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Another Perspective
Granting Environmental Indulgences
As soon as a coin in the coffer rings
A soul from purgatory springs.
So went a mantra from 16th-century Europe, when salvation -- or, so the idea went -- could be purchased by anyone willing to pay the price: sold to the sinner for cold hard cash. Sins were absolved, sinners sanctified, offenses forgotten. Money, not the commitment to a better life, promised that debauchery and divinity could cohabit in the ledgers of the holy treasurer. By virtue of a self-promoting religiosity, these indulgences, as they were called, purported to place spiritual caps on the consequences of forbidden acts. A weekend of decadent and intemperate living brought no punishment for breaking with accepted piety. In theory, at least, a person could excuse all the depravity he wanted, as long as those indulgent acts were economically sanctioned by appropriate authorities. Contrary to the hopes of the sinner, however, financial machinations had not the power to sanctify the sinner. The sins remained even when the money did not. What started out as a dubious collection plate, ended up decimating the reputation and structure of organized religion in Europe. Sin and corruption, rather than dissipating, coalesced at the foundation of Western Religion, paving the way for years of violent reformation.
Is Cap-and-Trade just another politically indulgent Indulgence?
The comparison is not without merit. Last month, Henry Waxman, Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi, preached the virtues of righteous energy policy, pressing members in a twilight session with supernal promises of political -- and most assuredly, financial -- indulgences. After not a little dealing and celestial wrangling, Speaker Pelosi and Chairman Waxman did sufficiently succor their sheep, and H.R. 2454 ("Cap-and-Trade") passed 219-212: filled, to be sure, with all manner of goodies for the faithful 219 who supported it.
Through those 219 votes, House leadership secured unprecedented relief and forgiveness for immoral acts of environmental irresponsibility. Carbon footprints would remain but would be washed clean in the waters of financial justification. Corporations that emitted excessively sinful emissions would be permitted to atone for their conduct by dropping punitive offerings into the governmental coffer (i.e., purchasing "carbon credits"). Wherefore, if a corporation feels particularly righteous, it can demonstrate contrition by purchasing indulgences for its harmful conduct and/or trading with a non-offending corporation for rights to its accumulated footprints of the carbon variety. Whether offering lucre directly to the Government or trading with non-offending corporations for rights to their unblemished credits, the offending acts still occur, however, and like the sins of that earlier version, the environmental vice remains. The only real change is that which is found in the financial ledgers of the Government, or the pockets of the ministers of financial regulation -- those who oversee the process. Sounds horrifyingly illogical enough, but what of the political ramifications sewn in the seeds of such atavistic audacity?
One queries the mind: How will constituents respond to a bargain that causes producers to raise energy prices so that consumers can hear the governmental coffer ring louder and faster? Will voters be willing to grant their leaders the immortality of another term when the promised jobs and agricultural boon bear little more than higher costs, higher unemployment, and a dustbowl of political chaff? By what authority will the likes of Chairman Waxman and Speaker Pelosi add years to the terms of their 219 over the weeping, wailing, and gnashing of constituents' teeth? How will the planet be safer when polluters export their sin from wealthy to impoverished countries that have much less concern for the environmental well-being of their communities -- not to mention open debates on the subject? Under Cap-and-Trade's proposed bargain, behavior wouldn't change, only change would: from the payrolls of the corporations to the coffers of the regulators.
Just what are the environmental and economical effects of these caps? Do we know? Surely, if a single member of the House had read the 1300-page bill, we might have been told. Our elected officials call Cap-and-Trade a "moral imperative" that is necessary to reduce environmental heresy -- again, a moral imperative whose text was not read by a single member of the House. Apparently, they believe that devotion to their ineffable plan is sufficient to keep the flock from squirming out from under its financial yoke. Do they believe their parishioners won't seek out more liberating pastures free of the unnecessary and largely unknown encumbrances that are sure to come? This latest chapter in environmentalism's holy writ has neither the reason nor the canonical authority to direct the economic or social instincts of the masses. Given the growing number of environmental apostates, people who have left the global warming faithful, it would seem, in fact, that the planet and its stewards would be better suited by a more measured and reasonable approach -- one that has been discussed, debated, and even read by those demanding its passage. Until such reasonable energy policy is presented, sermons of planetary and economical salvation seem disingenuous at best and at their worst, unsupportable.
