re: #172 Gus 802

Which of course might mean that Palin’s stammering and folksy comments on “solar shingles” was just a shout out to her hosts, Koch Industries.

Wouldn’t be surprised. Big Energy’s been using its money for years to slow down the development and marketing of such technologies, swathing them in the sort of red tape that they deplore when it’s used on their own oil rigs and power plants. Want to create a lot of jobs and get America moving towards energy independence? Start cutting down the red tape that is making items like solar shingles and home windmills outrageously expensive to install and maintain. Offer even more incentives to home owners to invest in such technologies, as well as energy-efficient appliances and home renovations.

“Cheap oil” is a dinosaur, one that’s on the fast-track to extinction. Unless we want to go along with it, we need to find a way to divorce ourselves from it. Doubling down and ruining our environment further in pursuit of the last few pockets isn’t the answer.