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Welcome to Ontario – where ‘Stupid’ rules

Posted by Joanne on 21 July 2010, 10:36 am

Lorrie Goldstein has some good advice for the ROC – When it comes to environmental policy,  do the opposite of Dalton McGuinty:

Indeed, a good rule of (green) thumb for Canadians is if Ontario is doing something to “help the environment,” you should run screaming from the idea as if Frankenstein had suddenly been unleashed on your community.

Should you one day catch any of your politicians starting to babble like our premier does about all things green, the appropriate response would be to hunt them down with pitch forks and burning torches, before they do something really stupid.

In Ontario, alas, it’s too late. Stupid already rules.

Yes but maybe not so much stupid as cunning.

Dalton knows how to fleece us and still stay popular.

*   *   *   *

Update

Stupid also seems to rule south of the border – Kerry Lynch: Green dream – meet reality - Orange County Register (via The Record)

*   *   *   *

Walkom: The painful stupidity of Dalton McGuinty’s eco fees – Yikes! He said it too!! And from the Star!!!

Eco tax likely to be back in some form – Walter Robinson, Sun

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Thursday Update

Green energy problems continue to plague Ontario’s Liberal government – Keith Leslie (Record)

MUST READ:

Those solar-power pay scales never did make much sense - Peter Shawn Taylor (Record):

...Selling to the government at 80.2¢ or 58.8¢ what the government then turns around and sells to the public for 6.5¢ is clearly too good to be true. This huge gap must ultimately be borne by consumers and taxpayers. And it is clearly unsustainable over the long run.

No solar investor can therefore defend this business model on its own merits. Rather, it’s about taking advantage of temporary government stupidity. The new rates simply limit this stupidity somewhat.

There was also plenty of international evidence that the rich tariffs couldn’t last, if anyone had bothered to look. Spain, in many ways the inspiration for Ontario’s solar regime, cut its feed-in tariffs sharply in 2008 because they were too rich, and is now discussing a 30 per cent retroactive reduction in contracts already signed. Germany and Italy are also cutting their rates. In the interests of sanity, Ontario should cut its solar rates even further…

Temporary government stupidity? That’s being generous.

Filed under Big Environment, Big Green, Culture of Conceit, Dalton McGuinty, Flicking politicians, Follow the money, Global Warming, Goldstein, Lemmings love Fiberals, Lemmings love taxes, Let's ban CFLs, Shifty Green, Voter cynicism, Wind farms, Your tax-dollars, environment, environmentalists, scandals.
39 Comments

The Scary Duo

Posted by Joanne on 16 June 2010, 7:31 am

Everytime I see Dalton McGuinty and Jean Charest getting together I cringe with fear.  Their latest mission is a renewed push for cap and trade because the feds just aren’t moving fast enough – especially now that “they have dug themselves out of the recession.” (Who knew? Does that mean that Alberta can quit sending equalization payments?)

Coincidentally Lorrie Goldstein has addressed the recent inclusion of climate change into the G8-G20 agenda, (Summit will deliver more hot air) with a note of warning regarding the possible economic ramifications:

Indeed in the real world, getting the global economy moving again, presumably the main concern of the G8/G20 leaders, will cause greenhouse gas emissions to rise.

Unless, of course, they were to establish a global cap-and-trade market by putting a world price on industrial carbon dioxide emissions, thereby allowing the same giant U.S. investment banks that just finished crashing the global economy by trading in highly speculative and ultimately worthless subprime mortgage bonds, to do the same thing all over again with carbon credits.

My own suspicion is that the Green Scheme Twins see this as a golden opportunity to not only appease a very powerful environmental lobby, but also push for a new speculative industry that might cause some serious economic backlash if handled improperly (not to mention the potential for fraud.)

Lorrie Goldstein has addressed this issue many times before, for example in his March 27 column – Inconvenient Questions:

Does the fact the earliest corporate boosters of Kyoto and carbon trading were the fraudsters at Enron never cause you to wake up in a cold sweat?

How about the fact your “allies” on cap-and-trade are the giant U.S. money houses that just finished wrecking the global economy, now looking to make another quick killing by brokering trading in highly speculative carbon credits, the European market for which, aside from doing nothing to cool the planet, is awash in multi-billion-dollar frauds?

