Al Gore and ethanol--So, now it's not a good thing, now that I'm out of politics?

rev. 11-26-2010 rev. 7-21-2024

But we already knew that.

Al Gore, November 22, 2010:

"One of the reasons I made that mistake [over ethanol] is that I paid particular attention to the farmers in my home state of Tennessee, and I had a certain fondness for the farmers in the state of Iowa because I was about to run for president" in 2000.

This article, via NBC, MSN, and Reuters, pretty well sums it up.

Our former Vice President comes clean, admits he supported ethanol solely to get votes, and that it was based upon no science.

• The direct subsidies totaled 7.7 Billions dollars.
• Food prices have been placed in turmoil. Probably the worst public policy to come out of Washington in a decade. Independent United Nations expert stated US ethanol policy was a "crime against humanity." http://www.livescience.com/environment/071027-ap-biofuel-crime.html
• That there is no net benefit to the environment; the process of raising corn, distilling, and bring the ethanol to market is not zero impact.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

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And then there is the other bio-fuel, biodiesel. The story is very similar; impacts on highway funding, food prices, and in this case the soap industry too...

http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/85/i22/8522news3.html

To my knowledge, the bio diesel subsidies expired without renewal--they lacked the sort of lobby Archer/Danials/Midland could conjure--and so many small producers have folded. The animal feed guys are thrilled, since these fats had always been recycle into feed products; that fats were wasted was always pure political myth.

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So, now what of global warming? I believe he is more sincere in his beliefs there; I'm not sure his grasp of the science is any better. He has certainly thrown away his credentials.