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New World Trade Center Is Rising From the Ashes

Monday, September 12th, 2011

In the nearly 10 years since the 9/11 tragedy, the site that once seemed impossible to redevelop is very much alive.  The World Trade Center redevelopment and the electrifying changes going on in Downtown New York City — 56,000 new residents (doubled that of before the attacks) and 300 new tenants (since 2005) must be onto something good. The site’s transformation has been “a piece of cake,” quipped Silverstein Properties CEO Larry Silverstein. We’re seeing a quick metamorphosis Downtown, and the impact on values is just beginning, according to Silverstein. “It’s nothing short of extraordinary.” The site will have as much impact (if not more) as Rockefeller Center was to New York City in the 1930s. 

Construction on 1 WTC and 7 WTC is progressing, the latter to be the last of the towers to collapse on 9/11 and the first to be rebuilt.  At 1,776 feet in terms of structural height, with the spire, 1 WTC will be the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, taller than the Willis Tower in Chicago. The structural steel for the 72-floor 4 WTC is currently at 40 stories with completion planned for 2013 and will have 2.3M RSF.  The expected completion dates for all of the WTC properties are: the National September 11 Memorial & Museum this year; 1 WTC, the vehicle security center, and 4 WTC in 2013; the transportation hub in 2014; 3 WTC in 2015; and 2 WTC beyond that.

According to the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, “LMDC is charged with assisting New York City in recovering from the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and ensuring the emergence of Lower Manhattan as a strong and vibrant community. The centerpiece of these efforts is the creation of a permanent Memorial remembering and honoring the thousands of innocent men, women and children lost in the terrorist attacks. The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation was created in the aftermath of September 11, 2001 by then-Governor George Pataki and then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to help plan and coordinate the rebuilding and revitalization of Lower Manhattan, defined as everything south of Houston Street.  . LMDC is charged with ensuring Lower Manhattan recovers from the attacks and emerges even better than it was before. The centerpiece of LMDC’s efforts is the creation of a permanent memorial honoring those lost, while affirming the democratic values that came under attack on September 11.”

 Writing on the Plots and Plans website, Carter B. Horsley says that “In the best of all cities, if not worlds, the design for a redeveloped World Trade Center site would include a memorial for the almost three thousand people lost in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that demolished the center’s twin towers, a decked-over West Street to reunite Battery Park City with the rest of Lower Manhattan, an expanded transportation terminal that would better unite Downtown with Midtown and the rest of the Metropolitan region, and a stunning new architectural project that would reassert Manhattan’s international architectural prominence. The redevelopment should also afford the city the opportunity to significantly bolster the downtown community’s cultural assets with the inclusion of some important institutions such as new homes for the Museum of the City of New York and the New York City Opera. Fortunately, the site is large enough to accommodate all of these components as well as meeting the contractual needs of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to replace the 11 million square feet of commercial and retail space that had existed on the site.”

“After 9/11, we found ourselves with a clear mission to rebuild 7 World Trade Center quickly,” said Robin Panovka, a partner at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz, who provides legal counsel to Silverstein Properties. “But there were tremendous obstacles in the way, and it’s really how those obstacles were overcome, through cooperation with the Port Authority and the other players, that led to rebuilding of 7 World Trade Center and is now leading to the rebuilding of the larger site where the Twin Towers once stood,” Panovka said. “The result is this beautiful building, 7 World Trade Center, built partly on land the builder didn’t yet own or lease, without customary agreements among the major stakeholders.  It’s that kind of cooperation, vision and guts that led to the success of this building and is fueling the rebuilding of the whole World Trade Center site.” 

As the world’s largest and most complex construction site, the new World Trade Center will be home to a national memorial and museum of emotional and engineering complexity, the nation’s tallest skyscraper, a transportation hub that will serve 250,000 commuters every day, and upscale retail. It will also be home to thousands of workers moving into 10 million SF of new office space.

