Last week I reprinted the Shelley Poem "Ozymandias" after Mark Steyn referenced it in his weekly column. Now Walter Russell Mead references the poem in describing the Abu Dhabi Sheikh who had his name painted in the Arabian desert in letters you can read from space.
From the Daily Mail:
The poem, again,
"I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: `Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear --
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away' "
From the Daily Mail:
The poem, again,
"I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: `Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear --
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away' "
Follow the Money: Mayor Bloomberg Hates Coal
From the UK's Guardian, billionaire New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is giving $50 million to the Sierra Club's anti-coal campaign.
Find out here how the Sierra Club will be spending the Mayor's money in Minnesota.
Find out here how the Sierra Club will be spending the Mayor's money in Minnesota.
Environmentalism's Nihilistic Impulse, Part 3
Now I'm really confused.
In the last item, I link to a report that has the U.K government-owned BBC banning climate skeptics in favor of the majority consensus of scientists, based on the recommendation of Steve Jones, a professor of genetics.
So I assumed that genetics was some branch of science. Now comes word that Greenpeace activists have destroyed a crop of genetically modified wheat being grown by the Australian government. (To his credit, Prof. Jones did list GM foods as another issue in his BBC report).
Does the environmental movement like science or not?
(Via Walter Russell Mead)
In the last item, I link to a report that has the U.K government-owned BBC banning climate skeptics in favor of the majority consensus of scientists, based on the recommendation of Steve Jones, a professor of genetics.
So I assumed that genetics was some branch of science. Now comes word that Greenpeace activists have destroyed a crop of genetically modified wheat being grown by the Australian government. (To his credit, Prof. Jones did list GM foods as another issue in his BBC report).
Does the environmental movement like science or not?
(Via Walter Russell Mead)
What Would Galileo Think? BBC Bans Skeptics
According to the BBC, science is whatever the majority of scientists say it is. Someone needs to ask Galileo what he thinks of that idea. The BBC will limit the viewpoints of "climate sceptics" on their airwaves, because a professor of genetics has told them that they need to report only the "majority consensus" on the subject.
I for one say we should vote on gravity. I find it inconvenient at times.
I for one say we should vote on gravity. I find it inconvenient at times.
Some Reality on Wind Power
The indispensable Robert Bryce, writing on Forbes.com describes a recent study questioning just how effective wind power is at reducing pollutants in the electric power sector.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Environmentalism's Nihilistic Impulse, Part 2
The UK's Guardian has this piece criticizing David and Victoria Beckham for having four children. Too big a carbon footprint, you see.
(Via Planet Gore)
(Via Planet Gore)
Minnesota Shutdown is Over
The partial shutdown of the Minnesota state government over the budget dispute has ended. Upon reflection, I can't help but think of the Churchill quote, addressing the surprisingly successful evacuation of Allied armies from Dunkirk in 1940,
"We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory."
"We must be very careful not to assign to this deliverance the attributes of a victory."
Follow the Money Goes International!
Via Daniel Hannan, MEP, this blog is looking into whether the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is getting paid (indirectly) by the European Union to support EU policies.
Darren Clarke Returns Home to Northern Ireland
And presents his gold medal to his home club. Here is a photo with his fellow countrymen and major champions.
Cap and Trade Down Under, Part 3
It's been interesting to watch the carbon tax/cap and trade debate going on in Australia this month, as the politics seems to mirror much of our own here in the States.
For example, this account from the Sydney Morning Herald focuses on alleged "gaffes" from the leader of the opposition, Tony Abbott. Rather than focus on the substance of the government's proposal, this media outlet chooses to parse old history on who said what, as if Mr. Abbott were Sarah Palin.
But the penultimate sentence provides useful information,
''Australia produces less than 1.5 per cent of the world's carbon emissions but will pay the world's biggest carbon tax.''
Not exactly good "value for money", I would say.
For example, this account from the Sydney Morning Herald focuses on alleged "gaffes" from the leader of the opposition, Tony Abbott. Rather than focus on the substance of the government's proposal, this media outlet chooses to parse old history on who said what, as if Mr. Abbott were Sarah Palin.
But the penultimate sentence provides useful information,
''Australia produces less than 1.5 per cent of the world's carbon emissions but will pay the world's biggest carbon tax.''
Not exactly good "value for money", I would say.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
The Budget Debate: Live on MPR
The budget debate is going on live at the Minnesota Public Radio website. David Strom of the Minnesota Free Market Institute and John Van Hecke of Minnesota 2020 are squaring off on the causes of the state budget deficit.
This public, head-to-head discussion is just the sort of thing we have too little of in our public discourse. I encourage one and all to follow the progress of the debate as it unfolds this week.
This public, head-to-head discussion is just the sort of thing we have too little of in our public discourse. I encourage one and all to follow the progress of the debate as it unfolds this week.
Cap and Trade Down Under, Part 2
, As I have noted before, the Labor Government of Australia is pushing a carbon tax/cap and trade plan for that resource-rich economy. This story is worth watching because of the parallels between Australia and the U.S.
Walter Russell Mead posts on the "Green Civil War" brewing in that land down under. Some of the locals wonder if the scheme will actually work.
The Breakthrough Institute provides a useful public service in examining the Australian proposal in detail.
Walter Russell Mead posts on the "Green Civil War" brewing in that land down under. Some of the locals wonder if the scheme will actually work.
The Breakthrough Institute provides a useful public service in examining the Australian proposal in detail.
Environmentalism's Nihilistic Impulse, Part 1
Environmentalism likes to portray itself as the ultimate conservation ethic: it claims a mandate to preserve endangered species and fragile ecosystems. More and more, I think that just the opposite may be true: that at its heart, environmentalism is a creed of nihilism, more interested in destruction than preservation.
I'm not just talking about fringe groups like Earth First!
Consider the popularity of the History Channel series "Life After People." What would make a series about the planet without humans the most popular series ever on the channel?
Or consider the casual neo-Malthusianism of the movement. Here is a piece I found on the "Environment" page of the website for The Guardian, a lefty British newspaper. The article laments that the Earth's human population will soon pass 7 billion, perhaps as early as this year. Writes The Guardian,
"We can't stop the growth of our numbers in any acceptable way immediately. But we can put in place conditions that will support an early end to growth, possibly making this year's the last billion-population day we ever mark."
'In any acceptable way'? What unacceptable ways did the authors consider and discard?
Look for more development of this idea on this site.
