Status Quo Forever

Louis Porter has done a typically professional and thorough job of reporting on Art Woolf's idea for heating with electricity this winter.  And with his customary civility and lucidity, Art Woolf answers the criticisms of some of the people Porter interviewed.

What strikes one about these criticisms is their pro-forma quality This is the tone, these days, of the Vermont scene.  Suggest any change in the current way of doing things and the response is a thin, whiny, "Oh, we can't do that."  Followed by several reasons for why not, all of them about as cogent as this objection to Art's plan from the head man at Efficiency Vermont where they look upon electricity as being only slightly less malign than anthrax:

"It is commendable to seek creative solutions to the heating problems that many Vermonters will be faced with this winter," said Blair Hamilton, director of Efficiency Vermont. "Unfortunately this particular solution is problematic in its ability to be implemented and could have significant adverse impacts on the electric system. It is not likely to be a useful option for this winter, and as energy prices rise, including electricity, it is also not likely to be a good option in the long-term."

The patronizing bit about "commendable" is typical of the smug defenders of the status quo.  They are always in favor of more studies and research and planning.  What they aren't in favor of is ... doing something.  That would be uncommendable.  Or something.

So ... the school funding apparatus is broken but we can't do anything about it.  The Byzantine regulatory apparatus blocks the building of desperately needed affordable housing and keeps business from expanding or, indeed, from locating here; but we're stuck with it.  The health care system is designed to make private insurance unaffordable but it's the best we can do until the Feds bail us out.  Which is, in fact, the only plan the soldiers of the status quo have for getting through the winter – more money from Washington for LIHEAP.   Welfare, in short.

If we can't afford the status quo, how can we defend it?

Art's plan is a good one and it would be liberating to hear just one voice from Montpelier and the Vermont establishment say, "Hell, yeah. Let's go for it."

Instead, we get, "problematic."

That is the language of apathy and it has gotten very tiresome.

(BTW Art, when you have a minute, let's talk about that idea you had for building a new nuclear generating plant right next to the one we have now.  It sounds like a winner.)

Comments

[Cairn Cross]

Geoff/Art. I know I sound like a broken record but there is a profit making business in this idea that could be exploited. While I admire discussions about better policy and so forth, the way to actually "do something" in my opinion is to apply for the distributorship for the electric heating products Art discussed in a previous post and begin marketing it right here in Vermont. To heck with what the pundits say, you should be able to convince buyers that this is a good product, you should be able to convince a finance company to finance the product for said buyers and you should be able to make a profit doing it. I suspect though that the real reason for these posts is simply to "bait" the usual suspects (Efficiency Vermont,etc.) so they will make comments like the one above so you can poke fun at them. Don't get me wrong I enjoy the fun poking but I'd enjoy even more if you'd start a business and let the consumer decide.

[Greg Decker]

It sounds like Art's advocating State subsidy of the heaters via existing programs. Isn't this a bit out of character? Baiting perhaps...but who?