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Walkability Factor Increases Property Investment Values

Wednesday, July 27th, 2011

According to a recent study, a 100-point scale, a 10-point increase in walkability increases property values by one to nine percent, depending on the property.  Chicago – with a Walk Score of 74 — was one of the nation’s most walkable cities.  The others are New York, Boston, San Francisco, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia.  The least walkable cities are Jacksonville, Nashville, Charlotte, Indianapolis, Oklahoma City, Memphis, Fort Worth, Kansas City, San Antonio, El Paso, Austin and Phoenix.

The report examined the impact on walkability and investment returns on more than 4,200 apartment, office, retail and industrial properties over the past decade.  Gary Pivo and Jeffrey D. Fisher compiled the data using performance information from the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries and walkability data from Front Seat.  The study defines walkability as “the degree to which an area with walking distance of a property encourages walking trips from the property to other destinations.”

The Loop and the Near North Side were rated as Chicago’s most walkable neighborhoods with Walk Scores of 96 each.  Just five percent of Chicagoans live in car-dependent neighborhoods.  Illinois’ most walkable city is Forest Park – in the near western suburbs — with a Walk Score of 82; the least walkable is Godfrey – near downstate Alton — with a score of just 20.

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Will Apple Create the Next Great Building?

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

A giant spaceship is destined to land in Cupertino, CA – at least if Apple CEO Steve Jobs gets his way with the city council.  The new building will accommodate 12,000 employees and house its own green-energy power plant.  Apple’s current headquarters accommodates approximately 2,800 people, Jobs said.  “We’ve got almost 12,000 people in the area,” he said.  “So we’re renting buildings — not very good buildings, either — at an ever-greater radius from our campus and we’re putting people in those.  And it’s clear that we need to build a new campus.”

As envisioned, the new campus would be built on about 150 acres of land that the tech giant owns.  Jobs said Apple’s plan would involve tearing down buildings currently on the site and constructing a new ring-shaped building that would be four stories tall, with four floors of parking underneath and a large landscaped courtyard in the middle.  If approved, the project will increase landscaping to approximately 80 percent of the site, which currently is 20 percent trees, plants and grass.

“And we’ve used our experience in making retail buildings all over the world now, and we know how to make the biggest pieces of glass in the world for architectural use,” Jobs said.  The campus wouldn’t be powered by Cupertino’s energy grid.  Instead, an on-site power facility will provide 100 percent of energy.  “I think what we’re going to end up doing is making the energy center our primary source of power, because we can generate power with natural gas and other ways that can be cleaner and cheaper, and use the grid as our backup,” Jobs said.  “We think that makes more sense.”

Mayor Gilbert Wong said that Cupertino is excited that Apple is moving forward with a new campus, an idea first suggested to the city in 2006.  “When Apple submits their building plans later this year, we know that we will be looking at a state-of-the-art facility and all the challenges and opportunities that go along with that,” Wong said.  The review process will be the same as any other construction project, with evaluations of environmental impacts, air quality, traffic and other matters.  “The project will come to the City Council for approval in the fall of 2012,” Wong said.  “Following approval, Apple can submit building permits.  Construction will follow, and Apple and the city expects the new campus to be completed by 2015.”

“I think we’ve found a way to stay in Cupertino,” Jobs said, reminding the city council that “since we’re your largest taxpayers, we thought you’d be happy about it.”

In a town with a population of 55,162, Jobs’ announcement was an important event.  Asked about the design, in which Jobs has reportedly played a role, city council members said they were impressed when they first saw it.  “It’s so, well, pretty,” said Councilman Barry Chang.  “Wow! is the operative term,” said Councilman Orrin Mahoney.  “There’s nothing like it.  And while some people might wonder why a CEO would get so involved at such a level of detail around a company headquarters, with Steve, it’s not surprising.”

The four-story, circular campus is said to be the design of superstar British architect Norman Foster.  “We do have a shot at building the best office building in the world,” Jobs said, adding that it won’t contain a straight piece of glass.  “Architecture students will come here to see this.”  Here’s a video of Jobs announcing the building. 

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Dave Kansas points out that snazzy new office buildings are not always successful.  According to Kansas,  “Companies that build fancy, new digs often do so at just about the wrong time from a market perspective.  Splurging on a new corporate palace doesn’t necessarily improve the profit picture.  And there’s a clutch of anecdotal evidence that would support that notion.”

