By Mickey Walker-July 26, 2009
Texans, in the name of God and pseudo sciences, seem to have
bogged themselves down in mythology, superstition, and anything other than
science (work of the devil, you know). Why I would speculate that most
Texans if polled, would believe global warming to be a hoax perpetrated by
liberals like Al Gore. Forget that
he got a Nobel Prize. When Texas
is home to two Bush presidents Al Gore caint cut the mustard here in the Lone Star
state. I used to be proud to be a
Texan, but in case all you Texans who are doing a slow burn while thinking I
should love it or leave it just now, please know that our beloved state is one of the few in America that
does not give solar energy credits to its own people. None, Nada. I
wish I had a CD you could run over. Looks like we the people gotta wait another two years. Oh, they
say they do some tax incentives for corporations, etc., but they are
piddly amounts and in the form of tax credits with wacko formulas, and
again not slanted toward Belmer from Dime Box, but in favor of big bidness, you
know. Why is this? Can you say, Governor 'Goodhair?' Can you
say, Texas 'Lege?' By some strange stretch, they both seem to favor
big Electricity over the private individual homeowner who wants to do his part
by installing a solar panel or two, do you love it? Ain’t no Texas credit
for Belmer or Talford or Billy Bob for that matter. Example: This week I got a quote from a Houston solar
panel installer. The knock-yer-socks-off price was $30,000 for a 3
KW array of panels. That might do half a house unless you live in Palm
Beach or Beverly Hills. After the
Federal tax credit of 30% net cost to homeowner, my net price would be $21,000.
But look what other states offer their working class homeowners. Last week in Florida, same example,
same price of $30,000, saw the net cost to homeowner after taking the 30%
Federal tax credit AND the state of Florida Tax Credits and Rebates (DRUM ROLL
PLEASE)………… $2,500. But don't go all slack-jawed just yet. Florida
just seems to care more about the people getting nice clean cheap energy more
so than continuing to favor Big Electric and Big Coal. Florida seems to
court installing private green energy measures in the homes of any and every
Floridian, but Texas don’t smile on the homeowner just yet for his green energy
efforts to hep the planet and his own pocketbook. And Texas’s got more money from oil royalties than Dick
Cheney’s got stashed in Dubai. Just try to imagine all them coloring books the state of Texas was able
to buy for the George W. Bush Library in Dallas.
Guess in Texas the politicians get paid better by the
Utility Companies. I mean what with all the oil and gas money the state
of Texas boasts for Education and other state projects, why would Texas be so
stingy with handing out tax credits to the people who get solar panels and save
themselves half an electric bill for the year and refrain from spewing another
5,000 pounds of CO2 into the fair skies of the Lone Star State? But then Tom DeLay, John Cornyn, Kay Baily
Hutchison, and George W. Bush are from Texas, ain't they? They all
supposed to know the energy business or so I’m told. Maybe they could hire out as consultants and teach Florida
politicians how to milk Big Electric for some extra campaign bucks so they
could drown all them Florida tax incentives for the people in Lake
Okeechobee. Not that it would influence anybody in the Florida Lege on how
to vote. Shucks. But in
Texas could it be significant why Big Utilities gets to keep solar
energy panels out of the hands of the people while they get to keep
on raising our electricity rates? Hey, I was born in Texas, but so was
Molly Ivins and Jim Hightower. And it didn't make them go all lockjaw when
it came to talkin’ turkey, Harry Truman style, did it? Just look at the doublespeak the Texas
Lege done wrote to delay Texas green energy credits to getting’ the big power
companies to abide by net metering rules which most all the other states do
without a hitch in their gitalong. Net metering is when Big Electric’s got to buy back any excess
electricity generated by Buford’s windmill in Sweetwater or Jim Bob’s solar
panels up in Pampa. The Texas Lege
postponed the award of net metering in favor of the people for a spell, it
seems. Why just read up on some of
their attempts at usin’ confusin’ big words that would make the grandest
Euphuist stutter; shoot, I was impressed.
http://solartexans.com/press/118/special-alert-net-metering-in-texas-at-jeopardy/
Gee whiz, Texas is downright anti-green on might near
everything that messes not with Texas but with Texas utility companies. Or so it appears. The state don't
want no net-metering goin' on 'round heah. That means that in the
language of the PUC of Texas is that if a Texan makes more 'lectricity than he
uses and puts it back on the Grid to the good of TXU, Entergy, or
Reliant Energy, that they is no way to tell it went back on them wires, Billy
Bob! Or so they try to confound us masses. So would somebody please
tell me this is a momentary constipation in the space warp continuum that
done took us back to the Stone Age to where the Texas Lege and PUC wonts
to kill green power in favor of Big Coal and Big Sparky?
Puleeeeeseee. They don't call the Lower Colorado River Authority LOCO fer
nuthin'. But they ain't crazy. The Texas Lege, the Gov, and the PUC
has been eatin' some wacky cactus buds, though, if they think this dog is
gonna hunt and gut it out for the whole possum chase on green energy,
‘cause it’s comin’. Tell me that this little hiccup is just dated
material from back in March of this here year and since
then it's all been made better and fixed so we can be and act civilized
like the rest of the human race that is trying to add new electric sources
of power to the planet, not blow them up like Santa Anna blew up
the Alamo with his canons. No wonder the rest of the world thinks we
Yanks are crazy, especially here in Texas. And Texas must be the head
where they strapped on them electric wires for the shock
treatments. That's because when it comes to encouraging the
production of new sources of green energy to hep save the planet right
here in the Lone Star State we start runnin' on our rims and actin' coo
coo as a Roadrunner after a road lizard.
Amazing how a good thing like solar finds itself in the
snares and webs once again of those darker dudes of the human race who seem to
have a hidden money agenda. I mean, producing our own power is a
wonderful thing, right? But maybe not. At least in the electric brains of the power companies. Maybe the old green monster greed is at
work again. You know, when the power
of the almighty dollar trumps good
things like green power for the people and takes the narrower, opulent
mentality view of taking all the treasures of the world and putting it all into
the same old deep pockets. One
would think public servants in gummint might be more interested in serving the
people to make their lives better, right? Not to mention making the planet earth a bit more hospital to plants and
animals (man included) with cleaner air to breathe and extra dollars to benefit
homeowners, not Big Electric. But
seems like Big Money’s got more power than even the power companies. Some might say that’s pure-dee re(volt)ing,
but that shouldn’t be a “shock” to anyone. 