You Can’t Nationalize Carbon Costs

Whether you’re in the carbon credit market or the car or you’re simply looking for ways to generate revenue, it’s not a good idea to think of a carbon tax as a solution, even though some Canadians think it might be the only way to go.

Why?

It’s morally absurd to nationalize (or localize) carbon costs when the local government might be hosting the producers of carbon, but they’re not reaping all of the benefits.

Allow me to explain …

Say you’re a big country with a whole pile of natural resources.  Let’s remind everyone that very few of these natural resources are actually currently owned by the people of that country.

And let’s say that in order to produce, export and consume those products, people already pay an excise tax that is designed to simply extract cash from the pockets of those people to pay for things that they may or may not want, like crappy jets and useless prisons.

And let’s finally agree that the corporations that extract these resources are already getting a free ride because they pay a minimal amount of royalties, all of which are deductible against absurdly low corporate income taxes, most of which are negative because of the vast array of ridiculous writeoffs that we create for these welfare slobs.

And now … we introduce a carbon tax on the people that might use the carbon-based products that non-Canadian companies overcharge us for.

What an insult.

It’s time we got the formula straight.

I will pay carbon taxes when I know that the companies like Shell, BP and Exxon pay a flat tax to the people of Canada for the privilege of extracting our resources.

Until then, adding another tax to Canadian citizens is just another insult to our pocket books and will do nothing – I repeat nothing – to solve the environmental tragedy known as the Tar Sands.