Where I Stand — Brian Greenspun: On the potential of President Clinton’s vision for Las Vegas’ energetic future

Sunday, Nov. 6, 2005 | 7:39 a.m.

Brian Greenspun is editor of the Las Vegas Sun. His column appears on Sunday and on occasion during the week.

When UNLV Chancellor Jim Rogers more than a year ago invited former President Clinton to speak to the Nevada Development Authority -- an invitation that resulted in Clinton's speech at the Bellagio a little more than a week ago -- Jim knew he was setting the stage for a major address to the people who could impact the future of Nevada's economic growth like no other single group.

For in the NDA are the business, civic and social leaders whose mission it is to diversify our economy -- not to change us from who we are but to enable this magnificent tourism engine to continue to grow without the full economic burden that a vibrant community requires.

But even Mr. Rogers could not have foreseen the quality of President Clinton's words and the quantity of his ideas when he made that request. For sure, Jim knew he was bringing to Las Vegas a man well known for his intellectual gravitas and seriousness of purpose, but that isn't always enough.

There has to be on the other side -- in the audience -- a sufficient number of people who will understand the message and be willing to act if they agree. I think that is what Jim saw when he looked out at 1,600 people, on their feet and clapping -- out of respect for the man and appreciation for his message -- when Clinton was done.

His message was not new because we have heard it before for years, even decades. But last week the people who are empowered and who can empower others were gathered together to hear what Southern Nevada can do to lead this nation into a much brighter future while, at the same time, ensuring our state of a proper and responsible leadership position as a world leader in economic development.

Years ago in the movie "The Graduate," Dustin Hoffman was given the one-word answer to his financial future. He, and probably most of the audience in those days didn't have a clue what the man passing the information along was talking about. The word was "plastics."

If art imitates life, which is the way things are supposed to work, it is clear that the plastics evolution in the world has proved to be one of the great industrial developments of the last century. So the guy in the movie was right and everyone who was either in the business before, or right after they heard it on the big screen, has done very well. And the world has benefited from the growth of plastics into every facet of our lives.

Even now, the environmental issues surrounding the disposal and reuse of plastics have created an entirely new industry such that those who are leading the way to making the world environmentally more secure from the "problem with plastics" are also creating jobs and opportunities for people around the world to better their own lives.

I talk about "The Graduate" because there isn't a person I know who saw that movie when it first came out and laughed as I did when the "plastics" scene was shown and who isn't kicking himself that he didn't heed that advice. I know one reason that I didn't pay attention is that while I understood that plastics were important, I didn't have a clue how to act upon what I had heard.

None of us have that excuse or any other excuse not to pay attention to what President Clinton told us last week. His message was equally simple. "Energy."

The cost of traditional energy sources like fuel oil, natural gas and coal are continually going up because of demand/supply issues and geopolitical demands. And the price to our environment is also going up beyond our ability to pay -- the global warming problem is getting worse, not better. The solution is not only at hand but also staring Nevadans in the face. All we need to do is step up to the plate and start swinging.

President Clinton could not have been more clear and more certain in the way he described how Nevadans can lead the world in the development of clean and renewable energy development.

Others are doing it around the globe, but there seems to be a lack of initiative, or drive or an inertial tug against moving in that direction that is keeping our country back and creating an environment in which substantial development of this century's energy independence will happen any place other than the United States.

We can change all that and we can change it right here in Nevada -- right here in Southern Nevada to be exact.

At a time when high-paying jobs are being exported by the trainload to other countries where cheap labor makes us noncompetitive, we have the opportunity to create solar and wind technologies -- and the thousands and tens of thousands of jobs that will come along with that development -- right here and right now.

All we have to do is use that same entrepreneurial spirit and drive that has created the Entertainment Capital of the World in just a few short decades and focus it on making this part of our state the "alternative energy capital of the world."

There are people struggling to create a solar energy plant near Boulder City who are close but still so far away that it will take an act of Congress -- or the Nevada Legislature and local governments -- to make it profitable enough to invest the millions of dollars necessary to show that we can wean ourselves away from expensive and depleting natural resources -- the kind that foul the air and add to the problems of global warming -- and take advantage of that which makes our part of the world so wonderful. Abundant sunshine. Free sunshine.

There are plenty of people willing to pay the expensive upfront costs that wind generation requires so that in the future, as gas and oil prices continue to rise, there will be a cheap and renewable energy source to light up our lives and warm up our homes.

All we need to do is let these people build, not stand in the way of such planet-saving progress because the structures aren't pretty or a few birds will get killed trying to fly through the fans.

Birds are smarter than most humans. They will avoid the wind turbines after a while and find a different flight path into their future. We, it seems, are content to just say no when costs of fuel oil are going up and electricity becomes more expensive than rent in some cases.

The point is that we have sun and wind in unlimited supply in our state. And both are absolutely free. Unlike the cost of oil and gas, which goes up as demand rises and supply decreases, the cost of wind and solar energy goes down as more and more people demand their use. It is the price of technology that is expensive today and that always goes down as demand goes up.

And here's the good part. The tourism industry has to be completely in favor of diversifying our economy this way because our success creates lower operating costs and cleaner air, both key ingredients to a healthy tourism economy.

Not to mention the increased educational emphasis on engineering and science graduates who will be needed to make this energy revolution possible, thereby raising educational standards for all Nevada students. A better educated workforce -- something we have always lacked and continue to underfund in a disgraceful way -- is the key to economic success for everyone.

As my friend Peter Thomas says, and I agree with him on this one, just like President Kennedy's challenge to put a man on the moon spurred an education boom in this country in the 1960s, so too will an environmental challenge for clean air and cheaper energy spark an educational boom in this decade.

And Las Vegas is poised to be the leader in all respects. All we need to do is listen to President Clinton's road map to our own success and then listen to our own hearts and our desires. The rest, just like it did in the 1960s, will take care of itself.

Bill Clinton sees Las Vegas as a world leader in solar and wind energy. He sees our high schools and universities turning out scientists, environmentalists and engineers able to help the entire world change course from energy dependence to an independence that will free us for a century of unprecedented growth and prosperity.

He sees our people, all of them, prospering greatly because of our commitment to do whatever it takes and the entrepreneurial spirit to take us there.

That's what the former president of the United States sees for Las Vegas.

What do we see for ourselves?

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