I'm not just talking about fringe groups like Earth First!
Consider the popularity of the History Channel series "Life After People." What would make a series about the planet without humans the most popular series ever on the channel?
Or consider the casual neo-Malthusianism of the movement. Here is a piece I found on the "Environment" page of the website for The Guardian, a lefty British newspaper. The article laments that the Earth's human population will soon pass 7 billion, perhaps as early as this year. Writes The Guardian,
"We can't stop the growth of our numbers in any acceptable way immediately. But we can put in place conditions that will support an early end to growth, possibly making this year's the last billion-population day we ever mark."
'In any acceptable way'? What unacceptable ways did the authors consider and discard?
Look for more development of this idea on this site.
Time to Hoard Candles
Bad news, those Edison light bulbs you've been hoarding won't work when there is no longer any electricity coming to your house. Duke Power has announced that it will close a six-unit coal plant in Ohio because of new EPA rules.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Does America Still Have a Purpose?
I'll try to answer that question in a minute. This weekend in her Wall Street Journal column, Peggy Noonan writes about the "debt crisis" roiling Washington. But buried within, she brings up an interesting point,
"Pretty much everyone over 50 in America feels on some level like a refugee. That’s because they were born in one place—the old America—and live now in another. We’re like immigrants, whether we literally are or not."
Although I am not yet 50, I know what she means. As L.P. Hartley once wrote, "The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there". So on one level, Peggy's complaint could have been lodged by every generation since Sumerian times.
But still, I think she's onto something. Later she writes,
"They miss the old America they were born into, 50 to 70 years ago. And they fear, deep down, that this new culture, the one their children live in, isn’t going to make it."
Of course, the America of 50 to 70 years ago wasn't such a great place for large segments of society: we've made important strides in many areas that we don't want to reverse.
However, perhaps we've lost something important along the way: a sense of purpose for America. I imagine that if you asked most Americans of 50 to 70 years ago "What is the purpose of America?" I imagine that you would get a lot of funny looks. The answer should be so obvious, why even ask the question. If pressed, I hope that you would get answers along the line "spread freedom at home and abroad", "increase the prosperity of each generation", "secure the blessings of liberty".
Now I wonder. Would you get anything other than a funny look? "America has a purpose?" "Send me checks?"
Michael Walsh writes in his New York Post column about the debt crisis and gets closer to the heart of it, asking,
"When did it become the primary function of the federal government to send millions of Americans checks?"
And answering,
"The debt-ceiling cage match is the culmination of the Democrats' 75-year-long fight to establish a voting bloc of dependents under the false flags of "compassion" and "social justice." It's sapped our strength, created a welfare mentality and, if unchecked, will reduce us to a nation of aging, resentful beggars with eyes cast permanently toward Washington."
"The preamble to the Constitution talks about promoting the general welfare, not the welfare state. For the welfare state is incompatible with the rest of the preamble, which concludes: 'and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.' By definition, dependents are not free."
Without a common understanding of what we are trying to accomplish, it's difficult to see how we will be able to move forward.
"Pretty much everyone over 50 in America feels on some level like a refugee. That’s because they were born in one place—the old America—and live now in another. We’re like immigrants, whether we literally are or not."
Although I am not yet 50, I know what she means. As L.P. Hartley once wrote, "The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there". So on one level, Peggy's complaint could have been lodged by every generation since Sumerian times.
But still, I think she's onto something. Later she writes,
"They miss the old America they were born into, 50 to 70 years ago. And they fear, deep down, that this new culture, the one their children live in, isn’t going to make it."
Of course, the America of 50 to 70 years ago wasn't such a great place for large segments of society: we've made important strides in many areas that we don't want to reverse.
However, perhaps we've lost something important along the way: a sense of purpose for America. I imagine that if you asked most Americans of 50 to 70 years ago "What is the purpose of America?" I imagine that you would get a lot of funny looks. The answer should be so obvious, why even ask the question. If pressed, I hope that you would get answers along the line "spread freedom at home and abroad", "increase the prosperity of each generation", "secure the blessings of liberty".
Now I wonder. Would you get anything other than a funny look? "America has a purpose?" "Send me checks?"
Michael Walsh writes in his New York Post column about the debt crisis and gets closer to the heart of it, asking,
"When did it become the primary function of the federal government to send millions of Americans checks?"
And answering,
"The debt-ceiling cage match is the culmination of the Democrats' 75-year-long fight to establish a voting bloc of dependents under the false flags of "compassion" and "social justice." It's sapped our strength, created a welfare mentality and, if unchecked, will reduce us to a nation of aging, resentful beggars with eyes cast permanently toward Washington."
"The preamble to the Constitution talks about promoting the general welfare, not the welfare state. For the welfare state is incompatible with the rest of the preamble, which concludes: 'and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.' By definition, dependents are not free."
Updated and Bumped: Webinar with Dr. Peter Fox-Penner
In less than an hour, Dr. Fox-Penner covers the past, present, and future of the electric utility industry. The recording of the event can be found at this site. I know everyone is busy, but if you can spare the hour, I think it will be well worth your time.
I have put the Power Point slides (no audio) up at Google Docs.
Dr. Peter Fox-Penner is the former head of the Brattle Group consulting firm. He is the author of the book Smart Power, which discusses the concept of "Smart Grid" and proposes several alternative business models for the future of the electric utility industry.
As you will see in the Webinar (or read in the book), the electric utility industry is at a crossroads: we will need hundreds of billions (if not into the trillions) of new investment to renew our infrastructure, but we are stuck with a business model that has run its course. The vertically integrated electric utility dates from Edison's time: this 19th century business model is not up to the task of re-creating a 21st century industry.
What Peter does in his work is to move beyond the status quo (in which everyone is stuck) and suggest new models for how the industry can organize itself.
I have put the Power Point slides (no audio) up at Google Docs.
Dr. Peter Fox-Penner is the former head of the Brattle Group consulting firm. He is the author of the book Smart Power, which discusses the concept of "Smart Grid" and proposes several alternative business models for the future of the electric utility industry.
As you will see in the Webinar (or read in the book), the electric utility industry is at a crossroads: we will need hundreds of billions (if not into the trillions) of new investment to renew our infrastructure, but we are stuck with a business model that has run its course. The vertically integrated electric utility dates from Edison's time: this 19th century business model is not up to the task of re-creating a 21st century industry.
