California commits hari-kari

California just put a noose around it's neck and jumped off a cliff--Prop 23 failed which means AB32 will go into effect, requiring a 30% reduction in CO2 in 10 years--when we already have relatively clean energy in the state (much is natural gas, little is coal, and nuclear and renewables are sizable.) There's only one place it can come from and that is a slashing of the state's economic activity.

And, in the end, the only reason it will cut global emissions is by making Californians (that is to say: those Californians that are too poor or too stubborn to move) much, much poorer, and thus less able to buy stuff, travel, drive, or, you know, eat.

To a large extent, the decreased economic output of California will not change global CO2 by one ppm. All it will do is encourage relocation to places--like China or Utah (where Adobe, eBay, Oracle and Twitter have all recently moved)--which are less nice when it comes to pollution (not to mention regulations and taxes). Ironically, it might just increase global CO2.