John Cowsill is a socialist and environmental activist. He lives in Islington, London. After a 20 year career as a systems analyst and programmer, he changed tack and gained an MSc in Architecture: Advanced Energy and Environmental Studies at the University of East London and the Graduate School of the Environment in Wales. He was the principal researcher on storage and Vehicle-to-Grid technology for the ZeroCarbonBritain (2007) report.Cowsill in this article is writing about some irrationalities that have been showing up in the UK over energy used to supply their National Grid. Lately it appears that they have had an oversupply of energy which ruling class authorities have dealt with by shutting now renewable energy sources. They provided cover for this irrational action by claiming the shutdowns were for many phony reasons. Cowsill has spotted the real reason.
Under capitalist rules private enterprises exist to make a profit, and cheaper renewable energy is adversely affecting the profits of energy corporations. With capitalists in control of societies, they are dictating policies like this which from a social system point of view are irrational, but rational from a capitalist point of view.
Unmentioned by the author, there is another reason for the shutdown of renewable energy resources. The current oversupply must be seen as only a temporary phenomenon given the growth-imperative of capitalism. Hence, the future demands for energy can only increase and such demands cannot be met by renewable energy resources. Thus, they must continue to develop fossil energy resources to keep their system going, a system what supplies these addicts with their drugs of power and wealth. They are finding that new fossil fuel sources are becoming ever more expensive; thus energy companies require huge investments which must be recouped through profits. They can't tolerate having cheaper renewable energy competing with them.
And, worst of all, they are so drugged-out that they refuse to seriously look at the reality of climate destabilization, much less the likelihood of nuclear wars between capitalist gangs to gain control of diminishing fossil fuels sources.