On the bolded part think you missed the point. I was not making the point that the public sector is better at putting a touch screen on a phone for consumers. That is to say the public sector is pretty good at developing base theories and base technology (jet propulsion, space craft, gps, the internet and so on and so forth) that the market can then pick up on and apply for consumption. On that point it's great that you do not have an issue with funding the sciences, public education and the like. The GOP on the other hand does and is quite rabid about it.
1) The private sectors does much more than put touch screens on phones for consumers. Nice back-handed compliment.
2) I walked into one of the engineering buildings for my math class today and some a board talking about some research project, and it listed the consortium of donors for it....some 40+ corporations from 5-6 countries.
I got this in email not two weeks ago:
OSU Energy & Environment News
My roommate worked with Honda in class designing more efficient cars with them at their Marysville.
There is privately-funded/aided research in our schools. Let's not assume that everything going on in our schools is funded by the federal government.
3) I LOVE the Feds pumping money into research for ground-breaking things like green energy and whatnot. I'm all for it. In fact I'd like to see more of that and less of the Feds shutting down coal to steer people towards it. I don't see a whole lot from the GOP being against it, honestly. Help me out; maybe I'm looking in the wrong place? I don't think Romney is opposed to science funding..?
As for the last piece of legislation that received bi-partisan support and was a "home run" I would again point to the case of acid rain. The States completely blew it the Fed stepped in and hammered out a solution based on science and the problem was solved. Too bad the GOP and by extension Mitt Romney have their heads up their collective back sides on the issue of climate change and the fact that carbon trading (a Republican idea by the way) could do wonders to mitigate the effects. Finally, if everyone thinks you can neatly compartmentalize the "economy" and "the environment" as separate issues you are mistaken. Hurricane Katrina and the current drought in much of the country would be a good examples of how one effects the other and vise versa.
Wrong. Well, I don't think many people think that the EPA shouldn't exist. That is essentially inter-state commerce and thus is justified.
But Carbon Trading would mean the destruction of American manufacturing and explode unemployment. I'm willing to say honestly that anyone who believes in carbon trading is an idiot. I hate to be so rude (while sober), but Carbon Trading would just destroy this economy. WE NEED SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGHS, not restrictions. It's useless to cap our gases in such a draconian manner when China doesn't play by the same rules.
As for global warming, meh. I know a lot of Republicans who don't believe in it. I know a lot of Republican who acknowledge a global warming, but do not agree that is is a fact that it is man's fault.
Mitt Romney: “I believe that climate change is occurring.… I also believe that human activity is a contributing factor. I am uncertain how much of the warming, however, is attributable to man and how much is attributable to factors out of our control.”
Sounds pretty fair to me. I've had two earth science professors say the same in lectures (you know, the ones doing the Fed-funded research).
Seriously...carbon trading = the worst idea ever. It's stuff like that that allows me to say with complete honesty that Barack Obama's liberal/enviro policies are in direct opposition of his union buddies and working class Americans. Imagine the hardship Americans will endure struggle to pay their heating bill. Good f*ckin' grief.
Lastly, CO2 emissions are now at a twenty-year low...and NOT because of the Feds!!! It's because of a natural gas boom in this country...the same boom the EPA and environmentalists say is causing earthquakes, poisoning water, etc etc when it's simply untrue. The MARKET is to credit for the progress, which is so ironic it's not even funny.