Largely ineffective

What about the 2002 report by Statistics Norway that Norway’s 1991 carbon tax has been largely ineffective in reducing emissions?

Or last week’s story in the Times of London that the U.K.’s energy regulator has found many of Britain’s wind farms are a bust when it comes to delivering electricity?

That, in the words of Michael Jefferson, professor of international business and sustainability and a former lead author of the IPCC: “Too many developments are underperforming. It’s because developers grossly exaggerate the potential. The subsidies make it viable for developers to put turbines on sites they would not touch if the money was not available.”

Gee. Hard to see that one coming, eh? Who knew that when governments insanely guarantee to pay grossly inflated prices for “green” electricity for 20-25 years, thus handing developers windfall profits from the hides of electricity consumers, many don’t deliver the goods?

Not you, obviously. Or Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty.

One thing for sure. Whenever you see Premiers McGuinty and Charest put their heads together, you’d better hang on tight to your wallet – until they pry it away by force.

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Related

Scan of Arctic ice dispels melting gloom, scientist says – Citizen (H/T NNW)

Filed under Big Environment, Big Green, Dalton McGuinty, Energy, Flicking politicians, Follow the money, Global Warming, Goldstein, Jean Charest, Just trust Dalton, Kyoto, Liberal entitlement, Liberal machine, Ontario economy, Ours to Recover, Peter Principle, Premier Hudak in 2011, Quebec politics, Science/tech, Shifty Green, Too many pigs at the trough, UN, Wind farms, Your tax-dollars, climate change, environment, environmentalists, pesticides, scandals.
25 Comments

Green energy means leaner times

Posted by Joanne on 9 April 2010, 8:16 am

What’s in your wallet fellow Ontarians?  It sure won’t be money:

Consumers will face higher electricity bills as part of an unprecedented $8-billion plan announced Thursday to create more renewable energy in Ontario.

People can expect an additional $5 per month on their hydro bills by 2012 — the latest in a series of incremental increases to taxpayers’ electricity rates…

( . . . )

…Two weeks ago, the government quietly introduced a new charge to help cover $53 million of the Liberals’ conservation and green-energy program, which is expected to add about $4 a year to the average electricity bill.

A few days later, Ontario Power Generation said it was applying to increase its rates by 9.6 per cent starting next January. That would add about $2.75 to the average monthly electricity bill — all on top of the extra eight per cent consumers will have to pay when the 13 per cent HST takes effect in July.

The $5 extra a month attached to Thursday’s announcement would be in addition to those increases…

The Globe’s Karen Howlett points out that “Ontario is about to rival Prince Edward Island as the province with the highest electricity prices in Canada, and rates will, for the first time, exceed the average cost of keeping the lights on in the United States.”

How are Ontario seniors supposed to cope? Turn off the A/C and die of heat stroke? Well I guess that could help alleviate the health care crunch.

But how exactly are skyrocketing electrical costs going to attract business to our lovely have-not province?

Ontario – On the equalization dole forever.

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Saturday Update

Margaret Wente’s column in the Globe is a MUST-READ – Welcome to the wacky world of green power:

…The heart of their strategy is to pay massive subsidies to wind, solar and other renewable energy producers – many of them large multinational corporations – for the next 20 years.

Some people think this is a terrible idea. One of them is George Monbiot, the environmental firebrand in Britain, which has just introduced its own subsidy scheme. “The feed-in tariffs [the rates paid to power generators such as Mr. Creeggan] about to be introduced here are extortionate, useless and deeply regressive,” he fumed. “The technologies the scheme will reward are comically inefficient.”

Get that? Even George Monbiot thinks it’s a bad idea!!! We are doomed.

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Sunday Update

Electricity price rises a concern to industry – Star (H/T NewsWatchCanada):

...One analyst – who had already predicted a hefty increase in power prices – says the contracts will push power bills even higher for consumers and businesses.

High prices mean higher costs, said Ian Howcroft, Ontario vice-president of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters.

“Some of the members we represent have real concerns about their future ability to operate in Ontario if – as one member puts it – we become an island of high prices,” Howcroft said...

Sometimes I hate being right.

