Do you know where the Yucca Valley is? If you don’t, that’s okay. It’s in a relatively obscure part of inland Southern California. It’s sparsely populated compared to the big metropolitan areas of the Golden State. If you are in the Yucca Valley, it’s a big deal that WalMart is coming to town. It means… More consumer choices for products, lower prices for consumer goods, and, of course, jobs! In our current recession, there’s been a big slow down in new construction and the opening of new retail stores. So, a WalMart for Yucca Valley… It’s all good, right?
WRONG. In today’s Los Angeles Times, there is a story about how the construction of this new superstore in the Yucca Valley has been halted by a judge! Why? Because apparently WalMart has not, according to the Judge, taken the proper steps to ensure that their new facility offsets enough carbon emissions.
How could this be? This is yet another iteration of the actual REAL and NEGATIVE economic impacts of the global warming alarmism policies being enacted in the State Capitol. Advocates of new statewide regulations to reduce the amount of carbon emissions made by people (despite the fact that the impact of people-created emissions has on the globe’s temperature are very much in question) is having a very real, bad effect, on the quality of life for Californians. The halting of this particular store is just one of hundreds of examples around the state.
It appears that the latest victim of this extremist environmental agenda is consumer choice, and jobs in the Yucca Valley. But then, many actually think that the real agenda of those that are pushing these strict greenhouse gas emission standards is to actually constrain new construction, and force people to build "up" rather than out. Whatever their agenda, those that pursue this extremist environmental agenda do so with seeming disregard (and some with apparent glee) at the negative impacts on people and communities.
In closing, I will add that the local eco-nut advocates want this Walmart to have thousands of square feet of solar panels on its roof, to supply its own power. The Yucca Valley is VERY sunny and hot much of the year. It is a statement to the high cost of solar power that it doesn’t pencil out to place solar panels at a big project there. That said, perhaps WalMart will agree to put in the solar panels to get an approval to build the store. Guess who will pay for those expensive panels if they do so? You guessed it, a lot of consumers in the Yucca Valley, who’s consumer goods will cost more at this WalMart than at other stores in the area not forced to build pricy "alternative energy" sources on their properties.
Care to read comments, or make your own about today’s Daily Commentary?
Just click here to go to the FR Weblog, where this Commentary has its own blog post, and where you can read and make comments.