Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Obama's Energy Cabinet Picks
President Obama chose two very important, energy related cabinet members on Monday. Gina McCarthy was chosen to be the head of the EPA and Ernest Moniz was chosen to be the Secretary of the Department of Energy. These two picks send a strong message which Obama delivered during his inaugural address, which is to tackle climate change the energy crisis America faces moving into the future. Personally, I think the energy problem should be dealt with sooner rather than later when it becomes more urgent and threatening to society. A lot of the solutions to this problem will be found through private industry but the government can help regulate and enforce cleaner and more efficient ways of producing and using energy in America.
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I agree with Dan. If there is going to be a problem with the climate change, I would much rather deal with it now rather than deal with it when it is a problem. I think Obama made good choice, but hopefully these new cabinet members will actually get something done instead of just sitting there hoping their particular issue will be fixed.
ReplyDeleteI am very happy that Obama is taking such strong initiative to help the environment. Now there is just one problem. Aubrey, cabinet members do not sit sit there and hope their problem will get fixed. They are always fighting for the chance to talk to the president. The problem is that most Americans see money not spent on increasing the size of their wallets is waste. Now with the sequester, the government will not have money to fund research for new and greener technologies. Even for regulating and maintaining the methods we are currently using for getting energy. The sad thing is many Americans do not see the necessity to spend money to protect the environment. They would rather have "lower" taxes than cleaner air. The worst part of this is that if we do not do something now, it will be on our generation to fix it.
ReplyDeleteIt's a step towards a cleaner environment, but I doubt anything will actually happen given the still strongly divided government in their way.
ReplyDeleteI think people don't understand how serious the climate change issue is, nor do they understand that, like Seb said, huge problems are going to start springing up in our lifetime. Ideally, I would like to see these new officials implement much stricter regulations, like the cap-and-trade regulation strategy utilized by many European countries. However, like what Nora said, the toxic environment in Washington and the committed block of conservatives opposed to any new regulations will be a serious impediment to any progress.
ReplyDeleteI hope the government can at least agree on something. The faster we act on anything relating to the environment, the easier it is to fix. I fear that if it is not fixed now, our generation will have to deal with it when it'll be much worse.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I think with an issue like this, where for some it is far from the top of their priority list, we will see little change or progress especially at the rate at which we want to see it. It is terrifying to think about the possible consequences that could come from a continuation of ignoring an issue such as this, but at least for the next few years we have a President who sees its importance and can bring awareness to it at the least.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this issue is not on everyone's radar because it differs from gay rights and gun control issues in that there is complex analysis that goes into the data on environmental topics like climate change. I would wager that an average American would be unable to rattle off statistics about climate change that have been gathered and analyzed for years. The current trend is that Americans are cognizant of the other hot button social issues, such as the previously mentioned gay rights and gun control issues, and not so much about issues like climate change. Because public opinion is such, so is the implemented policy. Surely I'm oversimplying the issue, but that is my take.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dan that we should try to fix or at least try something that would in someway slow down climate change and other environmental issues. Environmental issues need to be one of things we talk the most about because that is the one thing that could have a huge impact on the society if left alone. And the funny thing is that this issue is not even being talked about.
ReplyDeleteThis seems to be a bold move by President Obama, but I think it is just for the public, since everyone is going crazy about a more Green planet. However, it is nice to know that our president is acting on the matter. I am not sure if any significant things will result from Obama's hiring, but I sincerely hope it does. I am still skeptical.
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