Today, Ralph Avallone, the president of the National Green Energy Council, received a response to the very specific letter he had written to Barack Obama in which he urged the president’s support of green technology and renewable energy, and the “green jobs” they will create. Avallone notes:
“My letter … has facilitated nothing but a generic response. Most unfortunate….”
To which I respond:
Ralph: Speaking for all of us, I appreciate your effort. And yes, that’s unfortunate, though not at all surprising. I think we’ve seen ample evidence that the federal government – all three branches, btw — is stuck in neutral with respect to energy policy. We support whatever notions bring in votes, whether it’s as destructive and toxic as coal, or as unsafe and financially untenable as nuclear. Where we feel we need to, and that we can get away with it with our constituencies, we pay lip service to renewables – though we’re terrified that we’re doing so at the risk of being ridiculed from the right as socialists or tree-huggers.
There are some people who believe mainstream candidates’ promises to tear into the nation’s problems (of which energy, obviously, is only one) with passion, objectivity and honesty. There are people who believe in the Easter Bunny, too.
If you’re looking for spine and integrity, I’m afraid you’ll need to look elsewhere.
