Thursday, February 7, 2013

Chu Resigns But Hopefully His Vision Stays



Energy Secretary Chu is resigning but hopefully his great vision and support of a clean energy future does not go with him.  Chu has done some very positive things, so it's a bit of a bummer that he is leaving.

He is a stalwart and smart scientist (A Nobel Laurette, hello!) who knows the urgency of a clean energy future.  He avoids rhetoric and makes decisions based on science.  How refreshing.

Chu simply had to deal with so many shameful deniers and short-sighted Republicans, who put everything into making his job, and his boss's job, difficult.  According to the Huffington Post, only 1% of clean energy programs under Chu went bankrupt, like the infamous Solyndra, yet the 99% get so little attention.

Instead, we get things like this: "'Good riddance,' declared the Climate Depot blog in response to Chu's announced departure.  The site is run by the right-wing Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow, which aggressively challenges basic climate science," according to Huff Post

Chu saw where the world was going and tried to put the US on a path to a clean energy future.  He knew what was at stake with all his heart.

"Those who will suffer the most are the people who are the most innocent: the world’s poorest citizens and those yet to be born," Chu said. 

Hopefully, Chu has helped kick start a self-perpetuating machine, that is a US clean energy industry that eventually will win out on indefensible grounds -- it's just better business (think far fewer dangerous and climate changing costs than dirty energy), and it is simply better for the health and security of Americans everywhere, especially children. 

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