This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Monday, April 25th, 2011. I'm Caleb Brown. The policy choices we make about energy matter a great deal for our future, but the challenges surrounding a broad shift from so-called brown energy to so-called

green energy are far less tractable than simply fighting entrenched dirty energy

interests. Andrew Morris, Professor of law and business at the University

of Alabama, is co-author of Cato's new book, The False Promise of Green Energy. He spoke at the

Cato Institute April 21st.

Energy issues are really important because energy is part of everything we do.

For example, a 2008 study done at AI by Green and Mother found that 46% of the energy we use is used indirectly

and embodied in products like pharmaceuticals and other forms of health care, food,

transportation and housing.

The policy choices we make about energy thus affect not just the size and scope of government,

but almost every aspect of our lives through their impact on energy costs.

Green energy proponents argue that we need to provide massive federal subsidies

and large unfunded mandates to state and local governments and businesses to enable us

to radically transform our economy.

For example, Ms. Gordon has testified recently before the Senate Subcommittee on Green Jobs and the new economy that, quote,

we are currently in the process of switching our entire energy infrastructure over from capital

intensive risky and often highly polluting energy sources to clean labor

intensive clean energy sources. It's easy to see why this vision is so attractive to politicians, so attractive to politicians so attractive that they want to borrow money from our children

so that they can spend it now in this transformation.

Clean energy sounds so much nicer than risky and highly polluting energy.

Moreover, we're told that we must make this transition or risk being left behind by China.

And China, we are assured by the Secretary of Commerce is investing 12 billion dollars a month in green technology.

...