Renewable Energy — Supported By a Range of Political Viewpoints

A reader points out:

I feel that as long as clean energy has proponents who use words such as “elite, rich, etc”, it will continue to turn off a lot of people. I have gone to zoning meetings in which rabid proponents of clean energy have made comments on my coal to biomass developments and have provided a negative effect to the zoning.

Thanks for writing, and yes, you make a good point.

One factor that makes the migration to renewables so interesting is the many different motivations and political viewpoints one encounters. In fact, the cast of characters involved in renewables runs from business pragmatists who dispassionately want to capitalize on a solid market opportunity – all the way to “children of the 60s,” who don’t care a whit about money, but want to save the planet from the evils wrought by capitalism and the exploitation inherent in it. Most of us lie somewhere in between.

I’m not sure there is anything that you or I can do about this. Speaking for myself, I’m happy to have people onboard regardless of their motivation.

Here’s an extreme case: I met a guy the other day who was about as adamant a Global Warming Denier as one could possibly imagine. Here’s a well-educated, apparently refined businessman who referred to the theory (held by the vast majority of climate scientists) as an “evil lie” and to Al Gore as a “bastard.” Yet he thinks clean tech is important for other reasons and works hard in coaching entrepreneurs in this space (effectively, I might add) in presenting their business plans to investors.

Holy cow, I thought.  Is this guy for real?  I would have bet that such a combination of viewpoints couldn’t exist in the same human being.  In fact, I smiled when I first heard this, as I thought he was kidding.  But no, he was as serious as a heart attack. 

In any case:  Do I understand him? Nope. Do I want him around? Every day of the week.