By Art Horn, Meteorologist

Barack Obama has let it be known that he will allow the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate carbon Dioxide as a dangerous pollutant if elected president. Last years supreme court ruling makes this possible. The court ruled that the EPA may use the Clear Air Act of 1990 to regulate carbon dioxide as “pollution”. This was of course a terrible ruling. Carbon dioxide is essential for life on earth as we know it. If carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere fall below about 200 parts per million trees stop growing and agriculture grinds to a halt. Carbon dioxide is plant food. If you own a greenhouse and you want your plants to glow faster you pump in three times as much carbon dioxide as exists in the air, up to 1000 parts per million. Something in the air that brings life to the world is not pollution.

Now if Barack is elected and does what he says he will do some interesting things will happen. The EPA will require that every business, every farm, every piece of machinery that produces carbon dioxide will need a permit to do so. The “carbon tax” will supposedly then be used to somehow reduce the effects of all that “pollution” going into the air and fueling “global warming”. In reality we know that government is a bottomless money pit. This revenue will go wherever the environmentalist controlling the new administrations “green” policies want it to go. That could be anywhere as we have seen with Fannie Mae.

If the environmentalists controlling the policies of Barack Obama have their way we could see some really amazing taxes in the future. Since everything producing carbon dioxide must be regulated than it makes sense that you must be as well. As a human you are producing carbon dioxide by breathing. So in this Orwellian future we will be required at birth to have a “breathing permit” as soon as we enter the world. And it won’t stop there. As you get older and your lung capacity grows you will be emitting more carbon dioxide and therefore your tax will have to increase proportionally as you grow older. Let us not forget the other “polluters” like your dog and cat, they are also guilty of polluting so we’ll need to have you pay for their permits as well. If you have a gas powered lawn mower you better be ready to let that grass grow taller, your permit will only allow so many cuts a year. Don’t even think about grilling food, that fine tradition will spill untold amounts of global warming fuel into the air, you’ll need a permit to cook up that steak in Barack’s American future. Taking the boat out for spin? Don’t forget that the coast guard will be checking for your carbon permit. It almost goes without saying that all cars, trucks any vehicle that spews carbon dioxide into the air will need a permit. Will the EPA be able to process all these applications? Of course not, they will need much more staff.

What is the other greenhouse gas that living things like people and pets produce? Methane of course. At some point the EPA will see that it is necessary to regulate this gas as a “dangerous pollutant” as well. In reality this will result in a fart tax. I’m not kidding. Anything and anyone that produces “gas” will have to get a permit from the EPA to do so. Kind of puts a new spin on “gas tax”. If people only knew what they were really voting for.