October 20, 2007 (LPAC)--After an introductory speech by Al Gore announced the "end of the world atmosphere," French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced last Thursday, Oct. 25, an all-encompassing green revolution, including ideological, financial, and economic measures.

Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, Al Gore, and Nicolas Sarkozy laid out their policy for France at a ceremony involving practically all French ministers, environmental associations, and the leaders of main trade unions and business associations. It is a massive orientation towards the creation of a green economic driver, complete with a financial bubble. The result of months of preparatory work, organized by the Environment and Transport Ministry, but involving several other ministries, the entire drawn-out process was referred to here as the Grenelle, a direct reference to negotiations at the center of the 1968 ("68-er") Paris strikes.

Among the ideological measures: special labels for carbon-free products; a carbon tax on all carbon-heavy products will be studied and could evolve into a complete rewriting of the entire tax code; and in the future, all public projects will be adopted on the basis of their "carbon compatibility." On the financial side, both Jose Manuel Barroso, who was the first speaker, and Nicolas Sarkozy, pleaded in favor of the development of the European integrated financial market on carbon "rights to pollute."

On the economic side, the green revolution will pave the way to "massive" investment projects. 400,000 old housing units will be renovated each year and brought up to modern energy-savings standards. First in line will be 800,000 public housing units which are badly in need.

An actually very beneficial transportation program, intends to replace 3 million trucks on the French highways between 2012 and 2020 by, 1) creation of 2000 km of new high-speed train lines (TGV), with the old lines being oriented towards cargo transport, and, 2) the creation of an integrated network of rivers to be used for cargo transport, and development of seaports, so that goods will come into France via its ports, and not through trucks.

Where the money will come for such "massive" projects, as Sarkozy presented them, will only be announced early 2008, when the full program is adopted.

Among the disastrous elements of the project, Sarkozy committed himself not to build any new nuclear power stations in France, and guaranteed that for every euro spent on nuclear energy, another euro will be spent in the development of “renewable energy.”