Archive for January, 2012

From Dirty to Green–and the Sooner, the Better

by Editors @ Saturday, January 28th, 2012. Tags: , ,
Filed under Environment, Green Energy, Green Industry, Technology, militarism

The Essentials for the Necessary

Transition to a Renewable Energy Economy

By Jon Rynn
SolidarityEconomy.net via AlterNet.org

Jan 28, 2012 - Fossil fuels are going to disappear, whether we like it or not. Petroleum, natural gas, and coal are becoming scarcer, harder to extract and a greater danger to the global climate.

If we proceed with business-as-usual, energy companies will take advantage of increasing scarcity to dominate the world economy by vacuuming up more money from the 99%. They will be able to ally with military and financial institutions to construct an energy-military-financial complex that could eventually reduce most of the rest of us to a form of debt peonage.

On the other hand, if we could possibly elect a government that does what governments do best – build infrastructure – we can avoid a world of global warming and economic collapse by building enough wind farms, solar panels, and geothermal systems to power our economy and ignite a sustainable, broad-based period of economic growth. Of course, this will require a sea-change in the direction of the political system, along the lines of the Occupy movement, but there is too much at stake to throw up our hands in despair.

The unfolding energy drama presents progressives with several dilemmas. Some are suspicious that oil scarcity can be used as a ruse by the oil companies and speculators to spike prices. Roger Altman recently argued that a larger supply of fossil fuels will lead to less international tension. More generally, progressives sometimes fear that advocating for less oil use will be seen by the public as an attack on the American Dream of a car in every garage and a single family home for every family.

But in addition to problems of scarcity and extraction, fossil fuels are bringing us towards extremely dangerous climate change. We need to have some answers or else the Right will simply keep up with the chant of “Drill baby drill.” It's time to counter with, “Build, build, build!"

Dirty fuels Create an Unsustainable economy

The question of the future of the supply of fossil fuels is not an easy one to answer. Oil producing nations, for instance, are not at all transparent about their supplies. Technologies constantly change, and so do environmental hazards. However, if we look at the current state of fossil fuel industries, it should be clear that we are in trouble.

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Note to Obama: Apple Products—and Any Others for that Matter–Will Be Built in the U.S. when U.S. Workers Own and Run the Factories that Build Them

by Editors @ Monday, January 23rd, 2012. Tags: , , , ,
Filed under China, Economic Democracy, Globalization, Socialism, Unemployment, Youth

How the U.S. Lost Out on iPhone Work

By CHARLES DUHIGG and KEITH BRADSHER
SolidarityEconomy.net via New York Times

Jan. 21, 2012 - When Barack Obama joined Silicon Valley’s top luminaries for dinner in California last February, each guest was asked to come with a question for the president.

But as Steven P. Jobs of Apple spoke, President Obama interrupted with an inquiry of his own: what would it take to make iPhones in the United States?

Not long ago, Apple boasted that its products were made in America. Today, few are. Almost all of the 70 million iPhones, 30 million iPads and 59 million other products Apple sold last year were manufactured overseas.

Why can’t that work come home? Mr. Obama asked.

Mr. Jobs’s reply was unambiguous. “Those jobs aren’t coming back,” he said, according to another dinner guest.

The president’s question touched upon a central conviction at Apple. It isn’t just that workers are cheaper abroad. Rather, Apple’s executives believe the vast scale of overseas factories as well as the flexibility, diligence and industrial skills of foreign workers have so outpaced their American counterparts that “Made in the U.S.A.” is no longer a viable option for most Apple products.

Apple has become one of the best-known, most admired and most imitated companies on earth, in part through an unrelenting mastery of global operations. Last year, it earned over $400,000 in profit per employee, more than Goldman Sachs, Exxon Mobil or Google.

However, what has vexed Mr. Obama as well as economists and policy makers is that Apple — and many of its high-technology peers — are not nearly as avid in creating American jobs as other famous companies were in their heydays.

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City Solar: Steal This Idea for Your Town

by Editors @ Tuesday, January 17th, 2012. Tags:
Filed under Energy, Green Energy, Green Industry

Big New Solar Array For Green-Driven Raleigh

By Kristy Hessman
SolidarityEconomy.net via EarthTechling.com

Although North Carolina is the 10th most populous state in the U.S., it it ranks just 22nd in installed photovoltaic (PV) solar capacity, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. But don’t blame the city of Raleigh for that. Raleigh recently turned on a 1.3-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic array. It’s said to be the largest utility-scale solar power project on government property in the state.

The solar array sits on a 10-acre site and is a coordinated effort between the city of Raleigh, Progress Energy Carolinas, Southern Energy Management and NxGen Power. The solar PV array is expected to generate an estimated 1.7 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. The system is also expected to decrease overall carbon dioxide emissions by more than 1,300 tons annually, the same amount of emissions from the use of about 140,000 gallons of gasoline, according to Southern Energy Management.

Sustainability efforts are taking place throughout the city of Raleigh, and not just in the solar sector. The city has identified a number of areas in which it can incorporate sustainable measures to provide a better place to live for future generations. Those initiatives include preparing for a variety of green transportation options like participating in Project Get Ready. The program prepares for the availability of electric plug-in and hybrid vehicles.

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Structural Reform: The Case for Public State Banks

by Editors @ Wednesday, January 4th, 2012. Tags: ,
Filed under Banks, Economic Democracy, Solidarity Economy, Wall Street

Meet Occupy Wall Street's Favorite Banker

By Ryan Holeywell
SolidarityEconomy.net via Governing Magazine

Jan 4, 2012 - Try to find a bank president that’s beloved by supporters of the Occupy Wall Street movement. It’s not impossible. You’ll just have to travel to North Dakota.

Meet Eric Hardmeyer, who bears the unlikely distinction of being perhaps the only banker in America who, in addition to being embraced by Wall Street protesters, has been exalted by the likes of Michael Moore, Mother Jones magazine, and the Progressive States Network, among other progressive stalwarts.

That’s because Hardmeyer heads the Bank of North Dakota (BND), the country’s only publicly-owned state bank. The institution, located ironically enough in a solidly red state, has become the darling of progressives who have become frustrated with corporate banks they say helped cause the financial crisis and resulting credit crunch.

Now, state lawmakers nationwide are pushing for the North Dakota model to be replicated in their home states. Since 2010, state lawmakers in at least 16 states have introduced bills to create a state bank, something similar, or study the issue, according to a study by the National Conference of State Legislatures. So far, momentum is slow. The movement has yet to produce another Bank of North Dakota, but advocates are hoping to raise the issue again in 2012 legislative sessions. Their pitch: publicly-owned banks can help create jobs, generate revenue for the state, strengthen small banks, and lower the cost of borrowing for local governments by offering loans below market rate.

 

Hardmeyer, who was named bank president in 2001, hasn’t always been such a well-known figure. But his profile has been raised over the last year – including in Bloomberg BusinessWeek -- and now he regularly fields calls from state lawmakers and other officials inquiring about his institution. “There hasn’t been a big push anywhere that I’m aware of until recently,” said Hardmeyer in a late December interview with Governing.  “They’re interested in how it works, why it works, [and] what the roadblocks are.”

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