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by Don Shelby
(WCCO) Talk of the green economy is red hot and a man who grew up in the Twin Cities is helping push the discussion.

New York Times columnist Tom Friedman is getting national attention for what he is saying about energy.

WCCO-TV's Don Shelby sat down with the Pulitzer Prize winner and St. Louis Park, Minn. native to talk about America's move to red, white and green.

Friedman:
When I hear the word energy, I really think of the next great challenge and the next great opportunity for America, because I think what's happened, around this whole energy question in the last couple of years, the best way to understand it, Don, is to stand on your head. Because everything we thought, is now stood on its head.

Energy efficiency, rather than being a cost, is seen as a competitive edge and a source of profit for companies. Energy efficiency, rather than being for sissies, is now geo-strategic and geo-political. Energy efficiency, rather than some hobby for bird watchers or for Birkenstock, you know, types, now is seen as something essential to the future of the planet by defeating and combating global warming.

Shelby:
Alright, we have two conservatives, and there are more, of course, but (Gov. Tim) Pawlenty in Minnesota and (Gov. Arnold) Schwarzenegger in California who've understood that in the term conservative is the word conserve. And they've figured out some things to take action into their own hands.

Friedman:
Well I think what people like Gov. Schwarzenegger and Gov. Pawlenty understand is something I think very important, which is green has gone Main Street. That's the good news, Don, green has gone Main Street, but it hasn't gone very far down Main Street, not in a real way, because green will only go down Main Street when it has Wall Street behind it.

The scale of change that we're talking about, changing the energy infrastructure of this country to make it more green, more clean and efficient, OK. That is a huge industrial project. You can not do that without the market and conservatives are starting to understand that because they want to use the market and far-sighted conservatives are understanding that government though still has a role.

What is government's role?

Set really high targets. Set a cap on emissions. Set a really high goal for energy efficiency in your appliances. Set really tough mileage standards and then say to the market, "May the best man or woman win."

And what's been the impact? Well, let's look at California, even from before hip.

California, for the last 30 years, its per capita use of electricity is flat. Rest of the country, up 50 percent. What's that? People in California don't like electricity? No, because California put in ever-rising efficiency standards for buildings and appliances so the per capita use of electricity in California has stayed flat. And, by the way, what did it do to their economy? Oh my God, people said, the economy will collapse. On a per capita energy use basis, California has among the highest, if not the highest, growing economy in the country. Have a nice day.

Shelby:
How do you respond when you hear people who read your column say, "Friedman's an alarmist?"

Friedman:
Oh, oh that is so true. You better believe I'm an alarmist. When I look at the science, what does the science say? The science says that if we double the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere, that's all the carbon we've launched up there from the pre-industrial age, bad things are going to happen. There are monsters that are lurking behind that door. Now maybe you would like to run an uncontrolled experiment on the only home we have. I'd rather not.

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