What will it take to get renewable energy past the politics?

Question

It took a lawsuit settlement between the US government and IBM to get the PC/Unix revolution going.  It took a lawsuit between AT&T and the Government to get the telco revolution going.  Will it take a lawsuit against the fossil fuel industry to get the renewable industry moving at a faster pace?

Trudi Schifter · Accepted Answer

Lawsuits as impetus for change
Hi Mike,
It did not take a lawsuit to develop trains, or planes, or the auto, or semiconductors, in principal I do not think the answer is yes to your question. First because oil is different it is not a renewable resource that can not be produced as are computers and phone lines.  I worked for GE for 13 years in the 80s mostly. They and many large companies have huge investments in renewable technologies. 
The issue in my view is change of short term to long term investment. A significant move away from an oil based economy is complex, will take time, and more investment than all our expenses in defense. This is a change that requires bold leadership from bottom and top. Lets look for the leaders in our society who have the long term vision and where-with-all. Bill Liao at weforest is one. ; - ) have another?

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