What Peter does in his work is to move beyond the status quo (in which everyone is stuck) and suggest new models for how the industry can organize itself.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
The Budget Debate: David Strom in the Wall Street Journal (Updated and Bumped)
My friend David Strom has an opinion piece coming out in this weekend's edition of The Wall Street Journal on the end of Minnesota's budget stalemate. Entitled "Minnesotans Shrug Off the Shutdown" it is now in the subscription only part of the Journal's website. I'll include some choice quotes once my paper copy arrives tomorrow.
Update: I now have my paper copy. Some highlights:
Update: I now have my paper copy. Some highlights:
- "What if they had a government shutdown and nobody cared? That about sums up what's just happened in Minnesota"
- "The battle should have been epic, but most Minnesotans were merely annoyed."
- "In many ways the budget battle in Minnesota represented on of the last stands of old-style liberalism."
Robert Bryce on the Shale-Gas Revolution
Over at National Review Online, Robert Bryce writes about the natural gas shale revolution. Every revolution has its opponents.
Writes Bryce,
"U.S. natural-gas production is now at, or above, the peaks achieved in the early 1970s."
and concludes,
"The shale revolution will help keep American energy prices low for years to come and it will create thousands of jobs. Again, that’s great news. But you won’t read about it in the paper which claims to publish all the news that’s fit to print."
Writes Bryce,
"U.S. natural-gas production is now at, or above, the peaks achieved in the early 1970s."
and concludes,
"The shale revolution will help keep American energy prices low for years to come and it will create thousands of jobs. Again, that’s great news. But you won’t read about it in the paper which claims to publish all the news that’s fit to print."
Friday, July 15, 2011
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!
In his column this week, Mark Steyn references this poem by Shelley:
Ozymandias
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away".
Ozymandias
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away".
Our National Debt Has Slipped the Surly Bounds of Earth
In his weekly syndicated column, Mark Steyn takes on the debt-ceiling debate in Washington. I love the opening,
"In the real world, negotiations on an increase in one's debt limit are conducted between the borrower and the lender. Only in Washington is a debt increase negotiated between two groups of borrowers."
File that under "Global Weirding"
"In the real world, negotiations on an increase in one's debt limit are conducted between the borrower and the lender. Only in Washington is a debt increase negotiated between two groups of borrowers."
File that under "Global Weirding"
Global Weirding
One of my favorite Hunter S. Thompson quotes comes from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro."
As Walter Russell Mead writes on his blog, "Global Weirding" is the new hot trend in climate scares and this concept has great promise for the larger world of politics.
Writes Mead,
"Politics, economics, international relations, religion: everything in our world is getting weirder, and the weirding is happening faster all the time."
On Europe,
"Look, for example, at Europe. Not since the 1930s has the incompetence, incapacity and selfish shortsightedness of Europe’s governing class been so shockingly on display."
On Economics,
"Right now both the real economy and the financial markets are changing so rapidly that nobody really understands how all the pieces fit together."
As Walter Russell Mead writes on his blog, "Global Weirding" is the new hot trend in climate scares and this concept has great promise for the larger world of politics.
Writes Mead,
"Politics, economics, international relations, religion: everything in our world is getting weirder, and the weirding is happening faster all the time."
On Europe,
"Look, for example, at Europe. Not since the 1930s has the incompetence, incapacity and selfish shortsightedness of Europe’s governing class been so shockingly on display."
On Economics,
"Right now both the real economy and the financial markets are changing so rapidly that nobody really understands how all the pieces fit together."
The Budget Debate: Now What?
Now that we apparently have an end to Minnesota's budget impasse, we can turn our attention to what happens next. I am convinced of the need for serious reform/redesign on how all government services are delivered.
Sean Kershaw, head of Minnesota's Citizens League, has an opinion piece in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune headlined "Will Minnesotans write a better future?"
Quoting Sean,
"We need dramatic program reforms and a conversation about the proper role of government in our new demographic and economic landscape."
"We lack the places and opportunities in all types of institutions -- not just government -- to identify, discuss and reconcile our policy differences: to create common ground for the common good. In many ways, it's this simple."
Sean, of course, plugs his group as a solution. The League does serious and helpful work, and I am happy to continue my participation. However, I humbly suggest "Town Hall Minnesota" as an additional tool for bringing people together.
Sean Kershaw, head of Minnesota's Citizens League, has an opinion piece in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune headlined "Will Minnesotans write a better future?"
Quoting Sean,
"We need dramatic program reforms and a conversation about the proper role of government in our new demographic and economic landscape."
"We lack the places and opportunities in all types of institutions -- not just government -- to identify, discuss and reconcile our policy differences: to create common ground for the common good. In many ways, it's this simple."
Sean, of course, plugs his group as a solution. The League does serious and helpful work, and I am happy to continue my participation. However, I humbly suggest "Town Hall Minnesota" as an additional tool for bringing people together.
"Let Them Eat Zucchini Blossoms!"
Speaking of Walter Russell Mead, on his blog he calls attention to this small piece in the Wall Street Journal on the local, organic food movement in the Hamptons.
Undernews: Return of Specie Money
Another important story largely flying under the radar is the return of specie money, as distinct from fiat money.
This piece in the Daily Telegraph describes the "Return of the Gold Standard as world order unravels". In these troubled times, people are seeking money that has intrinsic value: the value lies in the metal contained within the coin, rather than the value the object represents, like a paper dollar bill.
I see no need to abandon the concept of fiat currency. But I am interested in the growing movement to have a second currency circulate alongside. I see it as another early warning signal, like Walter Russell Mead's observation about the Singapore economy begin the canary in the coal mine of the world economy.
This piece in the Daily Telegraph describes the "Return of the Gold Standard as world order unravels". In these troubled times, people are seeking money that has intrinsic value: the value lies in the metal contained within the coin, rather than the value the object represents, like a paper dollar bill.
I see no need to abandon the concept of fiat currency. But I am interested in the growing movement to have a second currency circulate alongside. I see it as another early warning signal, like Walter Russell Mead's observation about the Singapore economy begin the canary in the coal mine of the world economy.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
New EPA rules will destroy jobs, kill economies, and cause blackouts
Well, what did you expect? On National Review Online Kathleen Hartnett White writes about the devastating effects of the EPA's new anti-coal Cross-State Air Pollution Rule.
Writes White,
"With compliance beginning January 2012, the new air-pollution rule leaves many coal-fired power plants with no alternative but to reduce output or shutter entirely. Congress provided almost a decade to implement the acid-rain rules of the 1990s. EPA’s national program to reduce nitrogen oxides allowed almost five years before initial compliance. But the industry will have only a few months to comply with the first phase of this new rule."
