Self-described liberal "activist" Sally Kohn has a column at CNN in which she purports to tell Republicans that "climate change is not a political issue." It is an amazing piece of work that focuses on two different items: 1) the possible approval of the Keystone Pipeline by Congress, and 2) the agreement that president Obama reached with China with regard to efforts to reduce carbon emissions. Kohn seems to have taken lessons from Jonathan Gruber since she obviously thinks that the Americans who read her column are morons. Either that is true, or Kohn herself is a moron based upon some of the things she says.
For example, Kohn denounces the construction of the pipeline because it will result in the production of oil from the Canadian tar sands and that will increase the production of greenhouse gases. The problem with this argument is that the Canadian tar sands will be tapped for production whether or not the pipeline is built. If the USA says no to the pipeline, the tar sands will go to Chinese refineries instead. For what it is worth, those Chinese refineries are not as advanced as the ones in Texas that would get the oil if the pipeline is built. As a result, sending the oil to China would actually result in more carbon emissions than sending the oil by pipeline to Texas, so Kohn has it exactly backwards.
Kohn also says that with the "breakthrough" agreement by China to reduce emissions, America has to do more or risk falling behind the Chinese in the new fields of "green" energy and carbon reduction. This is an amazing assertion. The agreement which Kohn thinks is so wonderful, actually requires China to do nothing for the next 16 years and only to start reducing emissions in 2030. None of what Kohn says about the agreement is correct.
Then there is the assertion by Kohn that building the pipeline will actually hurt the US economy and raise oil prices. This is nonsense. Forget for the moment the jobs created by building the pipeline. Once the pipeline is complete, the world oil market will get about three quarters of a million barrels more oil each day than it now gets. This is roughly a 1% increase in the world oil supply. That kind of supply change may not sound like much, but it will work to keep oil prices lower around the world for decades. It will do the exact opposite of what Kohn claims. It's called the law of supply and demand: when supply goes up, the price goes down.
The reality is that global warming has become a political issue. In exit polls earlier this month, the large majority of Democrat voters accept that global warming is real and caused by man. Republican voters were exactly the reverse; they were skeptical that there is global warming and that it is caused by humans. Because this has become a political divided, Kohn is using the standard methods of the Democrats to try to win the issue; she is telling lies and trying to fool voters into accepting her version of the facts. It is a sad thing to watch.
For example, Kohn denounces the construction of the pipeline because it will result in the production of oil from the Canadian tar sands and that will increase the production of greenhouse gases. The problem with this argument is that the Canadian tar sands will be tapped for production whether or not the pipeline is built. If the USA says no to the pipeline, the tar sands will go to Chinese refineries instead. For what it is worth, those Chinese refineries are not as advanced as the ones in Texas that would get the oil if the pipeline is built. As a result, sending the oil to China would actually result in more carbon emissions than sending the oil by pipeline to Texas, so Kohn has it exactly backwards.
Kohn also says that with the "breakthrough" agreement by China to reduce emissions, America has to do more or risk falling behind the Chinese in the new fields of "green" energy and carbon reduction. This is an amazing assertion. The agreement which Kohn thinks is so wonderful, actually requires China to do nothing for the next 16 years and only to start reducing emissions in 2030. None of what Kohn says about the agreement is correct.
Then there is the assertion by Kohn that building the pipeline will actually hurt the US economy and raise oil prices. This is nonsense. Forget for the moment the jobs created by building the pipeline. Once the pipeline is complete, the world oil market will get about three quarters of a million barrels more oil each day than it now gets. This is roughly a 1% increase in the world oil supply. That kind of supply change may not sound like much, but it will work to keep oil prices lower around the world for decades. It will do the exact opposite of what Kohn claims. It's called the law of supply and demand: when supply goes up, the price goes down.
The reality is that global warming has become a political issue. In exit polls earlier this month, the large majority of Democrat voters accept that global warming is real and caused by man. Republican voters were exactly the reverse; they were skeptical that there is global warming and that it is caused by humans. Because this has become a political divided, Kohn is using the standard methods of the Democrats to try to win the issue; she is telling lies and trying to fool voters into accepting her version of the facts. It is a sad thing to watch.
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