Only the stiff resolution of Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin not to abolish the filibuster has allowed Republicans in the Senate to keep the United States from the worst of the climate change activists’ proposals. But neither Germany nor Sri Lanka had such a failsafe, and as a result, both countries find themselves in economic ruin, and they are not alone.
In 2015 German Chancellor Angela Merkel was named Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year” as they proudly dubbed her “Chancellor of the Free World” for her leadership in green energy. Germany, one of the five wealthiest countries in the world, was the country who consistently supported the weaker countries of the EU, and Merkel was undoubtedly the most powerful European leader.
But, like the Democrats in the U.S., she succumbed to the “climate change impending disaster” hoax and purposed to bring Germany into the 21st century with green energy. Sadly, her crusade, which environmentalists acclaimed as a model for the world, nearly brought Germany’s manufacturing to a total collapse. She closed nuclear power plants and coal plants, and spurned natural gas. But her green energy wind and solar power were insufficient to fuel the country’s needs.
Against the advice of President Trump, Merkel also built the Nord Stream pipeline, placing Germany at the mercy of Russia for their gas, especially once Biden put a stop to not only our energy independence, but also our ability to sell gas to our European allies. Now, with the Ukrainian War and Putin’s annoyance with the EU who continues to support Ukraine, gas is more expensive and not flowing as freely from Russia as it might have. So, Germany has reopened its coal-fired plants, now getting much of its energy from coal, but even at that they may need to ration gas in order to keep German plants working. A recent headline from Business Insider warned: “German Industries Could Collapse Due to Russia Natural Gas Supply Cutbacks,” and The Daily Telegraph recently described Germany as “the sick man of Europe.” Merkel had also envisioned the Euro replacing the U.S. dollar as the international currency, but the worth of the Euro is collapsing. Even the Russian Ruble is now stronger than the Euro!
Ignoring the country’s woes, the German parliament stubbornly introduced a bill recently designed to reach 80% capacity in wind powered electricity by 2030, but German states are reluctant to provide land for the ugly, giant windmills. To those who have lived among the deep green forested mountains all of their lives, the thought of blocking that majesty with myriads of colossal silver turbines is not attractive. Thus, all is not well in Germany, and now Chancellor Olaf Scholtz has a massive problem on his hands. Surely news from other countries must make him a tad bit nervous.
When Americans think of the Netherlands, known to us also as Holland, we think most often of tulips, and indeed the Dutch are famous for the flowers they grow and export. However, they also export a lot of agricultural products including dairy products, especially to Europe. In the U.S. we may find Gouda, Edam and even Limburger cheese which are made in the Netherlands. But, environmentalists have struck in the Netherlands as they have elsewhere. The government has banned chemical fertilizers and has even required Dutch farmers to reduce the number of cattle that they own (cattle produce milk from which cheese is made) in order to reduce the methane gas produced by cow farts. Without the chemical fertilizers, insects are eating the crops, reducing their yields, and with fewer cattle, farmers’ production of cheese is greatly diminished. Angry Dutch farmers recently took to the streets, blocking the roads and spraying government buildings with manure. Now, the French will take to the streets at the drop of a hat, but not the Dutch. This demonstration signaled their extreme anger, not just the usual grumbling over the breakfast table.
In Sri Lanka, things are even worse. The fertilizer ban there pushed the country to near starvation as their crop yields plummeted. According to an editorial in the National Review on Tuesday, “Sri Lanka, under the leadership of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, decided in April 2021 to become the world’s first all-organic country.” The ban on fertilizer was accompanied by the switch from abundant carbon fuel sources to wind and solar, which again was insufficient for the country’s needs. As a result, Sri Lankans stormed the government buildings and the president and prime minister both resigned, the president fleeing the country. Reuters reported what could well be a comment on areas of the U.S. when it attributed the government’s collapse to “Anti-government protesters angry over power blackouts, shortages of basic goods and rising prices. . . .”
Power blackouts have been predicted for California and many other states west of the Mississippi if the summer temperatures reach extremes. Texas is already experiencing problems resulting from their wind-powered electricity. Under normal summer heat, parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois, and others in the Midwest could also see blackouts this year. Shortages of basic goods have been normal since the pandemic and are not getting better as store shelves constantly have large bare spaces and things that you purchased last week you may not see again for weeks. And today, the inflation number came out for June, a 9.1% increase over a year ago. Tomorrow the Producer Price Index will come out. That number indicates how much more it costs the producers to produce the goods that we buy. The higher that number, the higher inflation will be for July as producers must pass the cost of production on to the consumer.
And why had this all happened here, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world? Because of Biden’s green energy plan. Because like Merkel he attempted to eliminate as much dependence upon gas and coal as possible on the day he took office. Because he shut down the Keystone XL Pipeline and cancelled permits for drilling and fracking. Because he took an energy independent country that was exporting gas and made us dependent upon our enemies for our energy needs! And because Democrats in the National Transportation Board and in states like California have made it almost impossible for small trucking firms to operate, either because they can no longer afford the fuel or because they are independent owner/drivers who cannot be hired to haul goods unless companies call them employees and are willing to pay them benefits such as sick leave and retirement. Thus, goods are not being transported in a timely fashion because the number of available trucks to transport them has greatly diminished thanks to the Democrats and their regulations. And just as in Germany, some American manufacturers, specifically of aluminum and steel, have already shut down because of the cost of electricity.
Green energy environmentalist are ruining countries around the world. And for what? A nebulous threat of global destruction put forth by fanatics and supported primarily by computer models, none of which has been correct in any of their predictions to date. Despite the supposed melting of the ice caps, for example, icebergs, have sunk ships as recently as 2007 and “growlers,” smaller icebergs, are frequently encountered in Arctic waters and one recently collided with a Norwegian Cruise ship bound for Alaska. The ship was damaged, but safely reached port, although the cruise had to be cut short.
Ukraine has always supplied much of the grain for Africa and the Middle East, but the Russian invasion has disrupted Ukrainian farming, making the possibility of famine this summer great in those areas. Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Great Britain urged G7 countries not to use corn for biofuel, but rather to send it to starving people. President Biden refused his request and is instead ensuring that more ethanol is added to our gasoline in the U.S. this summer.
What do Germany, the Netherlands, Sri Lanka, the United States and a host of other countries have in common? Leaders who are wealthy. Leaders who do not work the soil and earn their living by what they can save from ravening insects. Leaders who are not at the mercy of those who seldom venture far from their air-conditioned limos and their gated and guarded homes. Leaders who live in the supreme confidence that no matter the deprivations suffered by the people they serve, they themselves will not suffer. They will be able to get what they want even as others cannot get what they need. Why else is it that at every Climate Accord Conference in Europe, the nearest airport is filled with the private jets of world leaders whose devotion to “saving the earth” does not extend to disrupting their personal comfort.
But these leaders would do well to heed the words of Spanish philosopher George Santayana: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” he wisely warned. They would do well to remember the French and Russian revolutions where the people finally had had all they could take of the poverty imposed upon them while the ruling class enjoyed vast wealth and luxury. Dutch farmers are beginning to protest in the streets. Sri Lankans have ousted their president and prime minister. Germans, like Americans, are suffering, though their rate of inflation in June was only 7.6%. With our rate of 9.1%, with Democrat leaders who appeared unmasked at functions during mask mandates, or ate with friends at restaurants when restaurants were supposed to be closed, or sent their families on vacation out of state during lockdowns, American, too, are fed up. Democrat leaders should take note. But they will not.