Writes White,
"With compliance beginning January 2012, the new air-pollution rule leaves many coal-fired power plants with no alternative but to reduce output or shutter entirely. Congress provided almost a decade to implement the acid-rain rules of the 1990s. EPA’s national program to reduce nitrogen oxides allowed almost five years before initial compliance. But the industry will have only a few months to comply with the first phase of this new rule."
More density equals less driving: just an urban legend?
From Grist of all places.
So much of our transportation, housing, land use, and urban policy rests on the notion that more housing density (think Soviet-style, high-rise apartment buildings) will result in less automobile use. Turns out not to be true.
So much of our transportation, housing, land use, and urban policy rests on the notion that more housing density (think Soviet-style, high-rise apartment buildings) will result in less automobile use. Turns out not to be true.
Cap and Trade Down Under, Part 1
In a preview of what could happen to America, resource-rich Australia is bound and determined to end prosperity as they know it by adopting cap and trade for carbon emissions into law.
Recall that Nancy Pelosi famously said of Obamacare, "We have to pass the bill to know what is in the bill", or something like that.
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has her Pelosi moment saying "judge me in 2013" after you have lived under cap and trade.
Recall that Nancy Pelosi famously said of Obamacare, "We have to pass the bill to know what is in the bill", or something like that.
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has her Pelosi moment saying "judge me in 2013" after you have lived under cap and trade.
Kudos to Collin Peterson (D-Minn) on the Light Bulb Bill
Thank you to Democratic Congressman Collin Peterson of Minnesota for voting with the Republicans to overturn the ban on the Edison light bulb.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Ban the Kerosene Lamp!
The future of the world depends on it!
Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives attempted to overturn the ban on incandescent (Edison) light bulbs. A majority voted (233-193) in favor of lifting the ban, but the measure needed the support of 2/3rd of the House.
The fight goes on! Save the Bulb!
Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives attempted to overturn the ban on incandescent (Edison) light bulbs. A majority voted (233-193) in favor of lifting the ban, but the measure needed the support of 2/3rd of the House.
The fight goes on! Save the Bulb!
Bumped and Updated: Why Can't We Just All Get Along?
Based on the false premise that the budget debate differences are ones of degree not type, a cottage industry has sprung up to explain why those Republicans won't just do the right thing and cave in.
- Republicans are crazy. Yes, that must be the reason. Forget Occam's Razor, the only plausible explanation is that 40 percent of the population must be clinically insane. Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen is a recent proponent of this theory, with his "A Grand Old Cult" piece. He writes, that Republicans need to be under the care of "a mental health professional, preferably a specialist in the power of fixations, obsessions and the like."
- The Man behind the curtain Maybe they are not crazy, but just under the spell of some Svengali, who has them hypnotized into this destructive behavior. Karl Rove used to fit this bill, with Lee Atwater before him. Now Grover Norquist is the bogeyman, as Richard Cohen theorized (see above). Here is the latest column to pick upon the "super-evil-Grover" theme.
- It's the culture. In this pop psychology take on the subject, the culprit is a defect in our culture which equates compromise with weakness.
- Increasing polarization. A catchall term that implies that parties are moving farther apart from some mystical Avalon when everyone got together swimmingly. "Partisan politics", the Tea Party, redistricting, pols no longer drinking together (seriously) are among the usual suspects.
- Update: this last point on pols no longer drinking together is put forward in this column in today's Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Make Detroit a Free City!
As an outsider, my proposal for the revitalization of Detroit is to reconstitute it as a Charter City. Exempt individuals from federal and state income taxes, if they reside within the city limits. Limiting the break to individuals would encourage the formation and growth of small businesses, S corporations, LLC's and the like. Property taxes would still be collected to pay for city services.
Then exempt all business from any tariff or cross-border taxes to create a "free-trade zone".
Detroit's location across the river from Windsor, Canada, port facilities with ocean access through the St. Lawrence Seaway, and a commercial airport with the city limits (City Airport) give Detroit access to world trade.
Eventually, the concept could be extended to other rust belt cities, like Cleveland, creating a modern Hanseatic League.
Read this column from the Detroit News on what not to do.
Then exempt all business from any tariff or cross-border taxes to create a "free-trade zone".
Detroit's location across the river from Windsor, Canada, port facilities with ocean access through the St. Lawrence Seaway, and a commercial airport with the city limits (City Airport) give Detroit access to world trade.
Eventually, the concept could be extended to other rust belt cities, like Cleveland, creating a modern Hanseatic League.
Read this column from the Detroit News on what not to do.
Undernews: European Border Crisis Update
The BBC reports on the continuing exodus of boat people from Africa to Europe. Italy is trying to cope with the landings of craft on a small island off the Tunisian coast.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Public Services and Private Competition
From the Daily Telegraph, the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron has announced that public services will be opened up to competition from private and non-profit providers.
Update: Carbon Tax as Suicide Pact
As the famous phrase has it, "the Constitution is not a suicide pact." Perhaps not, but it is becoming clear that the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gases is a suicide pact for the world economy.
Here is that much linked Daily Telegraph piece from this weekend describing how the UK's "green" policies will raise electricity prices by 30 percent. At the same time, the Economist reports on how the British Government is trying to boost manufacturing. The phrase "working at cross purposes" does not begin to cover it.
And from Down Under, resource-rich Australia is deciding to get out of the prosperity business by enacting "cap and trade". This Reuters update reports that Australia will set a price of $25 per ton on carbon emissions.
Update: the Sydney Morning Herald reports on how the carbon tax in Australia will cost that country's automakers $30 million per year.
Here is that much linked Daily Telegraph piece from this weekend describing how the UK's "green" policies will raise electricity prices by 30 percent. At the same time, the Economist reports on how the British Government is trying to boost manufacturing. The phrase "working at cross purposes" does not begin to cover it.
And from Down Under, resource-rich Australia is deciding to get out of the prosperity business by enacting "cap and trade". This Reuters update reports that Australia will set a price of $25 per ton on carbon emissions.
Update: the Sydney Morning Herald reports on how the carbon tax in Australia will cost that country's automakers $30 million per year.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
The Coming Clean Tech Crash
From the Breakthrough Institute:
"The global clean energy industry is set for a major crash. The reason is simple. Clean energy is still much more expensive and less reliable than coal or gas, and in an era of heightened budget austerity the subsidies required to make clean energy artificially cheaper are becoming unsustainable."
