by
Gary North
Tea Party Economist

Recently
by Gary North: The
Looming Reversal of Centralization

Remember when
global warming was called global warming? You know: back in 2001,
before a decade elapsed in which there was no measurable global
warming.

ItÂ’s not
called global warming any longer. That was just too embarrassing,
because there
hasnÂ’t any global warming for a decade. This stable temperature
has taken place, despite the fact that worldwide emissions of carbon
dioxide are higher.

In light
of the 2010 data, global carbon dioxide emissions have risen
by fully a third since the year 2001, yet global temperatures
have
not risen during the past decade. Global warming activists
argue that carbon dioxide emissions are the sole or primary factor
in global temperature changes, yet global temperatures show no
change despite a 33% increase in global carbon dioxide emissions.

So, the anti-warmers
changed tactics. They invented a new threat: climate change.

Mankind is
responsible for climate change, we are told. Therefore, the U.S.
government is required to spend money to combat it, all over the
world. It has no jurisdiction outside the United States, but that
has not dimmed the hopes and plans of warmers

The U.S. government
has spent over $72 billion to combat climate change since 2008.

This has failed.
The climate keeps changing. Sometimes itÂ’s warmer. Sometimes
itÂ’s cooler. It it refuses to cease changing.

This means
that taxpayers must still be compelled by the government to do their
fair share.

The armed services
has spent $4 billion of the $72 billion. This is because the militay
is facing a real threat because of climate change. We know this
because Secretary
of Defense of Defense Panetta has told us so.

Panetta
told an audience at the Environmental Defense Fund that climate
change has raised the need for humanitarian assistance and disaster
relief, hitting national security in the process.

“The
area of climate change has a dramatic impact on national security,”
Panetta said. “Rising sea levels, severe droughts, the melting
of the polar caps, the more frequent and devastating natural disasters
all raise demand for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.”

What
we need is an ecologically kinder and gentler military. We need
Army green to mean what it symbolizes.

In recent
years, the Defense Department and the services have spearheaded
a number of alternative-energy initiatives and seemingly embraced
environmentally friendly practices on the battlefield.

President
Obama effectively put the Pentagon at the forefront of an ambitious
alternative energy strategy during the State of the Union speech
in January. The Navy and Air Force have already spent billions
to integrate biofuels into their fleets of fighter jets and warships.

Marine Corps
combat units in Afghanistan are using mobile solar panels to recharge
batteries for their night vision and communications in the field.
Solar power is also helping to run a number of Marine Corps combat
outposts in the country.

As yet, there
are no solar-powered tanks, solar-powered bombers, or solar-paneled
aircraft carriers. But you never know. There might be a breakthrough
one of these days. LetÂ’s hope we get such a breakthrough before
we boil/freeze to death.

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May
22, 2012

Gary
North [send him mail]
is the author of Mises
on Money. Visit http://www.garynorth.com.
He is also the author of a free 20-volume series, An
Economic Commentary on the Bible.