July 7, 2009. One side says green subsidies will create jobs, and the other side says the cost of those subsidies will destroy jobs. Both sides see half the picture—the half they want to see. If the government taxes us and subsidizes corn ethanol in Iowa, that will create jobs in Iowa. But the rest of the country has less money to spend, so businesses all over the country suffer just a little. Here and there a business will have to lay someone off. On balance no jobs are created.

Worse still, the federal reserve manages unemployment, so no other policies can change the unemployment level except temporarily. But in a recession, when unemployment is high, the government can help the Fed reduce unemployment by creating green jobs. Again the effect is temporary, but especially in the Great Recession—that's now—this effect can be important.

1. In normal times, green jobs just crowd out other jobs, with no net gain.

2. One state can sometime create jobs and cause a loss of jobs in other states.

3. In a recession, green jobs can be additional jobs—till the recession ends.

If a green jobs program trains people who would otherwise be unemployed, then in effect, it creates more workers and the economy will expand to accommodate them. In this case green jobs can permanently increase the number of jobs and reduce long-run unemployment.

January 21, 2009.  Green Collar Economy, by Van Jones, claims green jobs are all we need. Just cap carbon and sell $350 billion of permits each year. Use the proceeds to do every green/organic program ever heard of, and voila! The economy's fixed.

Coming from John Podesta's shop, that's scary. Podesta is head of Obama's transition team. Luckily, Obama's not buying it. He's more inclined to insulating older buildings. That creates a lot of jobs and saves more energy dollars than it costs.

The key to success is choosing wisely. That's not easy, and Jones doesn't even try. He also doesn't realize that cap and trade is the worst tax for the poor.