Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Carbon trading/looney tunes

The day had to come when we tackled this and I had hoped I could procrastinate until Friday. However Fridays are not a good day for a half hour on the web early in the morning and we are going to have to have a look at all this carbon credits/penalties bollocks before the official announcements slated for Thursday. However Wellygogs is leaking rumours like a sieve and so I think we have a fair idea of what is afoot.

Two things. I haven't the first idea how it all works, I end up paying for it and............Three things. I haven't the first idea how it all works, I end up paying for it and, perversely, it is all good.

First thing. Not a bloody clue. If you fly somewhere you incur a carbon penalty and this is paid in money. We'll move past the why as there can be no answer to that I will accept. So who is the money paid to? The government? They seem to be in receipt of most of the money that exits my wallet so it must be them. But if a government minister flies somewhere the government pays the penalty. To the Government? Eh? As the money is going to be used to plant trees (I think) perhaps the money doesn't go to the Government at all but goes straight to Kings Plant Barn. But if I give money to Kings Plant Barn for a corokia or something (and I have bought some of these recently - SWMBO told me to) the GST component goes to the Government. So if our Dear Leader flies to London she buys $270 (going carbon penalty for a jaunt to Europe apparently) worth of bedding plants but doesn't really because she gives herself back the GST component. Maybe. And that's just the easy version. Apparently there is a carbon penalty for staying in a hotel. You get charged for lying in bed?

Who in their right mind could have thought of all this crap? The answer is no one in their right mind could have as they are all barking. A coterie of bureaucrats awash in recreational pharmacology has sat down and invented all this. And the aim of it all is to achieve something that is impossible. Who could be so daft as to believe a word of it? A majority of the country apparently - beyond my comprehension.

Second thing. Who is going to pay for all this crap? The Government, right? Wrong. You and I are going to pay for this because it will just come out of the tax take. Situation normal

Third thing. I am all for it because it is so obviously an election lead balloon that the sooner it is put in place the better. Mr Joe Average Middle New Zealander has currently had his mortgage repayments pushed through the roof because of the looney fiscal policy in the country. He is pissed off with an arrogant all controlling Government that tells him how to bring up his kids, how fast to drive, what colour fluoro jacket he must wear when changing a light bulb and generally want to control his every waking hour. Next comes all this carbon bollocks that has already been slated to put up the price of petrol and electricity. He'll love that. But there's more. Because the price of energy is going up the poor people will have to be subsidised and Mr Joe Average Middle New Zealander will pay for that as well. He not only pays for the increase in his own power bills but slips a lazy twenty in the mail box of the family on the DPB down the road. Goody goody. Now he is told he will pay the carbon penalty for Government ministers to fly round the world on various official junkets.

Excellent. Helen supplies the coffin and the nails - bring your own hammer.

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