Kit Eaton of Fast Times noticed a strong resemblance between the Apple design and a security-heavy location in the United Kingdom.  “We just have one question for Steve.  Has he ever been to Cheltenham, England?  You know, the home of famous horse races, hats, posh private schools, and the U.K.’s Government Communications Headquarters.  GCHQ, spy-central for the Brits.  A glass-fronted spaceship-like ring, with glass-roofed atria, good green credentials, and a private-access garden concealed inside the giant ‘O’.”

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GE Enters the Solar Power Business

Wednesday, June 29th, 2011

The nation’s largest conglomerate – General Electric – is getting into the solar business in a big way with the firm’s announcement that it is investing $600 million to build a new solar-panel manufacturing plant as it pursues what it thinks could be a $3 billion business by 2015.  The firm, already a leader in renewable energy, has designed a thin-film solar panel that converts sunlight to electricity more efficiently than any other product currently on the market.  The firm, a leading manufacturer of wind- and natural gas-powered electric turbines, plans to open a factory in an as-yet unknown location by 2013.  The facility will employ 400 workers and produce enough solar panels annually to power 80,000 homes.

“The biggest challenge today for the mainstream adoption of solar is cost, and the way you move cost is efficiency,” said Victor Abate, vice president of GE’s renewable energy unit.  “We see ourselves continuing to push that and continuing to move efficiency and as a result the costs of solar continue to come down.”  According to Abate, a decision on where to locate the factory will be made within the next three months.  The decision will be based on criteria including proximity to GE’s research centers, available space, and state and local government incentives, Abate said.  GE expects to make a decision before the end of the year at the latest.

GE’s entry into the solar business comes at an excellent time.  Solar panel installations are expected to surge in the next two years as the cost of generating electricity from the sun approaches that of coal-fueled plants. Large photovoltaic projects would cost $1.45 a watt to build by 2020, half the current price, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimates.  Solar is feasible against fossil fuels on the electric grid in sunny regions such as the Middle East.  “We are already in this phase change and are close to grid parity,” said Canadian Solar chief executive Shawn Qu.  “In many markets, solar is already competitive with peak electricity prices, such as in California and Japan.”

Solar photovoltaic system installation has the potential to nearly double to 32.6 gigawatts by 2013 from 18.6GW last year, according to New Energy Finance.  Manufacturing capacity worldwide has quadrupled since 2008 to 27.5GW annually; 12GW of production will be added in 2011.  Canadian Solar had about 1.3GW of capacity and is expected to reach 2GW in 2012, Qu said.


Writing in Time’s “Ecocentric” column, Bryan Walsh says that the new plant is “Good news for solar advocates and bad news for competitors — General Electric is ready to break into the solar cell business in a major way.  The $218 billion company announced today that it had built a solar module with the highest-ever efficiency rate for cadmium-telluride thin film — the most popular low-cost solar technology — at 12.8 percent, according to independent testers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.  That announcement came as GE told reporters that it intends to manufacture those solar modules at a 400-MW factory — in what would be the biggest such facility in the U.S. — that is set to open in 2013.  GE also completed the acquisition of PrimeStar Solar, the Colorado-based thin-film manufacturer, which will complement its recent acquisition of the power conversion company Converteam.”

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As Global Oil Consumption – and Prices – Rise, OPEC Rejects Increased Production

Monday, June 20th, 2011

As gas prices seesaw up and down at the pump and Americans reluctantly pay more to fill their tanks as the economy slows, OPEC (the Organization of Petroleum Exporting States) could not agree on whether or not to increase production and provide some relief. The two key factors are Saudi Arabia and Iran. At an unusually contentious meeting, the 12-nation group could not reach agreement on new production targets.  That sets the stage for higher prices for oil and gas later this year as world demand for oil rises faster than supplies.  Saudi Arabia favored an increase in output, which likely would have translated to lower oil prices.  Other countries – such as Iran — resisted, arguing that oil supplies are adequate to meet demand and current prices are on target.  “We are unable to reach consensus,” OPEC Secretary General Abdullah Al-Badri said.  Saudi oil minister Ali Naimi called the meeting “one of the worst ever.”

