SO HOW'S THAT MAGIC OF THE MARKETPLACE THING WORKIN' OUT FOR YA AMERICA?

"The energy market is not like most other markets. Indeed, 

the economics of alternative energy are such that private 

investors, left to their own devices, are bound to underinvest 

in it, since the considerable social benefits - cleaner air, fewer 

greenhouse emissions - accrue to EVERYONE, not just to 

direct customers. That means that the economic rate of 

return is significantly less than the social rate of return. 

Despite the immense size of the energy market, as of 2005 

spending on energy R&D accounted for just 2% of total 

spending on R&D in the U.S. This creates an opportunity for 

the government to add value by investing smartly, just as it 

can add value by spending money on education or 

infrastructure, other areas where the social returns are 

greater than the economic ones " - James Surowiecki, 

Columnist for the New Yorker Magazine's Financial Page