"The global clean energy industry is set for a major crash. The reason is simple. Clean energy is still much more expensive and less reliable than coal or gas, and in an era of heightened budget austerity the subsidies required to make clean energy artificially cheaper are becoming unsustainable."
Budget Debate: A Difference of Type, Not of Degree, Part 1
About 99 percent of the commentary that I see regarding Minnesota's budget impasse and the national debt ceiling debate misses the mark because it misunderstands the nature of the dispute: most commentators assume that the difference between the parties is one of degree. In fact, the difference between liberals and conservatives on the budget issue is one of type.
Using the yardstick analogy, a difference of degree would go as follows: Republicans are at the 15-inch mark, Democrats are at the 21-inch mark, why can't we just agree on 18 inches and be done with it.
Based on this false premise, we then have a cavalcade of commentary, trying and failing to understand why this "gap" cannot be bridged. There are almost as many explanations of the impasse as there are of why the Roman Empire fell (and many of the explanations are the same across both).
One example, the "increasing polarization" theory, goes something like this: Republicans use to be at the 17-inch mark and Democrats at the 19-inch mark, so compromise was easier when everyone was so close. Now those Tea-Partiers have move the mark to the 12-inch line, so the distance is too far to cover and stalemate results.
I think the conventional wisdom is wrong. The yardstick analogy does not apply because the parties are not on the same yardstick, if even on the same plane.
Republicans think that they are already on the 36th inch of the yardstick: any more movement higher will cause us to fall off the edge into Greece or Portugal. Any movement lower takes them away from the edge and improves safety.
Democrats believe that there is no edge: there is no yardstick, in fact, they sit on a line of infinite length, which only improves as you move higher. To quibble about where one is along the line is to argue an absurdity. Any movement lower makes you worse off, so moving higher is the only logical outcome.
Thus we have impasse: one side thinks any further movement invites catastrophe, the other believes that not moving higher is insane, only good things lay in that direction. Both can't be correct. There is no logical compromise. One side cannot settle for half a catastrophe and other side cannot settle for anything less than always getting better. On one side the abyss, on the other side nirvana. How can compromise result?
Only one side can be right so only one side can win.
Using the yardstick analogy, a difference of degree would go as follows: Republicans are at the 15-inch mark, Democrats are at the 21-inch mark, why can't we just agree on 18 inches and be done with it.
Based on this false premise, we then have a cavalcade of commentary, trying and failing to understand why this "gap" cannot be bridged. There are almost as many explanations of the impasse as there are of why the Roman Empire fell (and many of the explanations are the same across both).
One example, the "increasing polarization" theory, goes something like this: Republicans use to be at the 17-inch mark and Democrats at the 19-inch mark, so compromise was easier when everyone was so close. Now those Tea-Partiers have move the mark to the 12-inch line, so the distance is too far to cover and stalemate results.
I think the conventional wisdom is wrong. The yardstick analogy does not apply because the parties are not on the same yardstick, if even on the same plane.
Republicans think that they are already on the 36th inch of the yardstick: any more movement higher will cause us to fall off the edge into Greece or Portugal. Any movement lower takes them away from the edge and improves safety.
Democrats believe that there is no edge: there is no yardstick, in fact, they sit on a line of infinite length, which only improves as you move higher. To quibble about where one is along the line is to argue an absurdity. Any movement lower makes you worse off, so moving higher is the only logical outcome.
Thus we have impasse: one side thinks any further movement invites catastrophe, the other believes that not moving higher is insane, only good things lay in that direction. Both can't be correct. There is no logical compromise. One side cannot settle for half a catastrophe and other side cannot settle for anything less than always getting better. On one side the abyss, on the other side nirvana. How can compromise result?
Only one side can be right so only one side can win.
VDH on our Collective Insanity
Victor Davis Hanson writes about our collective insanity. Opening sentence,
"For about seven years the nation lost its collective mind — and was only partially coming-to in November 2010."
"For about seven years the nation lost its collective mind — and was only partially coming-to in November 2010."
Saturday, July 9, 2011
A real "third way" budgeting approach, Part 2
The Minneapolis Star Tribune's Lori Sturdevant, in an inexplicable fit of good sense, spend some time talking with Annette Meeks, 2010 candidate for Lt. Governor and Founder of the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota. Looking beyond the current budget impasse, the column discusses the need to redesign government, picking up on the themes I develop on Part 1.
The concept is that conservatives and liberals should find common ground in seeing the need to fix government delivery mechanisms that no longer work. If we can limit the cost, and find betters ways for government to function, both sides should be happy.
Some choice quotes from the column,
"But I nod in agreement when I hear [Meeks] and other GOP leaders say something that too many DFLers only whisper: Today's government structures and policies were built for a world that is rapidly disappearing."
"Spending is scheduled to outstrip revenues as far as state forecasters can see -- even if the shutdown ends with permanent corrections for the $5 billion forecasted deficit. (And it won't.)"
"Meeks, a former staffer to House Speaker Newt Gingrich, is one of a goodly number of seasoned government hands from both parties who have been touting "redesign" as the solution to what ails the public sector."
The concept is that conservatives and liberals should find common ground in seeing the need to fix government delivery mechanisms that no longer work. If we can limit the cost, and find betters ways for government to function, both sides should be happy.
Some choice quotes from the column,
"But I nod in agreement when I hear [Meeks] and other GOP leaders say something that too many DFLers only whisper: Today's government structures and policies were built for a world that is rapidly disappearing."
"Spending is scheduled to outstrip revenues as far as state forecasters can see -- even if the shutdown ends with permanent corrections for the $5 billion forecasted deficit. (And it won't.)"
"Meeks, a former staffer to House Speaker Newt Gingrich, is one of a goodly number of seasoned government hands from both parties who have been touting "redesign" as the solution to what ails the public sector."
Latest Victor Davis Hanson on the Decline and Fall
From National Review Online, VDH chronicles the decline and fall from Europe to the US. Margaret Thatcher was right after all: Europe has finally run out of other people's money.
The War on the Light Bulb
Delroy Murdock writes about Washington's war on the light bulb over at National Review Online. Why ban the light bulb? After all, you can still buy a kerosene lantern.
At National Review's Corner, Mark Steyn points to this Wall Street Journal piece quoting Nobel-prize winning Energy Secretary Dr. Steven Chu on the light bulb ban,
"We are taking away a choice that continues to let people waste their own money."