Writing on the Salon website,Andrew Leonard points out that China is partially to blame for high prices at the gas pump.  According to Leonard, “If you want to know why gas prices are high, and why, in the long run, they will keep getting higher, all you need to do is peruse BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy 2011 report. Bottom line:  World oil consumption hit an all-time record high of 87.4 million barrels a day in 2010, driven by a surge in demand from emerging nations, but primarily led by China.  China has now overtaken the U.S. as the world’s largest energy consumer, with demand for all kinds of energy growing 11.2 percent in 2010.  In 2010, Chinese oil consumption grew by 860,000 barrels a day.  Since 2000, China’s oil consumption has grown an incredible 90 percent.  Supply, globally, is not keeping up with demand growth. And barring a major global economic meltdown, that dynamic is not going to change.  The rest of the world is going to continue to consume more oil, and finding and developing new sources of oil is going to continue to get more expensive.  And Obama can’t do a damn thing about it, except to put in place policies that encourage U.S. consumers to consume as little oil as possible.”

The Saudis and the Iranians frequently lock horns over pricing at OPEC meetings.  Typically, however, member nations follow Saudi Arabia’s lead, which produces most of the group’s oil.  This time the Saudi-Iranian rivalry resulted in a deadlock.  The International Energy Agency (IEA) had urged oil producers to put more crude on the market.  “Ongoing supply disruptions, as well as the fragile state of the global economy, call for a prompt increase in supply,” the agency said.  Iran, the second largest OPEC member after Saudi Arabia, is the leading price “hawk,” favoring expensive oil.  Saudi Arabia has consistently acted to moderate prices.

“Looking to the remainder of this year, the expected supply/demand balance indicates a tightening market,” OPEC’s report said. “As a result, global inventories could continue to decline as the market enters a period of high seasonal demand.”  OPEC’s member nations include Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela.

According to the IEA, demand for OPEC crude will average 29.95 million bpd (barrels per day)  in the 2nd half of 2011, or 1.2 million bpd more than April production of 28.75 million bpd.  Analysts said OPEC’s report had minimal impact on oil prices and a bigger focus would be the IEA’s latest forecasts.  “It’s absolutely market neutral,” said Olivier Jakob of Petromatrix.  “What’s going to matter more is the IEA report when we will be able to see if there are any more changes.”  OPEC’s May oil output rose by approximately 171,000 bpd to 28.97 million bpd as extra supplies from Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Iraq offset declining production from Libya.  The report said Saudi output totaled 8.86 million bpd in May.  Saudi newspaper al-Hayat reported that Riyadh would boost supplies to 10 million bpd in July and oil traders said the kingdom was offering more to Asian customers, because they are driving the increase in global demand.  The world is expected to use 1.38 million bpd of oil more this year than in 2010, OPEC’s report said.

OPEC’s daily production is bound by quotas of 26.32 million bpd in May of 2011, according to the group’s monthly report.  That’s an increase from 26.17 million bpd in April, OPEC said.  Saudi Arabian output climbed to 8.86 million bpd in May, compared with 8.8 million in April.  OPEC’s total supply, including Iraq, was 28.97 million bpd May compared with 28.8 million the previous month.  Libyan supplies fell to 169,000 bpd in May as the conflict between forces loyal to Muammar Qaddafi and anti- government rebels halted output.  That compares with an average 1.56 million last year.  OPEC, which provides approximately 40 percent of the world’s crude oil, announced its biggest-ever supply cuts in late 2008 when the financial crisis caused a collapse in global demand.  The decision capped production at 24.845 million bpd for all members except Iraq, which is exempt from the quota system.

“Now we are unhappy that we did not reach a decision but this is not the end of the world,” al-Badri said.”It was not political, it was really an economic situation.  Of course, for the past six years we have enjoyed a very relaxed atmosphere, now we have some tension.  I hope we will overcome it.”

