Corn ethanol = Boondoggle

If you want to know why our ethanol production is a mess and there is little hope of getting better in the near term, blame corn. Here is why. (free subscription required*)

A fascinating article on how corn ethanol in this country is a horrendous idea because it does little good for the environment and can have a dramatic effect on our economy unless we move to a different source. As odd as it seemed at the time, President Bush was actually correct in his 2006 State of the Union address -- switch grass may just be our solution in this country. As an added bonus is that the cultivating of high-diversity indigenous prairie plant mixtures may keep away GM plant designers and hopefully ag subsidies (there isn't a prairie grass lobby yet, is there?), not to mention the itty-bitty carbon footprint that would be left.

We need to let the sun set on our singular dependence on corn for everything we need. It just isn't up to some of the tasks we try to force it to do no matter how much we manipulate it or the enzymes used to convert it into other substances. The renewable energy source we keep looking for has been here since the native Americans roamed the prairies. No foreign plants, genetic modifications, pesticides, or subsides needed.


*The Post really needs to catch up to what is going on in web news.