So, this weekend Dubya talks about investing federal money in research and development in various technologies like nanotech, altarnative energy, etc. It isn't what he said, but that fact that he mentioned it, meaning that this is being framed for future campaigning.
So where are the Democrat statement of principles for energy, technology, and science?
Not, "we will invest in...." Principles. Or does no one remember what they are?
Clearly the US disinvestments in sustainable energy and efficiency research and development have come home to roost.
And the disinvestments in education at the college level and at corporations with an over reliance on imported labor is beginning to create problems for the US economy. The shortages of drillers, miners, geologists, drilling and mining engineers, oil rigs, pipelayers, welders, machinists, etc. are becoming increasingly an obstacle to getting jobs done. And the problem is only going to get worse as the boomers retire.
And too much manufacturing and all the skilled jobs have been exported. But this ignore the fact that if you can't make a product from scratch, you can't make the best product and you can't evolve it fast enough.
The thing is, nearly everything revolves around energy.
On the one hand, jobs can be exported because the energy is priced so cheap that flying a product around the globe is cheaper than having a person make it from scratch for $5 more right in front of you. The thing is, the energy is coming from mineral wealth that is gone forever as far as mankind is concerned.
On the other hand, energy creates huge opportunities for driving the economy.
So, what are the principles? Here is a 4am quick list in rough form to generate thinking about the issue, I hope:
1) market based programs
2) view fossil energy as a commodity that belongs to all people of the world equally across time - the people of the world in 2100 deserve an equal share of the oil, gas, and coal we have today as we do.
Implementation: Applying principle 1, the state charges for the extraction of the oil, gas, and coal and pay it to the people who will be the parents of those future generations, every man, woman, and child equally. In cash. The price charged by the people for extraction keeps going up until the consumption world wide is declining slightly signaling an eventual convergence on a long term equilibrium price. And so that the US can implement this alone, the price charged for oil and gas and coal would be applied to products imported like a VAT and to keep the US competitive, refunded when products are exported. Because all the cash collected on extraction goes right back to the people that the mineral wealth belongs, this is not a tax, just a free market.
3) The most valuable asset of the nation, and the world, is its people and their ability to solve problems. To this, priority would be placed on creating the best problems solvers who can take a lump of dirt and turn it into a useful product by growing, smelting, shaping, mixing, using either their hands, machines, by designing the machines, by inventing the processes, by changing the product to be more directly made, by using less of that initial dirt. In short, promote the people who work in manufacturing, engineering, science at least as much as sports stars or actors or politicians.
Anyway, I want to hear the strategies to be used to solve the problems we face as a nation and world. I do not want to hear that billions will be spent on some program that has a politically popular name with pork for friends and bribers as the objective.