By Denis Du Bois
In 1961 John F. Kennedy called for his nation to put a man on the moon in ten years. That was a formidable challenge -- and today's energy challenge is even greater. Congressman Jay Inslee has been calling for an end our oil addiction and the accompanying transformation of our economy. He calls it the Apollo Project for energy and his new book, "Apollo's Fire," spells out his vision.
Apollo's Fire arrived the other day. Since the book was already released on Amazon, and very soon many readers will no doubt share their critiques online, we won't rush to add our review to the pile. Here is a synopsis of the concept behind the book. We'd like to hear your thoughts.
Inslee is a Washington state Representative who has been calling on Congress to galvanize the nation around a single, urgent goal: solving the country's energy and environmental crisis.
The original Apollo space project not only put a man on the moon, it also employed thousands of Americans, and put the country in a technological leadership position. Just as important, it gave us a sense of national purpose.
Inslee introduced his New Apollo Project as a bill to invigorate the economy while doing something to combat climate change. The bill would cap carbon dioxide emissions and provide a trade system for carbon credits. The bill would also require the use of more renewable energy sources, give manufacturers incentives to make plug-in hybrid vehicles, and use policy to improve energy efficiency.
Apollo’s Fire presents Inslee's vision of how we can both attack global warming and revitalize America’s declining manufacturing economy.
Is it too early for such a grand vision, when many Democrats want to wait for a more envronmentally savvy president? Is it too late?
There are already "reviews" (publicist write-ups) at Amazon. Surprisingly there aren't many other reviews yet. Seattle Post-Intelligencer political columnist Joel Connelly wrote "U.S. mobilization needed on energy" last week.
CalCars included a teaser in "Get Your PHEV Books: Freeman Inslee Vaitheeswaran Carson Sandalow."
Full story with user comments at: http://energypriorities.com/entries/2007/10/apollos_fire_jay_inslee.php
