RIDER COMMENT:  California’s first AB32 “cap-and-trade” auction raised only a tiny fraction of the revenue Democrats projected that the auction would bring in for the state (see SAC BEE article below).

This story didn’t make any waves. It should have. The billions that CA Democrats hope to gain from cap-and-trade auctions are largely illusionary dollars.

This “disappointing” auction result is a classic demonstration of the law of supply and demand.  Many businesses have little use for such CA “pollution” credits if they are leaving the state — or at least have no plans to further expand in the state.

On the supply side, doubtless a number of businesses will want to sell their existing CA pollution credits ASAP, as they will have zero use for such a pollution license if/when they leave the Golden State.

This market message concerning CA’s economic future should be setting off Sacramento alarm bells.  It’s not.

Instead, Sacramento is already budgeting to spend the projected revenue on pet projects, even though the anticipated revenue is not coming in.

Other states are cheering for AB32 — economic stimulus for their economies.

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BTW, the dirty little secret about “cap and trade” is that it is racist elitism.  The businesses most hurt by AB32 are companies that make tangible goods — hiring blue collar labor to do the work.  It is these industries that frequently offer the best jobs to black and Hispanic minorities.

Liberals don’t care.  Progressive elitists picture themselves working in clean “green” jobs in office parks, with benefits packages rivaling Google, or even government workers.

Go to any environmental activist meeting touting AB32 (I have — I’ve debated there), and you’ll find proponents are OVERWHELMINGLY white and Asian. Almost no blacks or Hispanics.  These smug activists — “comfortable in their own skin” — do NOT like to hear that their haunty disdain for “dirty” industries results in disproportionate harm to blue collar minorities.

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