Comments | the_recession: I say, perhaps?

capthek in the_recession

I say, perhaps?

Apr 21, 2009 13:26

Can Technology Save the Economy?

The U.S. stimulus bill includes tens of billions to support energy and information technologies. It is intended both to create jobs immediately and to set the stage for long-term economic growth. So why are economists and innovation experts so skeptical?

By David Rotman

Rest here ( Read more... )

Comments 10

ytterbius April 21 2009, 18:46:27 UTC

I didn't read the whole thing. It's fair to be skeptical, but if the guy were paying attention, he wouldn't have made this statement:

'Could the green economy be the new new economy, with energy technologies replicating the success of information technologies in boosting productivity? Jorgenson is skeptical. In fact, he says, today's scenario is the "extreme opposite" of the one in which market demand drove the use and implementation of information technology in the 1990s. "A lot of these [energy] technologies that are going to be subsidized are not commercially viable without a subsidy," he says. "These things have been around for a quite a while, and have never gotten to the stage of being financially viable without sizeable subsidies. What does a subsidy mean? It means it's not good for the economy. It doesn't meet the market test, so there has to be some other reason to do it.It's true that at this point subsidies are important, as is fairly pricing fossils to account for the long term costs of their emissions. On the other ( ... )

capthek April 21 2009, 19:28:23 UTC

The article focuses mostly on critique until the last page when it backtracks. Ya, suggesting that it's impossible for something to be beneficial in the long, or even short term because it is not yet financially viable is a narrow view.

roadriverrail April 21 2009, 20:26:15 UTC

I also note where they pull out the old "renewables need subsidies so it's proof they can't compete" saw. As far as I can tell, pretty much all the mainstream sources of energy are subsidized, too, and the result is that renewables are basically losing in an unfair competition.

capthek April 21 2009, 22:11:03 UTC

Nail on head.

Thread 6

madjacktech April 21 2009, 20:24:24 UTC

The real question is:
How many of these technology jobs which the stimulus will supposedly 'create'
will be shipped overseas?

roadriverrail April 21 2009, 20:30:39 UTC

I'm guessing that a pretty good chunk of them can't be shipped overseas. It's very hard, for example, to overhaul the American power grid from India. Unless you're Dhalsim:

( ... )

madjacktech April 21 2009, 20:32:42 UTC

Let's hope it's as little as possible.

capthek April 21 2009, 22:13:42 UTC

Lots of that medical stuff already is, so no doubt that will continue.

But solar and R and D create lots of local jobs and benefits.