Letters to the Editor
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@Fester
The market is signaling a rise in commodity prices in general, with energy products being hammered on because they are the easiest to manipulate. These are futures markets, remember? The long-term trend in commodities is definitely upwards because of the increasing wealth of Chinese, Indian, Russian, Brazilian consumers, etc., which leads to greater demand for more upscale goods and food. Commodities in the world market are still priced in US dollars, so the weakness of our currency compounds the problem.
The US -- as a whole -- has no choice but to move towards drastically improved energy efficiency to survive in the new globalized economy. This is a given. How we move towards that goal is the question. I believe that it will take a major restructuring of the whole productive system -- as well as a major change in our cultural mindset -- to even just take the first step towards that goal.
But these changes cannot be implemented by government planners for one simple reason: the environment is constantly changing. By the time the planners have completed the details of their plan it will have become obsolete. The government has to trust the individual to do the right thing. And for this to happen the government has to stop manipulating the environment in which the individual is making his choices.
An example of this manipulation is the government subsidy for hybrid cars. At first glance it is a great idea, but it is inherently unfair for the rural population because hybrid cars are only more efficient than pure gasoline cars during stop-and-go traffic. On a long highway drive at steady speed the pure gasoline car is actually more energy efficient than the hybrid. So, in essence, the (poor) highway-driving rural population is subsidizing the purchase of hybrids for the (rich) stop-and-go driving urban population.
The main point of my argument is there are innumerable facets towards actually fixing this system. And a great many "progressives" will find, to their dismay, that if it is actually fixed they may not like what they see.