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Environmentalists Propose $50 Billion Buyout of Coal Industry - To Shut It Down
cartechboy writes "What's $50 billion among friends, right? At least Felix Kramer and Gil Friend are thinking big, so there is that. The pair have published an somewhat audacious proposal to spend $50 billion dollars to buy up and then shut down every single private and public coal company operating in the United States. The scientific benefits: eliminating acid rain, airborne emissions, etc). The shutdown proposal includes the costs of retraining for the approximately 87,000 coal-industry workers who would lose their jobs over the proposed 10-year phaseout of coal. Since Kramer and Friend don't have $50 billion, they suggest the concept could be funded as a public service and if governments can't do it maybe some rich guys can — and the names Gates, Buffett and Bloomberg come up. Any takers?"
Felix: Gil I'm afraid I've fallen and injured myself. Can you call 911?
Gil: Of course. I'll just use my cell phone. Oh, wait. That's right. Without coal, the cell towers don't have power.
Felix: We'll take my Telsa then. Can you drive it?
Gil: Of course. Oh dear. The batteries are dead. And without coal there's no power to charge it.
Felix: Hmmm...I'm not feeling well. Can we try your solar powered car?
Gil: Sorry, too cloudy, it won't even start.
Felix: Smoke signals?
Gil: I'll just carry you to the hospital.
Felix: I guess that will have to do.
Gil: Of course, once we get there the hospital won't have power because there's no coal.
Felix: I'm beginning to re-think my life choices...
Coder's Stone: The programming language quick ref for iPad
They should try Kickstarter!
For two, the cost of shutting that industry down does not cover the cost of starting new energy industries to replace it. Or were we just going to go without 37% of our electricity?
I picture vast fields of hipsters pedaling bolted-down fixies with generators attached.
Dark Reflection