Jon Reisman

For 50 years, environmentalists have pursued policies to raise the price of energy while pretending they are not, because for some strange reason many Americans do not react well to increasing gasoline, heating oil and electricity bills. As environmentalism increasingly became a religion associated with the Democratic Party, the environmental left tried as best it could to obscure the economic reality of green energy policies by claiming there was no tradeoff between the economy and the environment, that their policies were not raising the cost of energy, and even if they were, the health and social benefits associated with green policies were more than worth it. Global warming (excuse me, apocalyptic anthropogenic climate change) is the latest and greatest example of green obfuscation and lying. Combined with policies to promote “environmental justice”, the Green New Deal is a direct attack on capitalism, freedom and prosperity that will do exactly nothing to avert this faux existential problem.
Evil soulless economists like myself often instruct students about TANSTAAFL- an acronym standing for There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. TANSTAAFL means that that in a world of scarcity- finite resources and technology coupled with essentially insatiable human beings- every choice has an opportunity cost- an alternative foregone, a tradeoff. Even “free” lunches have an opportunity cost- time spent listening to environmentalist sermons at a minimum, and probably much more. Politicians of all stripes often try to deny that tradeoffs and scarcity exist. Now Senator Angus King argued there was no tradeoff between payrolls and pickerel (economy vs. environment) when he first ran for Governor in 1994. The environmental left has argued since the 1960’s that raising the price of the energy will not have negative repercussions or tradeoffs- in fact, it will be a good thing! They have tried to obscure the rather obvious real world experience that when energy has been cheap and abundant, prosperity and economic growth have bloomed, but when energy has been expensive and scarce, misery has multiplied.
Because the environmental left has been unable to completely cancel and silence folks who believe in TANSTAAFL and that drinking the green Kool-Aid might not be sustainable (to coin a term), energy policies proposed by Governor Mills, President Biden and assorted climate alarmists and watermelon cultists have been running into some headwinds.
• Lobster industry opposes offshore wind. Offshore windmills and the power and transmission systems associated with them mean those areas will be off limits to fishers. That’s TANSTAAFL, much as those who seek to promote and profit from offshore wind have tried to deny it. In addition, wherever the main power cable is laid and comes ashore will also be off limits and heavily fortified/guarded, as it will be an inviting potential terror target.
• Build a Transmission line in Western Maine Woods to bring Quebec Hydropower to Massachusetts. The New England Clean Energy Connector (NECEC) is supported by Gov. Mills, former Gov. LePage, opposed by some environmental groups (Hydropower isn’t clean and green enough, cutting down trees is bad, especially to benefit Massachusetts) and supported by others (climate change is an existential threat, and hydro is better than nuclear). At least the fiction that there are no tradeoffs involved has largely disintegrated. I would feel better about the whole deal if the price for supporting Massachusetts green dreams was forcing them to stop blocking natural gas pipelines for Maine, but that is just the evil soulless economist talking.
• Borrow $15 Billion to turn Central Maine Power and Versant (once known as Bangor Hydro) into public politically controlled foot soldiers of the environmental left. Proponents argue the buyout will end capitalist profiteering, lower rates and cost taxpayers nothing while truly bringing “Power to the people.” Gov. Mills is not on board yet. Maybe she has heard one too many free lunch sermons.
• Biden cancels the Keystone Pipeline and greenlight Putin’s Nordstrom pipeline to allow the Germans to use Russian gas instead of nukes or American fracked gas and oil. Just circle back with the lying redhead press secretary that there is really nothing to see here.
Jon Reisman is an associate professor of economics and public policy at the University of Maine at Machias. His views are his own. Mr. Reisman welcomes comments as letters to the editor here, or to him directly via email at [email protected].