While you pathetic little American yuppies worry about whether your hot shower will emit too many grams of carbon, do you really think that the BILLIONS of upwardly mobile Asians (in the British sense, including Indians) are going to have any such qualms? Their carbon emissions already swamp yours and will increase radically in the near future. But you're actually, laughably, feeling GUILTY about your microscopic little footprint.

While we haven't seen a warmer year than 1998.

Genius!

hyperionred I like your style. Fuck these brainwashed liberal cocksuckers. I'm gonna go turn on my hot shower for ten minutes right now with nobody in it just to spite these pieces of shit. It's my water, I fucking paid for it, get the fuck out of my life. Kill yourselves if you're so concerned about your fucking foot print... you won't be lamented.

Good point about all those consumption-driven Asians. Preemptive nuclear strike? To me that would kill three birds with one MIRV:

1) Eliminate rising rival power in its adolescence

2) Reduced carbon footprint in Asia

3) Ensuing nuclear winter cancels out global warming

They could only fire a couple of birds back at us at this stage in their development...I'm not saying we wouldn't get our hair mussed, but I am saying we'd lose no more than 10 to 20 million people killed--tops. Uh, depending on the breaks.

Oh, the scathing tone! I love this thread! Every time I see this stupid column's headlines, they piss me off. First few times, I thought they were tongue in cheek, but they don't seem to be.

Hey, I use running water to thaw meat for dinner...every damn night! Maybe I'll try hot and see if its faster! The microwave burns it, but maybe I'll run it anyway for the relaxing hum it makes.

You've got some questionable data hyperion.

"Their carbon emissions already swamp yours and will increase radically in the near future."

You mean the sum of all Asians compared to Americans? Well maybe then. Depending on how you define "swamp". Certainly the per capita's aren't comparable.

"While we haven't seen a warmer year than 1998."

Orly?

You mean the sum of all Asians compared to Americans?

Yes. The atmosphere doesn't care about "per-capita" figures. "per-capita" is a way to make yuppies (who probably can't conceive of a nation the size of India with a billion breathing meatbags in it) feel more guilty than they already do.

Hmm, i'm certainly a young urban professional but I don't feel guilty that India's billion people emit a quarter of the C02 that we do. Concerned about their growth trajectory yes, but more I see potential opportunities. The developing countries will be hit hardest by global warming, so they have the most incentive to buy the new renewable technologies we create. Unless China gets there first. Note that their renewables targets exclude hydropower.

@ blueshift, re: China getting there first,

That would certainly be good news for Vestas, Gamesa, and GE. (The article you linked to showed China's recent investment in wind turbines)

Not sure how good it would be for China though, since even wind turbines with high capacity factors, production tax credits, cash grants from the treasury, RPS credit subsidies, and favorable permitting treatment will return something like 1 or 2% IRRs for their owners.

They're much better off earning 4 or 5% off of all those US treasurys they've been buying.

Because we should decide what we're going to do based on what everyone else is doing. Because there's no such thing as individual accountability or conscience. Because your mother apparently never told you "Just because Johnny jumps off the Empire State Building doesn't mean YOU have to jump off the Empire State Building."

Sounds to me like you're just using a schoolyard dodge to do whatever you want. Fine and dandy, but don't pretend you're somehow smarter just because you found a way to keep from caring about anything other than yourself, Sparky.

Well, until I hear someone say that they go out at night in Houston during late-summer and at nighttime football games, without wearing a shirt, and without OFF, and you do it because you're happy to provide your fellow-earth sharing mosquito a good meal, then no one is the champion of green.

I like Asians. smart, good-looking, fit. generally, not as warmongering as us.

Hmm...but if I jump off a building, something bad happens. If I emit 1 more pound of carbon, nothing bad happens. If a billion Indians emit 5 trillion tons of carbon, then something bad might happen, but wtf am I supposed to do about that?

Hi Bentoniani,

"Not sure how good it would be for China though, since even wind turbines with high capacity factors, production tax credits, cash grants from the treasury, RPS credit subsidies, and favorable permitting treatment will return something like 1 or 2% IRRs for their owners."

Well the return for their economy on the whole should be significantly better for turbines installed in China. I'm presuming they continue to improve efficiency and lower costs while they ramp up to their internal goals. As the industry matures, they can use their expertise and any proprietary technologies developed to compete on international bids.

Note that this article was only one of many showing a very serious commitment to "green technologies" and real progress. They are IIRC second in solar manufacturing capacity now and could become first.

"They're much better off earning 4 or 5% off of all those US treasurys they've been buying."

Assuming they don't lose faith.

Once you factor in the green tags and the ~$21/MWh kickback from the government... wind is highly profitable.

Once there is some form of reliable demand for the energy at night (in the Great Plains, where there's no pumped hydrostorage), then the return would be much higher still.

Bentoniani:

Good point about all those consumption-driven Asians. Preemptive nuclear strike? To me that would kill three birds with one MIRV:

1) Eliminate rising rival power in its adolescence

2) Reduced carbon footprint in Asia

3) Ensuing nuclear winter cancels out global warming

They could only fire a couple of birds back at us at this stage in their development...I'm not saying we wouldn't get our hair mussed, but I am saying we'd lose no more than 10 to 20 million people killed--tops. Uh, depending on the breaks.

Awesome. I needed a laugh today (I love-hate the damn chemotherapy which is saving my life). Thanks!

it's you who are funny, feTus! please post more.