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Bernanke Press Conferences Shedding Light on the Fed’s Inner Workings

Monday, May 9th, 2011

Ben Bernanke’s first-ever press conference is important because the unprecedented move gives the world a look at the inner workings of the often arcane Federal Reserve.  As a general rule, the Fed’s chairman avoids press conferences.  Typically they issue statements that are worded with extreme care.  Since the economic meltdown, however, the Fed’s increased role in crafting the nation’s fiscal policy has been under the microscope.  As a result Bernanke decided to start holding press conferences every few months “to further enhance the clarity and timeliness of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy communication”

Veteran Fed watchers say Bernanke will avoid make any unexpected observations about the economy.  The Fed almost certainly won’t raise interest rates or change the course of the Quantitative Easing 2 (QE2) program to boost economic recovery.  What makes the event important is that it is a new chapter in the history of U.S. central banking, one that brings transparency that allows the Federal Reserve to make its case for monetary policy directly to the American people.  The press conference, “whose ostensible purpose is to add more transparency regarding Fed policy, is really designed to help repair its image with the general public, a process that began when Bernanke first appeared on ’60 Minutes,’” writes Bernie Baumohl, chief economist at The Economic Outlook Group.  “The press conference serves multiple purposes.  It helps explain the Fed’s role in the economy, improves public trust in the central bank, and can be used discreetly as a platform to place more pressure on Congress to reduce the swelling budget deficits.”  During the financial crisis, some criticized the Federal Reserve’s role in the economy, with conservative Tea Party movement members calling for a dissolution of the Fed or a Congressionally-mandated opening up of the once-secretive central bank.  The press conference is intended to silence the critics by providing certain details that were previously denied.

The Fed is notoriously tight lipped.  Until 1994, the Fed never notified’ the public of policy changes, leaving an army of Wall Street “Fed watchers” to figure them out for themselves. The Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) did not release statements on a regular basis until 1999.  The majority of Fed chairmen have shied away from the cameras.  Now, Bernanke is welcoming them.  Although Bernanke excels at not saying anything newsworthy, the timing of the first press conference comes at a particularly sensitive time: shortly before the end of the controversial QE2 monetary policy program, and during an argument over inflation.  Bernanke and other FOMC members, such as Fed Vice Chairwoman Janet Yellen, argue that inflation remains subdued: Demand is slack, and core inflation below-target.  But not everyone shares that view. More hawkish Fed officials, such as Thomas Hoenig of the Kansas City Fed, have pointed to frothiness in oil, food, and commodities markets to make loud calls for tightening.

Writing in the Atlanta Journal Constitution Washington Insider columnist Jamie DuPree says that “Ben Bernanke starts what will be the first of four annual news conferences about the work of the Fed.  The job of Fed Chairman has always been a little mysterious, feeding a variety of conspiracy theories about its work and ties to other groups like the Trilateral Commission and more.  The news conferences will take place four times a year, after the Fed meets for its quarterly policy-making meeting, where announcements are made on interest rates and economic policy.  Bernanke is no stranger to the limelight, as he testifies regularly on Capitol Hill, taking questions from lawmakers.  But Fed Chairs usually don’t do press conferences – and you don’t have to have much of an imagination to wonder if there could be some odd questions thrown his way.  In fact, Fed Chairs often don’t do interviews either, making his twice-per-year testimony before the Congress a big story to cover.  Because the insight of the Fed Chairman is so important to the markets, the Federal Reserve does not want the testimony leaked early, for fear that someone could use it to manipulate trading in some way.”

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Signs of Confidence Sprouting in the Construction Industry

Tuesday, April 12th, 2011

The recent construction industry mantra of “Wait until next year” may be coming to fruition in 2011, according to a recent survey conducted by ENR.  The 1st quarter of 2011 Construction Industry Confidence Index (CICI) survey soared to 51 on a scale of 100, a significant increase from the 43 percent reported in the 4th quarter of 2010.  The rise marks the first time the CICI has risen above 50 since March of 2009 and provides hints of a market that is stabilizing.  The survey of 679 construction and design executives suggests that the market has hit bottom and should improve throughout the year.

