Bishop Hill A convocation of rogues
Mar 12, 2015 Climate: Parliament Energy: gas Energy: wind So the Energy and Climate Change Committee are having their end of term shindig today, with a variety of subsidy junkies explaining why the country needs more expensive power (and why it should hand over more subsidies too, no doubt). Twitter feed here.
We gather that Tim Yeo has said we should have shale gas (one wag asks if this means he has got himself a seat on the board at Cuadrilla) and that we should not oppose onshore wind because the alternative is offshore wind at twice the price. Personally I reckon our choice might be slightly wider than that. I also wonder if Mr Yeo shouldn't get a copy of David Mackay's book.
Catherine Mitchell, the eccentric energy policy activist prof from Exeter is pushing demand-side management - but I'm not sure whether she is from the "switch off the factories" school or the "switch off the peasants" school.
And Jeremy Leggett to come. I can hardly wait.
Reader Comments (17)
Although it seems fairly obvious to us; I am not sure most people really understand what is headed their way under the heading of Demand Side Management (always abbreviated to DMS to make absolutely certain they do not understand).
I am hoping that the Brits will actually get downright bloody angry when the penny finally drops.
Former Greenpeace Leggett has made a fortune from public subsidies for solar, as has Dale Vince from wind turbines. I am slightly pleased at the idea that a tiny portion of our money is likely to go to Vince's ex-wife to keep her off benefits. He of course remains on benefits.
http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Ex-wife-Ecotricity-boss-millionaire-split-wins/story-26154354-detail/story.html
I'm feeling demob happy already Bish.
Or is it just merciful release?
So....What is the betting that Yeo will be kicked upstairs to continue his socio-communist antics up there. A man has to make a living....even if he doesn't earn it.
Odd, in a so-called democracy that you cannot vote people out of government; they simply buy some ermine (artificial-carbon free, sustainable, of course) or go off into quangoland. Even a criminal record does not seem to get rid of bad rubbish.
I've crossed swords with Catherine Mitchell and her sidekicks - bonkers the lot of them at Exeter University. Prof Catherine Mitchell, degree in history and now an energy "expert". No wonder the country is in a mess when these people have influence.
offshore wind?
Here's an article in den german SPIEGEL ... http://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/natur/windraeder-kontaminieren-nordsee-mit-giftigem-rostschutz-a-1020944.html
If you don't understand german, use a translator ... it's well worth a read
It's weird that MP's can be jailed for lying or fiddling expenses and sacked for calling a pleb a pleb (allegedly) but they can happily peddle influence and/or benefit financially from the public policy they helped implement with absolutely no comeback at all.
These last few years we have been starting to see the results of over a generation of dumbed-down education.
Catherine Mitchell's contribution is here. Predictably her slides are a string of meaningless cliches:
Need a new mind set of all system actors and stakeholders
Legitimacy has to increase to involve, connect and engage citizens and customers
Energy systems are social constructs
Centralised supply-oriented system rules and incentives
Nice one, Paul Matthews. It reads just like the output of one of those management bolleaux-speak engines that are available on the web.
Irrational gender hang-ups, unfit to run a corner shop.
http://www.biee.org/wpcms/wp-content/uploads/women-and-energy.pdf
"Legitimacy has to increase", have I got it wrong? Surely a thing is either legitimate, or it is illegitimate. In the same way a woman is never a bit pregnant.
Admittedly there are some tasks that can be a bit of a b**tard to complete, but that's not she is saying, is it.
It seems Tim Yeo has also been banging the drum for onshore wind farms. Is he keeping his retirement options open?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/energy/windpower/11465812/Onshore-wind-farm-ban-will-raise-energy-prices-Tory-MP-Tim-Yeo-warns.html
I think Catherine Mitchell has all the qualities necessary to work at the BBC as an Environment Analyst.
Harrabin watch out!
"Tim Yeo has also been banging the drum for onshore wind farms"
Of course he has; a rich land owner cannot avail of that freshly laundered taxpayers' money if the subsidy stick is planted offshore instead of on their land.
I tried to read Prof Mitchells presentation, and that piece on 'women and energy', oh my. A full sandwich of right-on pc bulls**t seasoned with gobbledygook. By why did she bother with the labour of authoring such rubbish, when you can generate it automatically here:
http://dh.elsewhere.org/pomo/
(generator wasn't working last time I tried).
The NEW renewables 3 cup scam : that would make an interesting video
set on a street corner table a passer by is invited to put 5 pound coins on the table and watch it "grow" by adding in FREE power from solar and wind
- Phase one put the 5 coins on the table under the fossil fuel cup -- swizzle it around lift it up and there 5 pounds under the "energy supplied cup"
add in the 2 extra cups the wind fat cat cup, the solar fat cat cup.swizzle the cups around and voila at the end of the game ..there only 3.5 pounds worth under the "energy supplied cup" ...and 1 pound under the each fat cat cup.
..Ask the punter if he happy to walk away with his £3.5 worth of energy