Thursday Update

Electricity prices head upwards – Star

Filed under Big Environment, Big Green, Flicking politicians, Global Warming, Green bulbs get red hot, Just trust Dalton, Ontario economy, Ontario government, Ours to Recover, Premier Hudak in 2011, Seniors, Shifty Green, Your tax-dollars, environment, environmentalists, health.
22 Comments

In the twisted world of Suzuki logic

Posted by Joanne on 27 March 2010, 8:27 am

There is so much wrong with this David Suzuki interview on Evan Solomon’s Power and Politics, that it would take way more typing to fully cover it than my recovering wrist will allow.

However the following portion made my head explode.

Around the  3:00 mark Evan is questioning Dr. Fruit Fly about the link between Kyoto, climate change and the economy. Suzuki is trying to make the case for an improved economy if a tax is put on carbon.

At 3:51 Suzuki responds to the Harper Government’s more pragmatic environmental stance at Copenhagen, by calling it a ‘bunch of nonsense’ and it’s just ‘all words’.

Suzuki then gives the example of how Sweden supposedly had lower GHG emissions and an improved economy after introducing a carbon tax -  and then he goes off on a very scary and angry tirade against the Canadian Government.

Solomon them attempts to provide a smidgen of balance by reminding him about the decision in France to let the carbon tax legislation die.

Suzuki’s response?

Wait for it.

“I’m not French. I don’t know”.

So what are you?  Swedish?

Keep your lights on tonight for Earth Hour, Canada!!!   David Suzuki’s are clearly dimming.

*   *   *   *

Bonus: See if you can find Suzuki’s Stephane Dion put-down further on in the segment.

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Sunday Update

Big Liberal Thinkers want a carbon tax!!!    Hang onto your wallets, Canada.  (H/T Bruce and other attentive readers)

Liberals hear call for carbon tax – Gazette

Liberals across the country tweet carbon tax debate – Stephen Maher, CH

Tough issues grip Grits – Chronicle Herald:

…McKenna said Liberals are particularly “gun shy” about proposing anything controversial since the 2008 carbon tax fiasco.

Yet during an environmental panel later Saturday, imposition of a carbon tax to reduce greenhouse gas emissions seemed to be a popular idea.

Panellist Steven Guilbeault of Equiterre said he was pleasantly surprised.

“I’m happy that there are so many people here who are willing to talk about this because at the end of the day it’s one of the most efficient measures you can use if you actually want to start reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” he said in an interview.

Ignatieff, who first proposed a carbon tax during the 2006 Liberal leadership, has since said he won’t revive an idea that’s been so decisively rejected by voters. He now advocates a cap and trade system instead.

But panellist Michael Phelps, board chairman of the GLOBE Foundation, said a carbon tax is a much simpler and more effective way to influence consumer behaviour.

“I’d be standing on a soapbox saying, ‘Use less carbon, you’re going to pay for it,’ ” he said.

Oh dear. What will the Waffle do?

Inconvenient questions – Lorrie Goldstein

Why Sarkozy Dropped His Beloved Carbon Tax - Time Magazine (Pay attention now, David Suzuki):

…The President maintains he is only delaying application of the tax until the E.U. comes up with a similar initiative applicable to all member states. “Environmental dumping threatens our jobs, [and] it would be absurd to tax French companies while giving a competitive advantage to those in polluting countries,” Sarkozy argued, saying he remained committed to a carbon tax as a necessary move to protect the environment — though only once nations “who continue to pollute without shame” agree to become as virtuous.

How likely is that to happen? Not very, according to media reports in France. French newspapers and television news channels said Sarkozy’s address meant the carbon tax was “dead and buried” — most of all because of the high improbability of all 27 E.U. members voting in an identical measure…

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Can we trust the ‘Climategate’ inquiry? – Telegraph:

…What Lord Oxburgh kept quiet about, however, is that he is also a director and vice-chairman of a strange little private company few of us had heard of known as Globe International. The name stands for “Global Legislators Organisation for a Balanced Environment”, and it describes itself as a worldwide network to lobby governments to take more drastic action on climate change…

They try to keep a low profile.

And look who’s president of Globe Canada.