Having worked in energy policy for several years, I can confirm for Mr. Steyn that, in fact, for most energy policy makers, the essence of "good" energy policy is taking away the "bad" choices from the hoi polloi, lest they get it wrong.
At National Review's Corner, Mark Steyn points to this Wall Street Journal piece quoting Nobel-prize winning Energy Secretary Dr. Steven Chu on the light bulb ban,
"We are taking away a choice that continues to let people waste their own money."
Having worked in energy policy for several years, I can confirm for Mr. Steyn that, in fact, for most energy policy makers, the essence of "good" energy policy is taking away the "bad" choices from the hoi polloi, lest they get it wrong.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Town Hall Athens?
Via InstaPundit, a report of spontaneous democracy breaking out amidst the anarchy in Greece.
"Amid all the economic misery, unemployment, slashed payrolls, and indecision about the future, they are holding ongoing discussions in the main square where anyone — just like in ancient Greece — is allowed to voice opinions without repercussions. They have established an ancient Greek agora, where Socrates, Plato, and their contemporaries created the world’s first democracy. They hold daily seminars and discussions in search of a way forward. Instead of joining the anarchists, these protesters are conducting intelligent, serious discussions."
"Amid all the economic misery, unemployment, slashed payrolls, and indecision about the future, they are holding ongoing discussions in the main square where anyone — just like in ancient Greece — is allowed to voice opinions without repercussions. They have established an ancient Greek agora, where Socrates, Plato, and their contemporaries created the world’s first democracy. They hold daily seminars and discussions in search of a way forward. Instead of joining the anarchists, these protesters are conducting intelligent, serious discussions."
Joel Kotkin Predicts the Next Boom Towns
Over at his New Geography site, Joel Kotkin handicaps the future prospects for the top 50 metro areas in the U.S. Sadly, Minneapolis limps in at 33rd place. And it's not just a matter of being outpaced by sun belt cities: Indianapolis ranks 11th, Columbus 13th and Kansas City is at 25.
More WRM on the War on Poverty
Over at his blog, Walter Russell Mead continues his discussion on the federal War on Poverty. Mead convincingly argues that we need not just "good" jobs, but lots and lots of "bad" jobs as well. On a day that unemployment crept up to 9.2 percent we should listen to him.
Mead on denial,
"Many sensitive and idealistic people in our society work very hard to keep from connecting these dots and admitting to themselves that bad jobs are something we need. Quacks abound promising us alternatives (“green jobs” is the latest fashionable delusion), but ugly problems rarely have pretty solutions. We need entry level jobs that will get people into the workforce, and we need ways that they can learn useful skills at affordable prices that will help them climb the ladder and move on."
As the famous quote goes, "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his job depends on not understanding it".
Bonus: If you read to then end, you'll find a Joel Kotkin shoutout!
Mead on denial,
"Many sensitive and idealistic people in our society work very hard to keep from connecting these dots and admitting to themselves that bad jobs are something we need. Quacks abound promising us alternatives (“green jobs” is the latest fashionable delusion), but ugly problems rarely have pretty solutions. We need entry level jobs that will get people into the workforce, and we need ways that they can learn useful skills at affordable prices that will help them climb the ladder and move on."
As the famous quote goes, "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his job depends on not understanding it".
Bonus: If you read to then end, you'll find a Joel Kotkin shoutout!
Thelma, Louise and the Third Way, Part 6
Yesterday was a big day of no progress in Minnesota's budget stalemate/partial government shutdown. Our "elder statesmen" issued their "split the difference" plan of higher taxes for everyone. A "temporary tax"? Remember: the Spanish American War (1898-1898). Spanish American War Tax (1898-2006).
The Minneapolis Star Tribune issued another editorial pleading with Republicans to accept Gov. Mark Dayton's latest offer, arguing "a bad deal beats no deal." Expect a similar editorial after each offer Dayton makes.
Rather more useful was an opinion piece in the Star Tribune from true "third-wayers", Tim Penny and Tom Horner, former third-party candidates for Minnesota Governor. They call for a "lights on" bill to keep all of the government open while negotiations continue, an offer the Republicans have made and the Governor has rejected.
Rather than driving over the cliff or braking short, Messrs Penny and Horner, suggest we veer in another direction and "understand that government has to be redesigned, not just made smaller, for Minnesota to succeed in job growth and business creation." I'm not sure where we are going to find these "non-partisan" experts to rely on, though.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune issued another editorial pleading with Republicans to accept Gov. Mark Dayton's latest offer, arguing "a bad deal beats no deal." Expect a similar editorial after each offer Dayton makes.
Rather more useful was an opinion piece in the Star Tribune from true "third-wayers", Tim Penny and Tom Horner, former third-party candidates for Minnesota Governor. They call for a "lights on" bill to keep all of the government open while negotiations continue, an offer the Republicans have made and the Governor has rejected.
Rather than driving over the cliff or braking short, Messrs Penny and Horner, suggest we veer in another direction and "understand that government has to be redesigned, not just made smaller, for Minnesota to succeed in job growth and business creation." I'm not sure where we are going to find these "non-partisan" experts to rely on, though.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Follow the Money: BICEP and Climate Change
Hang with me, here. I will have a Minnesota connection before this post concludes.
A Boston-based, environmental non-profit named Ceres "leads a national coalition of investors, environmental organizations and other public interest groups working with companies to address sustainability challenges such as global climate change." Ceres runs BICEP (Business for Innovative Climate and Energy Policy), one of whose goals is "pricing carbon appropriately".
Among the many business members of BICEP are Minnesota-based Best Buy and Target.
We Can Lead is a BICEP project and it pushed hard for the Waxman/Markey cap and trade bill back in 2009. Who funded this effort? One funder, according to its 2009 IRS Form 990, was the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, who gave $500,000 to Ceres to support the We Can Lead effort.
In 2009, the Rockefeller Brothers fund also donated to the Tides Center, the Tides Foundation, the Will Steger Foundation, Fresh Energy, and the Great Plains Institute among others.
A Boston-based, environmental non-profit named Ceres "leads a national coalition of investors, environmental organizations and other public interest groups working with companies to address sustainability challenges such as global climate change." Ceres runs BICEP (Business for Innovative Climate and Energy Policy), one of whose goals is "pricing carbon appropriately".
Among the many business members of BICEP are Minnesota-based Best Buy and Target.
