Energy sufficiency and Green-ism are fundamentally opposed to one another. You need to at least focus on only one of those things. Salon Franciscans want a carbon free oil free gas free car free pre industrial world. Ok - pick that one.

Why are developing countries like China and India so determined to repeat the mistakes of Europe and America? The Industrial Revelution and the form of capitalism that grew with it brought us to the mess we have today. What type of life do you really want to have in the here and now? If you want to wear a respirator to work; commute to your 15 hour a day job in a polluting, tiny death box on unsafe roads, drink contaminated water, and live next to a toxic waste dump so your children can drink soda that rots their teath, and wear shoes with little lights in them keeping thinking like its the 19th or early 20th century. Instead start living in the knowledge age--use everything that humans know to make life rich, peaceful, long-lived, healthy, and sustainable.

re: "raising living standards for the billions of people who haven't yet had the chance to enjoy the perks of the Industrial Revolution."

The "perks of the Industrial Revolution" are the very reasons why the planet is in trouble. Just what we need: Billions more people driving cars and living unsustainable American consumer-type lifestyles.

Of course, this is never going to happen. Even now, as China and India ramp up their consumption levels, oil reserves are being depleted ever-faster and oil is becoming more and more expensive. This is having the effect of putting the brakes on any economic growth in the more developed countries, much less those that were left behind.

What we will see is a continued spiral downward of the present economic system. We are all about to get royally screwed.

• Banking Solvency Crisis Has Opened First Phase of Monetary Inflation

• Hyperinflationary Depression Remains Likely As Early As 2010

The U.S. economy is in an intensifying inflationary recession that eventually will evolve into a hyperinflationary great depression. Hyperinflation could be experienced as early as 2010, if not before, and likely no more than a decade down the road. The U.S. government and Federal Reserve already have committed the system to this course through the easy politics of a bottomless pocketbook, the servicing of big-moneyed special interests, and gross mismanagement.

The U.S. has no way of avoiding a financial Armageddon. Bankrupt sovereign states most commonly use the currency printing press as a solution to not having enough money to cover their obligations. The alternative would be for the U.S. to renege on its existing debt and obligations, a solution for modern sovereign states rarely seen outside of governments overthrown in revolution, and a solution with no happier ending than simply printing the needed money. With the creation of massive amounts of new fiat (not backed by gold) dollars will come the eventual complete collapse of the value of the U.S. dollar and related dollar-denominated paper assets.

http://www.shadowstats.com/article/292

John Williams is interviewed on CNN by Greg Hunter. The record growth in M3 is discussed and its implications for future inflation.

http://money.cnn.com/video/#/video/news/2008/02/28/news.hunter.shadowstats.Feb28.cnnmoney

I like the way Leonard sets up these three types of nations. I'm going to substitute "tier" for "world."

I think the EU could consider partnering nations into groups composed of a first tier country, a second tier EU country, and, ideally, a third tier non-EU country or perhaps region of such a country.

For example:

Germany

Poland

India (or Uttar Pradesh)

Refigure a single emission limit within this block, and annually disperse equal credits to all citizens within the block that together equal the emission limit. Create a trading market so citizens of the block can sell the credits.

The EU should also place the blocks in competition with each other with incentives for the blocks that decrease their emission limits by the largest margins.

Basically, each block would now have a cross section of the world's problems, but also a cross section of the varied resources of each region. India would get proportionately larger payout for its share of emission credits (higher population) and India and Poland would likely benefit as Germany would have greater incentives to provide more efficient technologies or pollution control devices where they will have the greatest effect. The EU might miss its original targets, but emissions within this larger system might be reduced to a much greater net overall.

That the EU wants to see strict laws enacted that force them to deny trade to developing nations, could it? Comply with the EU treaty of Whateverornot vis a vis emissions and Green-ery or the EU will tariff your goods and services coming to the EU?

Oh no I can't possibly see that happening, can you?

And get out of Iraq, and stop importing so much captital, and develop wind and sun... Plus build the 35 MPG pickup truck, and keep on moving.

Eight years from now, they will be trying to catch up with us, and all the poor coal miners will be unemployed. The world moves along.

Eight years from now... Plenty of time... Cheney and W. Bush will be in prison somewhere, or hiding out in Paraguay... And Buick Hydrogen cars will rule the world... Next step: Flying Hydrogen Buicks!