LOBBYING FOR AN ICE AGE

"...when the ignorance and financial gain of one side comes at the expense of humanity, is it still acceptable?" By: AJ Antczak

Upton Sinclair, a famous writer of the early 20th century, once said It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it. This idea of voluntary ignorance can be applied in many areas of the world today. Naturally, when an individual has a source of income, they will preserve that source anyway they can. Doing so

is hard to blame. To put this idea simply, it could be described as the survival of the fittest on a financial level. Would anybody in their right mind question the great Charles Darwin? Probably not, but when the ignorance and financial gain of one side comes at the expense of humanity, is it still acceptable?

The issue of global warming has become a widespread concern across the world. The large scale solution for this world wide problem is to improve energy efficiency. With the population being so high, no matter how efficient we can make traditional energies, pollution will still exist. Therefore alternative energies have come on to the scene in a big way. The idea is that eventually, with enough research and technological advancements, alternative energies will take traditional energies place. Those who are associated in anyway with traditional energies are understandably against this movement. With the wealth that has accompanied the energy industry for so many years, these loyalists have quite the arsenal to generate a battle against global warming. The battle has already started but is nowhere near completion. Whether it is an attempt to question the validity of global warming or use money to lobby against any movements, the picture is clear: for the next many years it will be a battle

clear: for the next many years it will be a battle between the pockets of one party and the hearts of another.

Global warmings process, explained to the left, is simple but potentially devastating. Although energy efficiency is a beneficial procedure no matter what the circumstances, global warming only increases the need for an energy efficient world. 2

Alternative Energies
With energy efficiency comes the introduction of alternative energy sources such as wind, nuclear, geothermal, and solar power; and with the progression of these comes the regression of energies such as gas, oil, and coal. Alternative energies may not be as quick or cost effective to implement as traditional energies are, but they have more potential in the long run. Alternative energies are thought by many to be our future. With technologies constantly accelerating advancement in all areas of life, not many doubt its potential power. The sun, which is the largest source of energy known to man, would and already is leading to extraordinary utilizations here on Earth. Wind power, similar to the sun, comes free to us every day. Geothermal energy is the ever simple harnessing of the Earths heat. Nuclear energy, even with its known dangers, also has worlds of potential. If we were to make serious investments towards these energy producers, the energy gained by each would be substantially cheaper than anything in todays world. Along with financial benefits, alternative energies provide opportunity for energy consumption without pollution. A world with these energies as its main source is a world without global warming. Ironically, its the financial benefits that people are failing to recognize. But with the United States economy coming out of a recession, investing large amounts of money in any field may seem like a mistake. And with one particular party influencing many that global warming is a hoax, who in their right mind is going to support this type of investment on a large scale? We might as well give in to Al Gore, right? When viewed realistically, alternative energies clearly have a large upside. However, the few obstacles in its way are large enough to harm the industrys future.

Its All About the Money

Even though there are many things an individual can do to help, hoping for 7 billion people to work together in todays world seems more hopeless than the Chicago Cubs winning a World Series. With this being said, large scale movement is necessary. And if the party who is battling against alternative energies can use money as their motive, why cant that be part of the push for these energies? Yes, the main motive is truly to prevent global warming; but in this day and age, Al Gore is about the only person who would do this for free. This point leads us back to the previously mentioned financial upside of these energies. If the fundamentals of the business world are considered, supply and demand would come to most peoples mind. With low supply and high demand, prices rise. With high supply and high demand, the prices ease a bit. This process is truly common sense and something that nearly everyone is affected by daily. But what if, including the general costs of facility production and other general expenses, the supply was unlimited? One would naturally assume that the everyday price of energy would be significantly lower than it is today. This fact is what the majority of people are not seeing.

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So Whats the Hold Up?

Essentially, there are three true obstacles in the way of alternative energys advancement. 1. Lobbying 2. Initial Production Costs 3. Implementation lobbying to prevent any actions promoting Lobbying is something that many
people are labeling as ruining democracy. Democracy, when fundamentally viewed, is a system in which leaders represent their people. But if the leaders can only gain support with financial backing, what is the point? Modern day presidents, no matter their true intentions, will always be swayed by their supporters simply due to the fact that they supply their job. Al Gore, in a text unrelated to global warming, discussed the disintegration of true democracy; [Political Candidates] are under constant and unrelenting pressure from wealthy and powerful donors to adopt the donors political agendas (Gore 66). If anothers political agenda is adopted, the citizens choice has little affect on the situation at hand. Lobbying is having more of an effect now than it ever has. Once again, it all comes down to who has the money. The Republican Party has traditionally been associated with the oil industry and traditional energies in general. What seems to be a consistent theme comes up again: where there is wealth, there is power. The basic battle between alternative energies and traditional energies is truly simple: if alternative energies progress and become dominant, traditional energy companies will lose great sums of money
energy efficiency or global warming awareness. Ever wonder why a scientific thing like global warmings validity is argued about? Now you have an answer. This lobbying and anti-global warming movement has truly had an impact. As of today however, 97% of climate experts agree humans are causing global warming (Is There a Scientific Consensus on Global Warming?). With a scientific consensus favoring global warming being true, it is difficult to dispute that it will affect our planet. Even so, people have formed a belief that global warming is a hoax thanks to the powerful influence of the political hand. For obvious reasons, this hurts global warming awareness and hurts the progress being made. Lobbying also impacts the production side of things. Initial production costs are extremely high for alternative energies, so high in fact that many companies need government incentives to get their feet on the ground. Logically, lobbyists against global warming have made a large push to prevent any government intervention that would aid energy efficiency. This interaction is where a majority of the true battle lays. Support and awareness for global warming must be made stronger in order to overcome the fatal entity that lobbying has become. 5