We Can Lead is a BICEP project and it pushed hard for the Waxman/Markey cap and trade bill back in 2009. Who funded this effort? One funder, according to its 2009 IRS Form 990, was the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, who gave $500,000 to Ceres to support the We Can Lead effort.
In 2009, the Rockefeller Brothers fund also donated to the Tides Center, the Tides Foundation, the Will Steger Foundation, Fresh Energy, and the Great Plains Institute among others.
Thelma, Louise and the Third Way, Part 5
That was fast. Gov. Dayton's committee of wise men has already produced its recommendations, and the only surprising part is that they recommended higher taxes for all, not just "the rich". As expected, their 48-hour-wonder "third way" proposal looks a lot like Gov. Dayton's current offer.
I was a little off on my Thelma and Louise analogy. Instead of driving over the cliff at 45 MPH, this proposal looks more like 50.
Here is the SCRIBD link to the plan document.
I was a little off on my Thelma and Louise analogy. Instead of driving over the cliff at 45 MPH, this proposal looks more like 50.
Here is the SCRIBD link to the plan document.
Follow the Money: EPA
Investors Business Daily has this story on how the EPA funds Green groups that in turn sue the agency to expand its regulatory powers.
One hand washes the other. Trust me, this sort of thing goes on at all levels of government.
One hand washes the other. Trust me, this sort of thing goes on at all levels of government.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
A Real "Third Way" Budgeting Approach, Part 1
What would a real "third way" budgeting approach look like?
Try this idea: based on the revenue that we can reasonably expect to collect, under the current tax code, we set a fixed budget. That amount will not be changed, to account for expected inflation, or population growth or any other factor. The amount of spending will be set at a level that is sustainable, and will continue to fall in real terms.
But the flip side is, advocates can count on that level of funding going forward. It will be up to them (the advocates and program managers) to find ways to improve productivity.
Under the perverse incentives of our current system, if a program manager finds productivity gains, produces the same or better outcome with fewer resources, the manager is rewarded with a budget cut. Thus there is no incentive to increase productivity in government. In the private sector, if a manager increases productivity, the result is greater profit for the enterprise. In the public sector, greater productivity results in fewer resources being allocated to that activity.
Under my "third way" approach, public sector productivity gains can be plowed back into greater access or more services.
Alternatively, if program managers choose to pad the payroll, spend on greater pensions and benefits for government workers, rather than on more services to the public, they will be faced with ever diminishing resources, in real terms, to serve the public.
My "third way" approach would unleash the entrepreneurial zeal of program advocates. You (advocates) want to serve more people or expand the menu of benefits? Then find better ways to deliver those services.
Here is an example: Set the health and human services budget at $10 billion. Provide assurances that the budget level will remain (neither more or less) at $10 billion going forward. Then allow advocates to choose the priorities: more health care access, a broader range of services, or whatever. But these choices will have consequences: more access will only be possible with productivity gains, automatic spending increases will be no more.
Try this idea: based on the revenue that we can reasonably expect to collect, under the current tax code, we set a fixed budget. That amount will not be changed, to account for expected inflation, or population growth or any other factor. The amount of spending will be set at a level that is sustainable, and will continue to fall in real terms.
But the flip side is, advocates can count on that level of funding going forward. It will be up to them (the advocates and program managers) to find ways to improve productivity.
Under the perverse incentives of our current system, if a program manager finds productivity gains, produces the same or better outcome with fewer resources, the manager is rewarded with a budget cut. Thus there is no incentive to increase productivity in government. In the private sector, if a manager increases productivity, the result is greater profit for the enterprise. In the public sector, greater productivity results in fewer resources being allocated to that activity.
Under my "third way" approach, public sector productivity gains can be plowed back into greater access or more services.
Alternatively, if program managers choose to pad the payroll, spend on greater pensions and benefits for government workers, rather than on more services to the public, they will be faced with ever diminishing resources, in real terms, to serve the public.
My "third way" approach would unleash the entrepreneurial zeal of program advocates. You (advocates) want to serve more people or expand the menu of benefits? Then find better ways to deliver those services.
Here is an example: Set the health and human services budget at $10 billion. Provide assurances that the budget level will remain (neither more or less) at $10 billion going forward. Then allow advocates to choose the priorities: more health care access, a broader range of services, or whatever. But these choices will have consequences: more access will only be possible with productivity gains, automatic spending increases will be no more.
Thelma, Louise and the Third Way, Part 3
Local media continue their excitement regarding the "elder statesmen" selected by Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton to endorse his call for higher taxes on "the rich."
As these eminences work to develop a "third way" approach to end the budget stalemate, which has produced a partial state government shutdown, allow this blog to engage in some truly unique "third way" thinking.
Thus far, the Gov.'s negotiating approach has been to try to get the Republicans in the legislature to agree to a higher budget figure (he's at $36 billion, they are at $34 billion) by raising taxes, then he plans to sprinkle this extra revenue over his favorite budget items.
What if we turned this logic on its head. Why not agree to outcomes from government efforts and then allocate available resources to match these priorities? Is that not the essence of budgeting?
We need to find an alternative (using my Thelma and Louise analogy) to driving over the cliff or braking with the hope of stopping short of the edge. Can we find a way to change direction?
Early in this session, we had some talk about "zero-based budgeting", but in the end we went back to the old "base line" approach. Of course, every government program has its constituency, which is why even the most outdated and inefficient programs can usually escape the budget cutter's axe. The "third way", "balanced" approach of more taxes and some modest trimming of higher spending expectations will accomplish nothing but to solidify the status quo and postpone the inevitable day of reckoning.
[Next Post: the Third Way]
As these eminences work to develop a "third way" approach to end the budget stalemate, which has produced a partial state government shutdown, allow this blog to engage in some truly unique "third way" thinking.
Thus far, the Gov.'s negotiating approach has been to try to get the Republicans in the legislature to agree to a higher budget figure (he's at $36 billion, they are at $34 billion) by raising taxes, then he plans to sprinkle this extra revenue over his favorite budget items.
What if we turned this logic on its head. Why not agree to outcomes from government efforts and then allocate available resources to match these priorities? Is that not the essence of budgeting?
We need to find an alternative (using my Thelma and Louise analogy) to driving over the cliff or braking with the hope of stopping short of the edge. Can we find a way to change direction?
