So, we learned this week that the so-called “Young Amendment”, named after Rep. Don Young (R-AK), that would allow a MA governor to kill Cape Wind, should actually be called the Kennedy-Stevens amendment:
The efforts to move the wind farm forward occur amid growing attention to Kennedy’s role in the secret, behind-the-scenes maneuvering to stop it. Republican Ted Stevens of Alaska, the senator who inserted the wind-farm provision into the Coast Guard bill, has acknowledged discussing the matter privately with the Massachusetts Democrat.
… Stevens said he ”conferred” with Kennedy about adding a provision to the bill that would allow the state to veto the Cape Cod project. He said Kennedy agreed with that idea, an account that Kennedy confirmed.
But the project’s supporters don’t like the manner in which the provision was included in the bill, an argument that appears to be catching on with some lawmakers. The final language was hashed out in secret by a small handful of lawmakers — a group that included Young and Stevens.
Sen. Kennedy is known and rightly lauded for his effectiveness as a legislator. But this is a devious way to address the issue: Out of the way, privately, and inserted into a bill that is tangentially related at best.
What can we say? As David said, “This is Congress at its absolute worst.” Senator, we’re disgusted.
If we’re serious about dealing with global warming, let’s deal with it. Now. Today. Here’s a project that’s ready to go. If one believes, as Chris Gabrieli does, that we should negotiate a good deal for the taxpayers, then do so. But you can’t be for energy independence and fighting pollution and global warming if you say, “Well, not today, not here, not now.” NASA’s James Hansen gives us ten years before the global warming tipping point is reached, with devastating consequences.
The clock is ticking, but Sen. Kennedy would have us stick with a “three yards and a cloud of smog” strategy.
Kennedy has annoyed me to no end on Cape Wind. It’s so disappointing becuase he’s so typically right on the issues, especially poverty issues. Most Americans and Massachusetts residents, especially, support renewable energy. We need this project. Massachusetts supports this project.
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The fact that he’d side with the few and the wealthy on Nantucket (who, by all accounts, won’t even be able to SEE Cape Wind) make me almost want to not vote for him. On my blog, I “strongly” support 3 politicians/candidates… and because of Cape Wind, Ted Kennedy sadly isn’t one of them.
I for the most part have huge respect for Ted Kennedy, but this Cape Wind blocking is ridiculous. I’ve been talking with some Green-Rainbow folks about finding a candidate to run in the US Senate race to get him to debate this issue, as it seems if anytime more neccesary for a Dem to be challenged on Green issues is this one. Kennedy is such a strong political force that there’s no chance of him not winning, but a respectable green vote against him on this could be rather effective.
was made last year, when a group of Cape Codders traveled to Denmark to see what an actual wind farm would look like and sound like, and how it had affected the communities there. I wonder if Ted Kennedy has seen it.
I think cleanpowernow.org has copies.
In Vermont, I am told that in one second home community, the houses with the views of the wind turbines in Searberg command higher prices.
I watched some of these videos last year, they are online:
view of an offshore wind farm in Denmark
tourists come to see the windmills
more tourists, similar
rental agent who was apprehensive about windmills changed her mind because people love them
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At cleanpowernow.org if you click on almost any of the choices in the menu at the top, you’ll get a sidebar on the left with a bunch of movies, including these four.