Rather than allowing reasonable minds debate and dissent, environmental heretics are threatened with social and political excommunication. When consumers seek answers, the masses are rebuffed and logic is stymied. Despite a tectonic shift in the claims and warnings of environmental data, the rush to act pushes for immediate conformity. Pay now, before it's too late! The coffers need to be filled! Details will come after the bill is passed (and read)! Take that leap of faith and (environmental) salvation is yours! There is no time to waste!
But alas, the time for illumination is not over, and an enlightened debate can bring reasonable dogma and people together. The Reformation of old removed barriers to holy writ, and brought comprehension and light to the confounded. The masses were respected enough to be seen as arbiters of their own existence in accordance with the written word. With the increased knowledge came an increased ability to understanding each person's respective responsibility. Access to the text showed trust and respect. Likewise, is it too much to expect that our elected officials illuminate us on the actual contents of something that is so "imperative"? Perhaps that is one indulgence that they can share with us. Pollution and environmental mayhem are enemies to all: consumers, voters, and the planet. Energy policy must be addressed in the light of day, not in harried sessions of hyperbole and ad hominem.
As they continue their crusade against the invisible hand of Adam Smith, those who would mar the debate solely for political gain need to be exposed as the fallen priests that they are. Their sins against sound economic and energy policy cannot be tolerated, nor can their pleas for indulgence be answered. Cap-and-Trade does not cap environmental sin but merely trades a self-serving social agenda for economic misery. Environmental health and longevity has a shrine in the marketplace of liberty and commerce. This shrine, free from the yoke of excessive regulation, protects and rewards the good steward of conservation. It nurtures the economy, promotes policies that ensure environmental immortality, and persecutes those who abuse our natural resources.
Rather than being wary of the market's ability to shepherd good energy and environmental policy, we should protect our flocks from promises of false profits made by false prophets.
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Freya| 7.15.09 @ 6:57AM
"Cap-and-Trade does not cap environmental sin"
Uh, yes it does.
It worked for acid rain, remember?
stu.b.con| 7.15.09 @ 7:42AM
Algore et.al.=Torquemada
owyheewine| 7.15.09 @ 9:06AM
The real indulgences are to big NY trading firms that will really own the country if this monstrosity becomes law. 1500 pages can hide a lot of favors.
Carbonicus| 7.15.09 @ 9:55AM
Freya, you are misinformed. It didn't "work for acid" rain, which turned out to be scientifically unfounded. And it won't work for "global warming" and CO2. To be accurate, it is fair to say that it worked for the reduction of SO2 and NOX emitted from utility stacks, but the jump from there to acid rain has been proven erroneous already years ago.
But then, those who support "global warming" CO2 regulation have already proven - time and again - that they don't care about facts.
In virtually no time, history will record the entire "global warming" scam as a modern day version of the Copernicus and Galileo flap with the Catholic church. As it turned out, Copernicus and Galileo were right (the earth revolves around the sun, not the other way around) but promoting scientific fact that was counter to the Church's teachings got the latter jailed. In the last few years - hundreds of years after Galileo's death - the Church subsequently apologized and admitted their error.
Sound familiar?
Anthony| 7.15.09 @ 10:20AM
The analogy is apropos. We have indeed decended into another "Dark Age". Reason, objectivity, logic, and just plain common sense, have all gone the way of the polemics of the new corrupt charlatan priests, the Democrat Party.
Who knows, maybe Sarah Palin will be the plague that decends upon these hucksters, and we'll be rid of them once and for all.
Markus| 7.15.09 @ 10:32AM
Bravo!
This complete farce needs to be exposed.
Confess, repent, and come back into the fold....
Banackburn| 7.15.09 @ 11:23AM
Mr. Kirkenhoffen is right! Please dems, ram this bill thru congress - your tax sins will be exposed in Nov 2010.
Tony in Central PA| 7.15.09 @ 12:07PM
As the Church diminishes, the State becomes the Church. It is a small irony that the liberal element most hostile toward religion desires a State that functions more like a authoritarian theocracy than anything else.
I can also tell freya that acid rain is the same in PA as it was 25 years ago, if not worse.
Pete| 7.15.09 @ 12:38PM
As ludicrous as this hoax is, am I wrong to secretly hope it passes so everyone feels the direct kick to the groin that it is and votes accordingly during the next cycle? The current Democratic strategy of pissing down people's legs and telling them it is raining won't work (God help us if it does) when they are taking money straight out of people's pockets. Or do you think the government run media will be able to blame those evil, greedy utility companies and allow the theives to stay behind the curtain for the uninformed?
marcia| 7.15.09 @ 12:43PM
I was wondering when someone would spot the similarities between the new religion and what was happening in Europe before the Reformation.