Initial production costs are extremely

high for alternative energy companies. Gianna Bern, the author of Investing in Energy: A Primer on the Economic of the Energy Industry, makes it clear that it is nearly impossible to produce a successful energy company without any outside help; no energy company would contemplate building or pursuing a major infrastructure project on its own (Bern 12). Not only would companies be crazy to attempt production on their own, but government incentives and tax cuts are often the backbone to these companies. So even though these companies have great potential, many are scared to begin the quest with such a large financial risk. These initial costs would be a problem with or without lobbying; and even though lobbying makes it a problem with more components, the investment must be made.

The Solar Option:

Solar energy, the alternative with arguably the largest upside, presents the largest problem. In order to successfully implement a solar energy plant, a large amount of land is needed. This leads to the obvious production problem of placement. Considering this issue, a common question arises: how will solar energy be implemented in large cities? The solution is not one that is quick to find or cheap to research. Fortunately, headway has already been made. Scientists and engineers are working daily to better the technology involved. The main goal is to utilize the energy gained by the sun in a more efficient manner. If this efficiency is achieved and continuously improved, than land usage will decrease greatly and we will be able to utilize solar energy on a large scale. Of course, this is easier to state in writing than to actually achieve.

Implementation is the last obstacle for

alternative energies. These energies have already begun to be utilized in promising ways across the globe; but just like anything, progress is still to come. Each of the alternative options faces similar problems; without technological improvement, there is no future when competing with global giants such as oil. Simply put: in order to implement, technology is needed; in order to improve technology, money is needed; in order to gain money, support is needed. And once again lobbying ties back into the equation; if lobbying continues to prosper in the way it is today, the financial support necessary may never come.

Wind Energy:
Wind energy has a simple problem with a complex solution. When there is no wind, there is no power generated.

Geothermal Energy:
Geothermal energy involves harnessing energy from the earths heat. Its process is as complex as it sounds. Just like anything else, innovation and improvement is needed to excel in the future.

Nuclear Energy:
Nuclear energy has been experimented with since the infamous dropping of the atomic bombs towards the end of World War II. Its technology has been developing for quite a while and with its vast power comes inherent dangers. Nuclear meltdowns, such as Chernobyl and the recent meltdown experienced in Japan, have given nuclear energy a bad name.

What is feared is simple; global warming will cause Earths equilibrium status to be thrown off track. With unnatural heating taking place, large amounts of ice will melt. Ocean currents will go off their natural course. The frost line will move south due to cooler waters and winter storms will be worsened. Towards the equator, waters will be unnaturally warmer and tropical storms will be worsened. Storms of all kinds will increase in severity. Droughts will increase in some areas as unnatural amounts of rain occur in others. With heat comes movement, and on a large scale that means earths plates. Essentially, natural events will be intensified in every way. Eventually a certain amount of ice will melt in the Arctic, causing the oceans pump to shut off, putting most of Europe in an ice age. As the Arctic melts, so will Antarctica, a region with much more ice. Many deniers out there will claim that these outcomes are simply unrealistic. That seems a bit ignorant considering recent years in which we have 8

Whats the Big Deal Anyways?

experienced storms like never before. There was the rare occasion of a hurricane in November, one that produced snow showers in the northeastern region of the United States. Hurricane Katrina devastated people like no hurricane before. President Obama stated from a scientific report that the 12 hottest years on record have occurred in the last 15 years ("State of Union Address"). A hard look at the facts, instead of ignoring the happenings around us, will point to the obvious truth: global warmings effects are upon us.

Lobbying For an Ice Age

So when considering everything, we have a decision to make: continue to ignore the facts that are laid out in front of us or make the push in the effort to aid global warming. This is truly a battle between global warming and the blinding sense money provides; between global warming and the blinding sense that political allegiance provides. People need to realize that global warming has already begun; the effects have already set in. This is no longer an issue that Al Gore is warning us about; it is an issue that he is showing us with real life examples. Unless one has a personal opinion on the topic, they are not going to shy away from their political allegiance; and understandably so. Just as each partys members should on every issue that presents itself, we must learn a little bit about the facts and generate an opinion of our own. We must research into which lobbyists have influenced our favorite candidates motives and re-evaluate our opinions. We must not enable these political juggernauts to dictate our decisions when money is dictating theirs. They are lobbying for an ice age.