Pat Michaels on Carbon Taxes

[GaunletofDestruction]

This guy Pat Micheals is the man! We need more outspoken scientists like this guy in order to defeat the Global Warming myth.

[libertydogfight]

NASA"s GODDARD Inst of Space Studies(JIM HANSEN)-Wants all American's to pay Taxes to the UN for Global Warming-Hey Jim when Al Gore pulls his Global CACK out of you Fag-Space-Whore's ASSP then I want to put my foot so far up you GLOBAL, New World Order Keister that you can chew on my NIKE! Jim Hansen-Go get a RFID Devil Chip Implanted-Get Cancer-and Get gang raped by UN Deligates-time of your life Global Bitch!

[nosensetoitatall]

Oh, CATO. Right. Figures.

[stopfederalism08]

yeah just give the government more of your money so they can waste it on crap and not help anything

[lyethian]

oh those environmentalists....up to their old tricks again

[TheAtheistPaladin]

You don't have to deny global warming to say this tax is an bad idea.

[migkillertwo]

indeed

[daconqueror101]

@TheAtheistPaladin what???????????? INSANITY! Wait till Pelosi finds out! Then you'll be sorry XD

[Isawanangel1X]

good now i have another name for my shitty email

[DanMorin007]

Such a Carbon Tax opens the for taxing the air we breathe.  Who would have thought there would be such a ridiculous tax!

[Elithrion]

1- we're going to see something against carbon emissions. Either cap and trade or carbon tax, basically. Of the two, carbon tax is generally acknowledged to work better (but is also less likely).

2- clearly, carbon emissions are a negative externality. They do cause some damage (even if, say, rise in sea level of 0.3m/100years + misc), thus it makes sense to attach a proportionate payment to them.

Not that I should have expected a reasoned argument from TV (and especially Fox), or anything.

[TracyII77]

Proportionate payment to whom?

Tax to whom?

And does this not unfairly target the poor? Is this not a message of, if you are rich enough, you can screw the planet?

Did you know that Europe currently spends billions on hydroelectric dams in China? These dams were already in the works before Europe introduced their cap and trade system, so there really is no net change to the environment. Instead, it is simply a method of sending European money to China for nothing.

[Elithrion]

Why yes, I am indeed aware that the system of carbon offsets is widely regarded as flawed due to the difficulty in proving additionality of reductions. Thank you for your constructive inquiry, Tracy. This point has little to do with a carbon tax, however.

The obvious application of carbon taxes is to the sources which emit carbon dioxide. The distribution of the money from them should then go to those negatively affected by the emissions. I am unsure why you feel this unfairly targets the poor.

[fullmetalchymist]

@Elithrion:

The class this tax unfairly targets (like the majority of taxes do) is the rich. The rich have the most money, so they are always the ones who will be targeted by new taxes. And as long as governments are allowed to keep expanding their spending in the name of the public good, governments will keep coming up with new excuses to rob the most successful and productive citizens.

[Elithrion]

Could you explain in what way the carbon tax targets the rich more than the poor?

If anything, the amount of driving is probably going to be equal for both parties, so the tax will fall equally on petrol consumption. Beyond that, the tax will hit businesses, which will transfer some costs to rich and poor alike. If I had to guess, it's about equal for rich/poor or slightly worse for poor (they're more likely to buy cheap goods for which transport is a bigger part of the cost) on the whole.

[HarryNRubin]

lol i dont like how he asked him to send a book at the end, can't he just buy it O.O

[Morrakiu]

A carbon tax will simply be passed on to the consumers. If the liberals care about the poor and middle class, they'll throw this policy in a ditch and piss on it.

[HarryNRubin]

too bad they dont care lol

[MooseOfReason]

They care more about the environment than poor people.