U.S. needs coherent energy plan

I disagree with a number of points int eh May 23 editorial about drilling ANWR and offshore.

First of all, it says that “anyone who has taken Econ 101 knows the reason.” At this point in time, economics has no way of taking the cost of environmental degradation into account. Since we humans are a part of the environment and completely dependent on the environment, surely there is a great cost that does not enter into economic calculations. We absolutely must find ways to consider this great cost before we proceed with jobs like drilling ANWR and offshore.

Another important point is that we have never developed a coherent energy policy. Many people say that Jimmy Carter was not a good president. Perhaps this is true in many ways, but one of his strong points was that he had a good, future-oriented energy policy. This policy was demolished by the following administration. That is unfortunate because the problems we face now could be very different if we had continued the path Carter laid out for us.

It is much more important that we get back to a conservation and development of alternate resources before we blindly heed “Econ 101” and begin drilling and sucking out every last drop of oil, destroying the environment as we do so.

DUANE T. CARR
Grand Junction

More drilling won’t quench our oil thirst

Drilling ANWR and offshore areas to satisfy our out-sized appetite for motor fuels makes about as much sense as buying larger garments to fight obesity. But full speed ahead!

Let’s drill every square inch of this fair land and its coastal margins and suck out every drop of oil and cubic foot of natural gas to fuel mindless errands in our overstuffed SUVs and to keep our ATVs, boats, snowmobiles, golf-carts and jet-skis humming.

Even better, let’s all take out additional home-equity loans so we can buy more vehicles and keep Ford Motor Company in the business of producing more gas-guzzlers. While we’re at it, let’s also encourage every little retired couple to indulge its fantasy of owning, occupying, heating, air-conditioning and lighting a 4600-square-foot home. Life just isn’t worth living without dedicated wine-tasting, home-theater and exercise rooms, is it?

But when we’ve finally used up that last drop of oil from ANWR and that last whiff of gas from western Colorado, then what? The conventional wisdom seems to be that “they” will miraculously discover and develop new sources of energy or new technologies to help us maintain our profligate lifestyle.

But who are “they,” and why haven’t “they” been able to foresee and forestall the mess we find ourselves in today? Is it because they won’t, or because they can’t?

It is unlikely that I will ever see the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge with my own eyes, but I have seen the area north of Rangely, and I much prefer my imaginings of the first to the stark realities of the second. I hope there’s still time for us to re-order our priorities and consider leaner diets.

HANK SCHOCH
Fruita

Time has come to adopt the Fair Tax plan

Karl Marx of Prussia was the first to propose a graduated income tax in his “Communist Manifesto” of 1848.

This communist-style tax has been in effect in the United States of America since 1913. That is 95 years too long.

The Fair Tax plan has been before the U.S. Congress since 1999 with no action taken. It will take a constitutional amendment to abolish the income tax forever.

The Fair Tax will be a 23 percent tax on all new goods and services. Since all goods manufactured in the United States are taxed at 22 percent and these taxes are repealed by the Fair Tax, it will be a 1 percent increase in prices and every working person will take home their entire paycheck with no deduction for income tax, Social Security or Medicare as the national sales tax covers them.

Get behind this tax and live free.

JOE JORGENSEN
Grand Junction

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 at 6:52 am and is filed under Printed letters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.