The uptick in market confidence is in step with the most recent CONFIN-DEX survey conducted by the Construction Financial Management Association.  This survey of contractors, general contractors and civil contractors spiked to 131 from 117 on a scale of 200, said Mike Verbanic, the organization’s director of marketing.  The most encouraging statistic is the increase that measures current business conditions, which rose to 145 from 129, again on a scale of 200.  “What makes these indices doubly reassuring is that our members are not wild gamblers, so their responses are measured and based on conditions they see,” according to Verbanic.  CFMA’s survey found some bad news in the financial conditions index, which rose to 116 from 105.  “These indices show that CFMA members expect demand to increase, but that credit and project financing may lag,” said Anirban Basu, CEO of Sage Policy Group, Inc., an economic consulting firm.

Although relatively few survey respondents plan to start office construction projects anytime soon, the strongest sectors are hospitals and healthcare facilities; distribution centers and warehouses; multi-family residential; retail; hotels and hospitality; and entertainment.  Fully 27.6 percent of respondents said client access to credit is an ongoing problem, while 51.8 percent said that access to credit is easier now than just a few months ago.  An additional 20.7 percent believe that access to credit is easing.

Construction companies are concerned about the price of materials.  A significant 80.3 percent of respondents said they are experiencing pressure on the cost of materials and equipment.  The cost of steel, copper and gas were mentioned most often.  According to Basu, the Producer Price Index has shown substantial price pressure recently.  “The dollar has been softening recently and there is evidence that commodity speculators have become more active in the metals markets,” he said.

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The Fed’s 2010 Profit? A Cool $81.7 Billion

Tuesday, April 5th, 2011

The Federal Reserve made some serious money in 2010. The central bank’s profit soared to $81.7 billion, a record high, primarily from growing interest earnings on federal agency and government-sponsored enterprise mortgage-backed securities.  The Fed’s balance sheet — which also can be monitored monthly — ballooned to $2.43 trillion, up $193 billion from 2009, as holdings of the Treasury Department and mortgage-backed securities increased. The Fed gave back $79 billion to Treasury in last year, an 68 percent increase over $47 billion the Fed returned in 2009.  The Fed’s previous record high earnings was $53.4 billion.

In reaction to the financial crisis, the Fed acquired securities whose value had collapsed due to fear and uncertainty in markets.  Additionally, the Fed created emergency lending programs for banks and firms, which further boosted its balance sheet.  The central bank came under attack for taking too many risks with taxpayer money and putting itself in a position to endure losses.  So far the Fed’s crisis-lending programs have earned handsome profits.  The 2010 income rise primarily resulted from $24 billion in interest earnings from the $1.0 trillion mortgage-backed securities and agency bonds it bought to stabilize the housing market.  As of last week, the Fed held a virtually identical quantity of such securities.

The Treasury Department plans to slowly sell its $142 billion portfolio of mortgage-backed securities.  Although there’s no direct implication for Fed policy, the market reaction to the Treasury sale provides valuable input into how the central bank may go about selling its own significantly larger holdings, which analyst expect to take place early in 2012. That’s a significant increase over the $907 billion it held in August 2008, just before the financial crisis.  To help the nation’s economy recover, the Fed has created massive amounts of credit to support the banking system and buy bonds.

Writing in the Christian Science Monitor, Doug French notes that “Amongst the assets Mr. Bernanke and Co. are shepherding include sub-prime mortgage bonds that once belonged to American International Group (AIG).  The Wall Street Journal reports that AIG would like to repurchase these bonds as a part of its attempt to break free from government control through a public stock offering.  ‘Ahead of that, AIG wants to be able to show investors it is putting its cash to work and boosting investment income in its insurance units,’ reports the WSJ’s Serena Ng.  The rub is that AIG is offering 53 cents on the dollar for the mortgage bonds.  Maybe the Fed can do better in the marketplace.”

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Where to Cut: Public Union Benefits or Defense?

