The idea of Neighborhood Solar Energy Cooperatives, as described in The pleasant way to go solar: Neighborhood cooperatives: Scientific American Blog, appeals to my libertarian instinct.

People with similar interests coming together in a private manner “to do something about global warming” by achieving economies of scale when implementing solar power should be a component of any national energy independence and climate change strategy. But what bureaucracy! Not every neighborhood has residents with the means and connections similar to those who live in the Washington DC neighborhood described in the article.

What’s more important? Health care reform that is wildly unpopular and seen as unnecessary by most Americans, or a national energy independence strategy that truly supports a wide range of resources and their development? Why can’t we devote even a fraction of the attention currently being spent on deficit-enlarging, bureaucracy-producing health care reform on true, multiple-solutions enabling energy policy reform?

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