Friday Follies: Eco Hypocrites

Whenever a conservative gets caught in (say) a sex scandal, the press justifies its gleeful coverage with it's not the act, it's the hypocrisy.  Here are some stories about progressives where - strangely - the press isn't interested.


BBC pushes environmental agenda; refuses to buy carbon offsets

Auntie Beeb pushes Anthropogenic Global Warming hysterically, most recently last night, where their discussion on Radio 4 about the psychology of climate change "deniers" - where the science was (by the rules of the discussion) assumed to be "settled" that mankind's burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, wrecking the climate.

So someone wondered whether they bought carbon offsets for their people when they flew.  And that someone submitted a freedom of information act request to find out.  The reply?  No:

The BBC does not buy carbon offsets for its journalists' airline tickets because - "in considering such questions, the BBC must balance our environmental policies against our responsibility to our licence fee payers, and we do not believe buying offsets represents good use of licence fee income."

They have better things to do with their dough, ya see?  But all you proles, line up for the lower carbon lifestyle.  Remember, lefties, it's not the act itself, it's the hypocrisy!

Hat tip: Bishop Hill.

We need more wind power!  And aid to the poor because it costs too much to heat their house!

Progressive policies are a delicious desert topping and a floor shine!  Her Britannic Majesty's Parliament is debating whether to move forward on EU targets for the amount of electricity generated by wind power.  During the coldest winter in memory.  The Rt. Hon. Philip Davies, MP hits the nail on the head:

The bottom line is that these policies will produce for Britain the most expensive electricity in the world if we carry on down this particular route. Is it morally or politically acceptable, particularly at a time of national austerity when families are struggling to pay their bills, for the Government to keep raising them just to meet an EU target? I do not think it is. It will hit the poorest people in our communities first.

I do not understand why the people who propose these green policies are so shy about it. Anyone can say that they are in favour of green energy. It is like asking someone, "Would you like a Rolls-Royce car?" Most people would say, "Yes," but if one were to ask, "Would you like a Rolls-Royce car? You'll have to spend the rest of your life living in a tent to pay for it?" they might say, "No." If we ask people whether they are in favour of green energy, they say, "Of course we are-it sounds marvellous." However, if Huw Irranca-Davies were to ask them whether they were prepared to pay astronomical bills in order to pursue that, I think that he might get a different answer.

Funny that - Progressive policies impoverishing the masses.  Who'd have seen that coming?  But all you proles, line right up and do as you're told!

But silly MP Davies, someone else will pay for it.  Until you run out of other people's money.  Which you have.

Hat tip: Bishop Hill, again.

Those are some righteous "Green" Diesel-Voltaic solar cells

Longtime readers will remember a post about how the Spanish Government's solar power subsidies were so lucrative, it paid for companies to set up big banks of lights (powered by diesel generators) so they could run the "solar" cells all night.  Well, if something can't go on forever, it eventually stops.  And by "eventually", I mean "today":

Sunny Spain became the world’s top solar power producer. Since 2002, about €23-billion has been invested in Spain’s photovoltaic (PV) industry, which sucked up €2.7-billion in subsidies in 2009 alone, or more than 40 per cent of the freebies doled out to the country’s entire renewables sector.

When the Spanish economy went into the toilet in 2008 and 2009, austerity measures were put into place. At first, it appeared the solar industry would be spared the worst of the cutbacks. That changed a bit, but only a bit, in November, when a royal decree reduced tariffs by up to 45 per cent on new PV plants; existing plants would remain untouched. Then – whammo! – a new royal decree landed with a thud just before Christmas. While it didn’t change the tariff, it retroactively limited the number of production hours that PV plants could qualify for the subsidies.

Spain’s solar industry lobby group, the Asociacion Empresarial Fotovoltaica, estimated that the second decree would effectively reduce tariffs received by PV plants by 30 per cent, forcing many of the PV companies to default on their debt.

In other news of the unexpected, you can't grow orchids in your back yard in Massachusetts.  But don't worry, we have all our Top Men working on this, right now:

As predicted was inevitable, today the Spanish newspaper La Gaceta runs with a full-page article fessing up to the truth about Spain’s “green jobs” boondoggle, which happens to be the one naively cited by President Obama no less than eight times as his model for the United States.

Top men.  Almost Philosopher Kings.  Strangely unable to learn, though.  But all you proles, line right up and do as you're told!

Hat tip: Jo Nova.

Note to the liberal press (redundancy alert): we'd take you more seriously with all your it's the hypocrisy, stupid posturing if you'd spend just a little time policing the other side.  Proudly "green" companies that refuse to pay what they say everyone else should, "Progressive" policies that will make the poor poorer, and "Smart" politicians who can't learn from someone else's fail (and who are dead set to make their own, bigger fail here) are low hanging fruit.

No need to thank me, it's all part of the service.