Wednesday, March 16th, 2011

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s war on public-sector unions is being brought to the national stage by Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK). Coburn challenged members of Congress following the release of an exhaustive study by the Government Accountability Office that found many overlapping and duplicate programs from education to defense that cost taxpayers billions of dollars each year.  The study found 82 federal programs to improve teacher quality, 47 for job training and employment, as well as hundreds of military clinics that could gain from consolidating administrative, management and clinical functions.

According to Coburn, a physician who some call “Dr. No” in the Senate because he places holds on legislation that he considers to be unconstitutional, “Government employees, although they’re fabulous and they overall do a great job, they produce no net economic benefit in our country.  Matter of fact, they produce a net negative economic benefit.  So if you take the drag off the economy by nonproductive implementation of capital what you’re going to see is that capital is then going to be put to use in something that is productive.  We’re not talking about letting go hundreds and thousands of employees — we’re talking about streamlining things.  Even if it were hundreds of thousands of employees, if we’re not borrowing another $300 billion additional next year because we streamlined some programs, that has some tremendous benefit to the economy as well.”

In particular, Coburn challenges federal job-training programs. “Job training is wasteful.  We put ‘help wanted’ on our government website and we’re getting people who have been through these programs who say they are a total joke and a total waste of time.  I want a job-training program that actually trains somebody to do something that they get a job for.  Why should we have 47 different separate job training programs?  Nobody understands them all.  If it’s a federal role — which I question – -then any job-training program ought to be designed so that you can measure its effectiveness.  None of the 47 has any metrics on it to measure effectiveness.”

Senator Coburn’s position could have an impact on his popularity, much as Wisconsin’s Scott Walker’s controversial stance on public-employee unions has lowered his ratings. A Rasmussen poll reveals that almost 60 percent of likely Wisconsin voters now disapprove of their governor’s performance, with 48 percent strongly disapproving.  The poll also finds that the state’s public school teachers are very popular with their fellow Badgers.  With 77 percent of those polled holding a high opinion of their educators, it is not particularly surprising that only 32 percent among households with children in the public school system approve of the governor’s performance.

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“The Terminator” Wants to Create Green Solutions

Tuesday, March 15th, 2011

Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently called for the end of false debate over climate science, saying that we should not assume that China will create green technologies that Americans can adopt and to admit that global warming will impact the globe in coming years. In a speech at the APRA-E Energy Innovation Summit in Washington, D.C.,  Schwarzenegger said that changing to a green economy, fixing the environment and ending the political stalemate over carbon legislation are well within the power of today’s technology.

“We want a new era of energy independence, a new era of green technology and green jobs, a new era of better health from a cleaner environment, and a new era of American inventiveness,” Schwarzenegger said.

Schwarzenegger connected the green economy of the future to the current unrest in the Mideast. He said that the overthrow of foreign dictators seemed impossible a month ago but now seems inevitable.  At the same time, he believes that defeatism about the ability of a green revolution to transform America will soon look incongruous.  The former California governor also pointed to the recent volatility in oil prices resulting from upheaval in the Middle Eastern as a clear example of why the United States needs to wean itself off foreign oil.  “Why should a dried-up desert country with a crazy dictator like Libya play havoc with America’s energy future?” Schwarzenegger asked.

Schwarzenegger pointed out that California offers a model for tech companies that can help vitalize the economy and cut greenhouse gases, while helping the country reduce its imports of oil. As governor, he signed a global-warming law that mandates reductions in greenhouse gases; California also has a renewable-energy mandate that has resulted in almost 20 percent of electricity coming from renewable sources.

He lamented the national discussion on clean energy, saying too much of it is stuck in the debate over the science of global warming.  Instead, people should focus on immediate benefits from investing in green technologies, including improved health, economic growth, consumer savings from efficiency, and reduced dependence on foreign oil.

“Think about what it means that in the Central Valley of California, one in six children has to walk around with an inhaler.  I know we can change the debate and win the debate,” he said.  “We can’t talk about global warming, because people can’t relate to that.”  Instead of creating “forward-looking policies” for energy use, elected officials are debating the science of global warming.  “There is a disconnect between what is happening and what is being debated,” Schwarzenegger concluded.

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