Editor’s note by Dick Kelly: Jon Waalkes lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Along with his wife, Kim, Jon has a passionate interest in making this earth a healthy and prosperous place for his future yet-to-be grandchildren to live when they are old enough to be responsible caretakers for our beautiful planet.

I recently finished reading The Green Collar Economy just in time. Because, for over the past month, the need for action at the level that the author, Van Jones, described has been ratcheted up a few notches. As the Senate debates the current stimulus package, the opportunity to make the changes described in this book is a distinct possibility. At least, I hope so.

Converting from a carbon/oil based economy to a green-collar economy and the subsequent use of renewable energy to power our lives, I believe, will not happen if the governments of the world don’t dramatically change the incentives and funding behind the change. This change must start with the United States. As one of the big abusers of the world’s environment, our country must change in order to have the world follow, and to persuade others by our standards and purchasing power.

The opportunity is now! The challenge is to make it financially viable for individuals to participate, businesses to start up, and communities to change. This is where the federal government needs to get involved. The government needs to spend on green initiatives, finance community spending, and rebate individual consumers for energy improvements to their homes and transportation.

In addition, the government must accelerate spending in research and development into alternative energies, as the efficiency model of 2020 that will finally cut our addiction to oil has yet to be developed. This is where the stimulus bill should be headed – real jobs, right now.

Tax breaks will not create stimulus. The old conservative model of the trickle down economy is obsolete. The tax breaks for the wealthy will only result in bigger investment portfolios—investments that don’t equate to jobs for the poorest of our society. It only equates to a CEO, with a bloated salary and bonus structure, making layoff decisions based on a quarterly dividend for the portfolio holders. This is why we need to give incentives to spending in green technologies as our way out of the ecological and economic mess we are in.

The other point of Van Jones’s argument is to develop a system that penalizes violators. The government needs to make it painful to these business offenders. Tax breaks to oil companies need to be reversed and a carbon tax/cap and trade system needs to be developed. The government’s role should be to accelerate penalization without creating economic difficulties for the poorest of Americans. To do this, the economic price of alternatives needs to be subsidized for the short term.

As I read The Green Collar Economy, I kept hoping the author would tell me about a successful, green collar, free-enterprise business model—a company that could be replicated over and over across America, rewarding investors and providing long-term financial opportunities to stakeholders (vendors, employees, and community). However, that company doesn’t yet exist – at least not one that doesn’t cater to just the eco-conscious elite of our society.

The serious deficit that renewable energy must overcome is witnessed by the recent layoffs at many of the wind turbine manufacturing plants. As the economy has turned downward, so have the employment levels of many startup turbine manufacturing companies that have created new hope in many communities across America. The financial incentives of alternative energy are not present at this time, requiring that the government must fully support the change to alternative energy in order to level the playing field. Government backing will make wind, solar, and geothermal energy a financial reality for everyone.

The author of The Green Collar Economy did identify some non-profit organizations that are doing well, but this approach alone is not going to cut it. Things must change, and that change must be initiated by Washington. It appears that we will need to ask our government to act with the power to both move mountains and stop the removal of mountain tops!

While I really enjoyed reading the book, it is a bit scary knowing that the roadblocks to achieving a green collar economy are so huge and some of the solutions still very far from our grasp. However, I look forward to hearing from other readers of JustOneOpinion.com on their views of the reality of a green collar economy?

Jon Waalkes

Editor’s Note by Dick Kelly:  Joyce Hodges is a retired school teacher who has been writing poetry all her life. She and her husband, Bill, spend four months a year in Tucson, Arizona, and split the rest of time between their home in Muskegon, Michigan and nearby cottage on Big Bass Lake.

Immigration Reform is a hot topic in today’s news. And yet, people’s opinions vary dramatically on this important issue. Living in the south end of Tucson, Arizona, four months out of the year, conversations can get quite heated, with no middle ground. And I wonder why people seem so convinced that they and they alone, seem to know how to handle the problem. Without taking sides, I decided to pen the following poem in rhyme:

Amigo or Illegal?

Amigo or Illegal – Thoughts come to mind. 
                         Some are malicious and others are kind. 
                         Perception of people can often occur. 
                         Tainting the facts, making views premature.  

Amigo or Illegal – Environmentalists shout. 
                         Trash in the washes is what it’s about. 
                         Then there are crops that rot in the field. 
                         Farmers need someone to bring in their yield.  

Amigo or Illegal – With hospitals and schools, 
                         each city needs finances and its share of rules. 
                         There are serious problems we must not ignore. 
                         Is someone a drug runner or just a señor? 

Amigo or Illegal – The walls we have built,  
                         will they give us comfort or leave us with guilt? 
                         Are Mexicans eager and willing to work? 
                         Are America’s borders considered a perk?  

Amigo or Illegal – There are many who see 
                         oppressive conditions that cause them to flee. 
                         The fear of arrest gives rise to heartache. 
                         Some leave their country to make a clean break.

Amigo or Illegal – The questions aren’t clear. 
                         We often form thoughts that one wants to hear.
                         But remember, dear friends, that whatever we do, 
                         we must be sure of our facts for a fair overview.  
                                         

Joyce Hodges   

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