Math Wizards: Kerry & Boxer Do Cap & Trade

According to the Energy Information Administration, the U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005 were as follows:

• 6,008.6 million metric tons of CO2
• 26.6 million metric tons of methane
• 1.2 million metric tons of nitrous oxide

And according to the Senate bill just released today (Senators Kerry's and Boxer's Cap and Trade bill) on page 11, lines 9 through 21 mandates the following;

• 97% of those amounts by 2012
• 80% of those amounts by 2020
• 58% of those amounts by 2030
• 17% of those amounts by 2050

Sounds scary already. Oh, but it gets better!  The U.S. population, according to the census bureau figures and projections, goes something like this;

• 2005 - 295,560,549
• 2012 - 335,805,000
• 2020 - 363,584,000
• 2030 - 341,946,000
• 2050 - 419,854,000

Here's the quick math on this (scroll across for more years):

An 88% reduction per person in 41 years. A 30% reduction per person in 11 years. Without looking any further I have to ask - is it possible to cut it by the amounts in the box above? It doesn't seem like it. The bill the math wizards Kerry and Boxer have proposed seems to have set itself up for failure.

Which of course is an enabling factor for them to want to tax more because the U.S. isn't reaching it's targets. The vicious cycle is destined to continue. I so don't want to take the eye off the ball on health care, but this is just stupidity waiting to become law. Where did they derive these numbers from? Did they factor in population growth? Apparently not.

Okay, before I have a stroke, deep breaths...