Posted by
Average Voter on Monday, May 28, 2007 4:32:19 PM
The start of this
opinion piece is like reading an end times novel, only the devil is carbon emissions.
At least this opinionist is willing to admit the failures of the European system of cap-and-trade with respects to carbon output. But he/she suggests that a straight forward carbon tax would force energy companies and other businesses into doing a better job at regulating their emissions. He/she also suggests that the government could use that tax money to offset income taxes. That is a laugh riot!
First off, you can tax business all you want, but they just pass that on to the consumer through price increases. Secondly, the government knows this, so why would they want to give their income tax away, when they can collect both. How many times has the government kept our taxes and not used them for the intended purpose? The government does not need any more of our money. And yes, I said OUR money. The end user pays for everything. It's the way capitalism works. You can tax whatever you want, but you and me and every other citizen of the U.S. pays for it; one way or the other.
We have taxed so called "sin" items such as alcohol, cigarettes, and gasoline, yet their usage has not gone down. It would be the same for carbon emissions. There would be an initial slowdown for a few years, but eventually wages will catch up and the economy will be strong and we will emit more emissions. Besides, I can't speak for everybody, but I pay enough tax.
No, the answer is in technology. Industry needs to come up with ways to create clean energy and mobility without sacrificing what we as consumers want. Most citizens do not want to drive a car that feels like a sardine can and can hardly get out if it's own way because of the over-grown lawn mower engine it carries. Citizens also like to be comfortable in their homes. They like to be cool in the summer and warm in the winter. They are not interested in sweating as soon as they get out of their shower because they can't afford too set their thermostat at a comfortable level.
Instead, why don't we give tax breaks to companies who can provide both clean energy creation and what the customer wants. Give them a reason to do this, but give them a time limit on the credit, say thirty years. Give them some time to create a way of doing it, but setting a time line to claiming the tax credits.
Taxing business has never gotten us anywhere except causing citizens to relinquish more and more of our pay checks to the government. Let's set a sliding scale for business. They can receive tax credit based on their over-all carbon output reduction. The more they can eliminate the more credit they can receive. That way, it serves as an incentive for them to spend some of their profits on cleaning up, and given enough time so that they won't be forced into pushing the R & D costs on us though higher prices.
Just a thought, anyway.