Filed under Big Environment, Big Green, Canadian economy, Carbon Shaft, Climategate, Copenhagen, David Suzuki, Follow the money, Global Warming, Goldstein, Green Shaft, Hypocrisy, Kyoto, Science/tech, Stephane Dion, Your tax-dollars, climate change, environment, environmentalists.
96 Comments

Giving up carbon for Lent

Posted by Joanne on 19 March 2010, 8:43 am

No, seriously!  This is an edict from several church leaders.

I arrived at this incredible revelation on a hunt for the relationship between environmentalism and Catholicism after reading this opinion piece in today’s Record by Community Editorial Board member Ruthann Fisher who is a ‘pastoral associate at St. Francis of Assisi Church’ in Kitchener.  Ms. Fisher begins her piece (which also includes a federal government-bashing) as follows:

“Can we afford to only honour our Earth for one hour or one week?”

As a Catholic and a Christian, I found that sentence very disturbing. I was always taught to follow the first commandment: I am the LORD your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me.

“Honouring” our  “Earth” strikes me as somewhat sacrilegious.  I thought we were only supposed to honour God.

Then there’s that whole ‘afford’ thing – stoking up the old fear factor again.   Is God going to punish me if I burn some fossil fuel driving to the store?  I sure didn’t learn that in Catechism class.  Or is she trying to say that I’ll go broke? Or will my carbon sinning hasten the apocalypse?

As a Christian I believe it is our duty to be good stewards of God’s gifts to us and that includes the earth and all God’s creations therein.

So in my quest for a better understanding of where the Church was going on this I came across this notion of a Carbon Fast for Lent supported by many different religions and organizations.  In fact you are even invited to Light a Lenten candle this Earth Hour - “A carbon fast reflects the true meaning of the Lenten season.“ (Yikes!!!  Are you buying this?)

It’s a strange world today when the only sins that really seem to be ones worth worrying about are those against Mother Earth.

*   *   *   *

Update:

Advice to priests: shut up about climate change, talk about sin – Telegraph

You gotta ask God about that – Rockin Traddy

*   *   *   *

And please refresh my memory.   Where does the Catholic Church stand on abortion these days?

Pelosi prays to St Joseph to pass this abortion-funding bill for its life affirmation, or something – Hot Air (H/T Maz2)  [And I got a trackback from Hot Air. Awesome.]

Deus Vult! Pelosi invokes St. Joseph to pass bill that funds abortions – Washington Examiner

“Don’t kill babies, kill the bill” -  From: A House, and nation, divided on health care (Gazette)

Health Bill: Poll Indicates Perils for Some Democrats – Wall Street Journal

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Saturday Update

In case you missed it -

Seven-month-old baby survives shot to chest in parents’ murder-suicide pact blamed on global warming – Daily News.  (So I guess Al Gore was right after all. Global warming can kill you.)

U.K. warmists now scaring kids – Lorrie Goldstein

Global Warming Nursery Rhymes – American Thinker:

There is a reason why Hitler, Stalin, Mao and other totalitarian rulers have sought to give the state the responsibility for raising and educating their nation‘s youth. Parents cannot be fully trusted to prepare their children to be loyal and productive members of society. It is essential that the indoctrination process begin during those early formative years before any nonconformist values are instilled…

Minister’s global warming nursery rhyme adverts banned for overstating the risks – Mail Online

Filed under AGW, Abortion, Al Gore, Big Environment, Big Green, Climategate, Global Warming, Goldstein, climate change, environment, environmentalists, religion.
43 Comments

But can we wish away Al Gore?

Posted by Joanne on 2 March 2010, 7:54 am

There is no shortage of point-by-point criticisms of Al Gore’s New York Times Op-ed, We Can’t Wish Away Climate Change.

My first thought after reading his steaming pile of rhetoric was why did he set himself up for the inevitable drudging?   Or does he actually believe that we’re that stupid?

And how is it that the alarmists can continue to hold him up as some kind of prophet and still keep a straight face while they warn us all of impending doom?

Anyway, here are some of the better fisks that I’ve come across. If you find more please let share them in comments. Thanks.

