The U.N. is again proposing a new program to tax oil in rich nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in order to “revive the world economy and protect the environment”. $750 billion green investment could revive economy: U.N. | Environment | Reuters . The latest is in addition to proposals to cap/trade/tax CO2 emissions in order to reduce greenhouse gases as the Kyoto Protocol would have done.
This latest “Green New Deal” is touting the figure of $750 billion and suggesting it could be raised by a tax on oil consumption. To listen to the proponents of this program one would think it had been designed after the policies of Barack Obama, by promoting investments in “green” technologies for transportation, energy production using wind and solar power, and improved energy efficiency for buildings. The nonspecific benefits of such efforts are expected to satisfy the vague lofty goals of creating jobs, curbing poverty and fighting climate change.
In fact, the head of the U.N. Environment Program sounded like Rahm Emanuel when stating “The opportunity must not be lost”, and repeated the same dire warnings of the climate change activists. Much of the rhetoric used by the U.N. officials discussing this program seems as though it was lifted from the speeches of President Obama. Conversely, I would suggest that the President had been using standard Leftist ideological positions, which he shares with the Leftist-leaning United Nations. The linked article compares the program to FDR’s New Deal, which may not be a positive comparison given that there is much controversy about the real “benefits” of the New Deal and whether or not it extended the Depression.
My concern now is that our government will accept this program and other international programs claimed to protect the environment and help the global economy, willingly accepting damaging consequences to our economy and way of life. Our national sovereignty is currently at risk given the control the Democrats have achieved in Congress and the White House, and not simply moderate Democrats but true socialist ideologues. If proposals such as this “Green New Deal” are being considered or actually being negotiated by our elected officials or unelected bureaucrats (ala E.P.A) we must be watchful and raise our voices in dissent when necessary.
