Quite so. The Incredible Shrinking Carbon Tax has acquired a new superpower, it seems -- as well as being the only tax in history which causes no harm to anyone, it can now morph on a daily basis into providing whatever social benefits the Gillard Government thinks will best appease that day's crop of discontented voters. But the one thing we haven't seen is a numerical assessment of the effect that Australia's carbon tax will have on the alleged villain of the piece, anthropogenic rises in CO2. Is it because Labor's calculators can't display that many zeroes after the decimal place?

I was under the apparently mistaken impression that the whole aim of the exercise was to reduce the amount of CO2 being added to the atmosphere. It seems to have been lost on the commentariat that a large percentage of the energy use is by the population at large, whether it be in the home, at work, or on the road or during recreation. Any tax should reflect this, and the idea of compensating people is a complete nonsense. The so called big polluters such as the power generators are only producing pollution to satisfy the rest of the population. The money raised from the taxes should be going to them to allow them to be more efficient in converting coal or oil or gas into power. It could also be used to build more hydro stations and other forms of alternate energy, particularly those producing base load power as well as thorium powered reactors.

We all have to wear some pain if there is going to be any significant result.

David

Juliar and Wayne Swan haven't seen a tax they didn't like.

This gives them another chance for social engineering.

Oh dear here we go again. the sky is going to fall in, the Australian people will not be able to cope with this new arrangement, oh no we are all going to die because of this tax.

I'll tell you what I have much greater faith in Australians to make the most of this new Tax. Here is what I’m going to do. I will take the compo and I will change my power supplier to a green one that doesn't get carbon tax. I will be in front. I'm sure many other Australians will do this as well.

High carbon emitters are paying think tanks to push their case not the national interest. The Author should hang his head. I wonder what the CIS position was on smoking or Asbestos.

Kenny: "Here is what I’m going to do. I will take the compo and I will change my power supplier to a green one that doesn't get carbon tax."

You realise of course Kenny that you will be taking solar and wind power - only when (and if) each are available. It is fairly unlikely that there will be any solar power being generated after sundown. And very little wind power on a still day. Which means for much of the time you will be sitting in your cottage without any power at all. Fair enough.

And of course, you will be paying the generator's their cost plus an appropriate profit margin. For solar that will be, what, 60c per kwh? For wind something similar or more?

Go for it Kenny. You reckon that you will be ahead?

Kenny,

'I will take the compo...'

pray tell me how much is the compo and does it apply to you?

Especially since the Government cannot tell us how much it will be, how long it will be applied for and to whom it will apply.

How will you take after it is, according to Red Ross, worked out of the system after a few years?

The tax is lazy and idiotic and it's compo a hazy dream.

You can have my share if you think it so good cos I don't want a bar of it.