Al’s latest global-warming whopper – Alan Reynolds, New York Post

Al Gore’s weird, disconnected op-ed on climate change – Rick Moran, American Thinker

Al Gore Comes Out of Hiding and Gets a Fisking – Bluegrass Pundit

EXCLUSIVE: Inhofe Blasts Gore Over Climategate – Connie Hair, Human Events

But in response to Gore’s statement that “what is at stake is our ability to use the rule of law as an instrument of human redemption”,   Bill Kristol said it most succinctly:

“Redemption comes from God, not Gore.”

* * * *

Related

More inconvenient news for the global warming alarmists:

UN’s climate link to hurricanes in doubt – Times Online

Cyclone climate link rejected – The Australian

El Nino killed Costa Rican toad, not global warming – Oneindia

British scientist in climate row admits ‘awful’ emails – Sydney Morning Herald

‘The Acceleration of Disbelief,’ Starring ‘Floor Mat’ Al Gore - Big Journalism (this is a must-read)

So is this one: Climategate: ‘a lot of common data’ – Phil Jones exposes AGW dominoes to Commons committee – Gerald Warner, Telegraph:

...And oh, yes – one further interesting fact emerged from yesterday’s Select Committee grilling. Professor Edward Acton, the Vice-Chancellor of the “University” of East Anglia, now thinks more money should be devoted to researching the Mediaeval Warm Period. So apparently it exists after all.

Who knew?

*   *   *   *

Local ‘Green Energy’ issues:

Wind farm faces opposition – Guelph Mercury article via Windaction

Ontario power risk – Parker Gallant, Full Comment

*   *   *   *

*   *   *   *

Wednesday Update

Welcome Jack’s Newswatch readers!  And please check out Crux of the Matter – Trust Conservative gov’t timetable to refute AGW.

Peter Foster: Climate snow jobs – FP Comment

Wind power the worst kind of mirage – Henk Tennekes, FP

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Friday – Saturday Update

Waiting to hear ‘we’re sorry’ – John Robson, Ottawa Citizen

Blowing away taxpayers – Michael Trebilcock, Financial Post

Filed under AGW, Al Gore, Arrogance, Big Environment, Big Green, Carbon Shaft, Climategate, Copenhagen, Dalton McGuinty, Follow the money, Global Warming, Ontario economy, Propaganda, Science/tech, UN, Wind farms, Your tax-dollars, climate change, economy, environment, environmentalists, scandals.
45 Comments

The Audacity of Caution

Posted by Joanne on 1 March 2010, 7:52 am

Dr. Jack Kruuv, Professor Emeritus of Physics at the University of Waterloo has a few choice words for Maxime Bernier in today’s Waterloo Region Record:

“Politicians should keep their trap shut, when they don’t know what they are talking about.”

And since politicians represent the people that elect them, then by extension he is telling us to keep our traps shut. So much for open debate in Canadian taxpayer-supported universities.

This is the kind of attitude that we’re up against.

Have at it, BLY nation.

*   *   *   *

Update

Fantastic post at American Thinker by Rick Moran (H/T Maz2) where he savages Al Gore’s NYT op-ed – Al Gore’s weird, disconnected op-ed on climate change:

…In other words, Gore obviously believes we should sit down, shut up, and let him and his buddies reach into our pockets and remove trillions of dollars without demanding proof of the scientific basis for his power grab…

Sound familiar?

Phil Jones on the hot seat – not sharing data is “standard practice” – WUWT (H/T Maz2)

And a terrific comment  from a reader at the Daily Mail:

“Prof Jones today said it was not ‘standard practice’ in climate science to release data and methodology for scientific findings so that other scientists could check and challenge the research.”

It is standard practice in every proper science to release date and methodology in the greatest of detail so that every aspect of the research and of the argument can be ‘falsified’ (using the Popper meaning of the word).
That is how science works.
That is why science works.
Not to do so puts climate research at the level of iridology, homeopoathy, and alchemy.
Add political agenda, and finding, and you have a bastardised pseudo-science barely worth another look. Unscrupulous people making money out of the latest political bandwagon, to justify further taxation by this dreadful government.

Which many of us have suspected for a long time.

- PeterMac, Ronda, Spain, 01/3/2010 18:45

Filed under AGW, Al Gore, Arrogance, Big Environment, Big Green, Climategate, Follow the money, Global Warming, Science/tech, Your tax-dollars, climate change, democracy, environment, environmentalists, grassroots power.
43 Comments
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