Offshore oil and gas exploration in Atlantic waters came up during a recent discussion about centrist political policies. I had offered a centrist concept for publicly mapping our offshore oil and gas once using the safest technology available rather than permitting five different corporations to each conduct their own secret seismic testing. Government agents acknowledged that publicly mapping our resources was a better option, but it wasn’t the way things were done for decades in other areas. Activists on the political left and right were not willing to think beyond party line positions.
Another centrist solution I proposed was giving States the Right of First Refusal on any new oil or gas leases off their coast. States could contract with drilling companies to responsibly extract our public resources and pay dividends to citizens. I proposed a similar plan for harnessing offshore wind energy instead of subsidizing global corporations to build windmill farms in our public waters. Once again, those involved on the left and right united in opposition to this commonsense compromise.
Left, right, and center could have come up with a comprehensive offshore energy policy that benefited everyone and the environment if enough concerned citizens were willing to work together. Energy production platforms could have been built as permanent multi-use structures that made ideal artificial reef habitat. These platforms could also harness tidal energy, facilitate research, and provide safe refuge for mariners. The sustainable harvest of energy from public waters could have generated an endless stream of revenue to be shared by citizens. This could have been a model for blending free-market and common-good principles.
We should learn from past mistakes as our government plans to spend trillions of tax dollars going green. These public investments could empower and enrich individuals or corporations. Letting lobbyists and politicians think for us WILL result in Americans paying the bill so global corporations can charge us for using OUR public resources. Would you rather pay for or profit from harnessing the People’s Power?
Another centrist solution I proposed was giving States the Right of First Refusal on any new oil or gas leases off their coast. States could contract with drilling companies to responsibly extract our public resources and pay dividends to citizens. I proposed a similar plan for harnessing offshore wind energy instead of subsidizing global corporations to build windmill farms in our public waters. Once again, those involved on the left and right united in opposition to this commonsense compromise.
Left, right, and center could have come up with a comprehensive offshore energy policy that benefited everyone and the environment if enough concerned citizens were willing to work together. Energy production platforms could have been built as permanent multi-use structures that made ideal artificial reef habitat. These platforms could also harness tidal energy, facilitate research, and provide safe refuge for mariners. The sustainable harvest of energy from public waters could have generated an endless stream of revenue to be shared by citizens. This could have been a model for blending free-market and common-good principles.
We should learn from past mistakes as our government plans to spend trillions of tax dollars going green. These public investments could empower and enrich individuals or corporations. Letting lobbyists and politicians think for us WILL result in Americans paying the bill so global corporations can charge us for using OUR public resources. Would you rather pay for or profit from harnessing the People’s Power?
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