Early in this session, we had some talk about "zero-based budgeting", but in the end we went back to the old "base line" approach. Of course, every government program has its constituency, which is why even the most outdated and inefficient programs can usually escape the budget cutter's axe. The "third way", "balanced" approach of more taxes and some modest trimming of higher spending expectations will accomplish nothing but to solidify the status quo and postpone the inevitable day of reckoning.
[Next Post: the Third Way]
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Michael Walsh on Denial
In his New York Post column Michael Walsh continues the somnambulant theme Steyn develops in his National Review column. Our leaders are sleepwalking through the massive problems our country faces.
"Only an engaged (and suitably enraged) citizenry has the power to turn around the ship of state -- to reassert the American values of self-reliance and hard work over those of the European welfare state the Left has been busily trying to impose for decades."
"Only an engaged (and suitably enraged) citizenry has the power to turn around the ship of state -- to reassert the American values of self-reliance and hard work over those of the European welfare state the Left has been busily trying to impose for decades."
Steyn on Coffee
In his "Happy Warrior" column from National Review this week, Mark Steyn muses on the subject of coffee. He recalls that coffee houses uses to be bee hives of activity, spawning Lloyds of London, the Stock Exchange, and revolutions. Now...not so much. " Inertia has never been cooler."
Follow the Money: Kresge and Detroit
Over the weekend, The Wall Street Journal wrote about the efforts of the Michigan-based Kresge Foundation to revitalize the City of Detroit.
I have previously written about the Kresge Foundation, endowed with the K-Mart fortune. Its current head, Minnesota's Rip Rapson, took over the foundation five years ago, after a stint running the Minneapolis-based McKnight Foundation, endowed with 3M money. Under Rapson's leadership, Kresge has continued to send funds to Minnesota, to promote the climate change agenda.
The Wall Street Journal writes about the friction between Krege, based in a Detroit suburb, and political leaders in the City of Detroit, notably Mayor Dave Bing, regarding the direction of the city's revitalization effort. Krege has put more than $100 million into Detroit's revival.
Quoting Mr. Rapson,
" 'Philanthropy has emerged as the sector best able to provide the long-term vision and shorter-term investment of capital the city needs to right itself,' Mr. Rapson said at a private gathering of urban experts in Detroit this spring. That foundation-knows-best attitude exasperates Mayor Dave Bing and City Hall officials, who have sought to reassure Detroiters that their voices, not outsiders, will guide efforts to rebuild the city."
And what is the Kresge solution to Detroit's well-documented problems? Why, light rail, of course! But that's not all,
"One pillar calls for a 'green economy,' supported by a 'suite of coordinated investments' including 'neighborhood sweeps' to assess the environmental strengths and weakness of an area. Another promotes the idea of 'neighborhoods of choice,' which to some activists echoes the convulsive urban-renewal efforts of Detroit's past. He sees vacant land, a scourge to many in the city, 'as a canvas of economic imagination.' "
The green economy and environmental sweeps reflect the blinkered thinking of our liberal elite. I continue to advocate for the Charter City approach to Detroit's revival.
I have previously written about the Kresge Foundation, endowed with the K-Mart fortune. Its current head, Minnesota's Rip Rapson, took over the foundation five years ago, after a stint running the Minneapolis-based McKnight Foundation, endowed with 3M money. Under Rapson's leadership, Kresge has continued to send funds to Minnesota, to promote the climate change agenda.
The Wall Street Journal writes about the friction between Krege, based in a Detroit suburb, and political leaders in the City of Detroit, notably Mayor Dave Bing, regarding the direction of the city's revitalization effort. Krege has put more than $100 million into Detroit's revival.
Quoting Mr. Rapson,
" 'Philanthropy has emerged as the sector best able to provide the long-term vision and shorter-term investment of capital the city needs to right itself,' Mr. Rapson said at a private gathering of urban experts in Detroit this spring. That foundation-knows-best attitude exasperates Mayor Dave Bing and City Hall officials, who have sought to reassure Detroiters that their voices, not outsiders, will guide efforts to rebuild the city."
And what is the Kresge solution to Detroit's well-documented problems? Why, light rail, of course! But that's not all,
"One pillar calls for a 'green economy,' supported by a 'suite of coordinated investments' including 'neighborhood sweeps' to assess the environmental strengths and weakness of an area. Another promotes the idea of 'neighborhoods of choice,' which to some activists echoes the convulsive urban-renewal efforts of Detroit's past. He sees vacant land, a scourge to many in the city, 'as a canvas of economic imagination.' "
The green economy and environmental sweeps reflect the blinkered thinking of our liberal elite. I continue to advocate for the Charter City approach to Detroit's revival.
Where does he find the time? WRM on LBJ
The prolific Walter Russell Mead writes on his blog about LBJ's "War on Poverty" and the resulting urban quagmire.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Walter Russell Mead on Al Gore, Take 3
Walter Russell Mead continues his dissection of former Vice President Al Gore and the climate change movement over at his blog.
Bonus WRM: in today's Wall Street Journal, "The Future Still Belongs to America".
Bonus WRM: in today's Wall Street Journal, "The Future Still Belongs to America".
Friday, July 1, 2011
Modernizing Liberalism
This blog will leave no stone unturned in the search for useful ideas. Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger have written a great essay to launch their new journal, titled oddly enough, Breakthrough Journal.
This passage caught my eye,
"Throughout the postwar era, the defining rationale for the American state was to build the physical, legal, political, and economic infrastructure for American modernity. Today, the primary rationale for the continued existence and function of American government has become, literally and figuratively, entitlement."
First you must correctly diagnose the ailment, before a cure can be applied.
This passage caught my eye,
"Throughout the postwar era, the defining rationale for the American state was to build the physical, legal, political, and economic infrastructure for American modernity. Today, the primary rationale for the continued existence and function of American government has become, literally and figuratively, entitlement."
First you must correctly diagnose the ailment, before a cure can be applied.
Independence Day As A State of Mind
Mark Steyn's Independence Day column is now up at the Orange County Register.
Says Mr. Steyn,
"But in America 'Independence' seemed as much a statement about the character of a people as a designation of jurisdictional status... 'Independence' is not about the replacement of a king in London with a president in Washington but about the republican virtues of a self-reliant citizenry free to exploit its own potential."
Says Mr. Steyn,
"But in America 'Independence' seemed as much a statement about the character of a people as a designation of jurisdictional status... 'Independence' is not about the replacement of a king in London with a president in Washington but about the republican virtues of a self-reliant citizenry free to exploit its own potential."
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