We need another Martin Luther with a really BIG hammer.
Marc Jeric| 7.15.09 @ 12:58PM
Let me bring some light into the problem of sulphur dioxide and trioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants. The law ended up requiring 95% reduction in such emmissions and resulted in adding scrubbers, costing an average of $100 million per plant. Why 95%? Well, coal mines in the East contained up to 15% sulphur and had to be mined from deep mines by union miners; coal in the West contained only 0.5% sulphur and was on the surface to be mined by big machines and no unions. So in order to preserve those expensive and dangerous union jobs the Democrats imposed that stupid 95% reduction on both types of coals. After that reduction by expensive scrubbers the eastern coal emitted more sulphur than the western one without scrubbers. But of course the union votes were more important than the environment.
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Roy| 7.15.09 @ 4:03PM
This analogy is truly bizarre. If cap and trade is just a pseudo-"indulgence" that can't really purge us of environmental sin, then what we really need is a much harsher regime that will actually prevent the sin in the first place - right? Or do we just declare that "environmental goodness comes through faith alone" and be done with it?
We could of course avoid strained analogies to 16th century polemics as well.
Chemman| 7.15.09 @ 5:03PM
When all 219 of these congressional critters prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they no longer suck on the teat of big energy then I will believe that they truly believe that CO2 is an environmental sin.
Paul from SA| 7.15.09 @ 5:11PM
Yes, I too see the hypocrisy. Why not just put CO2 polluters in jail rather than using money as a motivator. Rich people can just buy their way out?
Why not just charge criminals money for their crimes instead of jail time?
What's more important: a murder or robbery here and there, OR the future of life on the planet?
Richard Baker| 7.15.09 @ 5:30PM
Johann Tetzel was condemned by Martin Luther for the sale of Indulgences just before the Reformation. This use of that device is just another means to separate people from their money while the indulged acts continue. Fraud is Fraud, no matter what the age. The greed in this country resides at 1600 Pennsylvania and Capitol Hill. The rest of the embezzlers, extortionists, and thieves in this country are mere pikers, in comparison.
Pauly| 7.15.09 @ 5:37PM
Roy, its only bizarre if you don't get it. Think of it this way: the Pope capped sin at zero but you had the option to buy an indulgence/credit, a system I take it you'd be in favor of. In Obama's plan, the Pope caps sin per person somewhere above zero (at least to begin with), say, everyone gets two adulteries a year, and if you want to do more than that you have to go buy an adultery credit from someone who didn't use one of theirs at whatever the market price was, plus brokers fees, which is why GE is so excited. In Denmark it would be pretty steep. But the free market aspect is an illusion, because if the Pope takes the cap down to one, he ups the market price beyond most people's reach. The Pope thus controls the economy in a way the fed rate could only dream about. The irony is that global warming is no more real for most people than hell is for marxists, so proponents of cap and trade look about as duped out of their freedom and money as proponents of indulgences. If you still don't get it, hopefully the next conservative administration will do a little pay back and convince everyone that the apocolypse is nigh if we keep sinning at our post 60s pace and that such a scheme is necessary to stave of a world conflagration at the hands of an angry God. Global warming indeed. My guess is you'll see right through the dog and pony show then.
Freya| 7.15.09 @ 8:12PM
Carbonicus,
Um, didn't you make my point with your post? Even assuming everything you say is correct, if it worked for SO2 and NOx, why couldn't it work for CO2?
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Bill| 7.16.09 @ 12:15AM
"In theory, at least, a person could excuse all the depravity he wanted, as long as those indulgent acts were economically sanctioned by appropriate authorities."
Mark Sanford, is that you?
Nelson| 7.16.09 @ 1:10AM
I don't think you guys understand what indulgences were/are. It doesn't forgive sin. Please read, lest you continue to use this false analogy:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07783a.htm
Richard Baker| 7.16.09 @ 4:58PM
Nelson:
I was speaking of the abuses of the Indulgence as perpetrated by Tetzel and others to gain money from parishoners for building projects in Rome. People did think that they were buying forgiveness of sins with the donation. Go sin some more, repent and pay the Indulgence, and go sin some more. Not speaking of the true meaning, just the abuse. "Carbon offsets" are the same type of scam.
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