Obama's green energy pet projects are failing because the tech simply isn't there yet

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. How many times must President Obama take the taxpayers money and loan it out to clean energy companies and expect them to succeed? Apparently, the administration has yet to realize that their endeavor into the world of venture capitalism via clean energy is not working.

"Doubling-Down"

During a recent speech in Virginia, Obama announced he will “double down” on his green energy efforts. Let’s look at this through the perspective of another analogy. Anyone who is in the stock market knows there will be good and bad investments. The key to not losing all of your money is to accept when you are wrong and cut the cord before the loss gets so big that it produces major ramifications. Investors who cannot follow this simple risk management rule will ultimately be the “losers” -- ones who will habitually bleed money in the stock market. This type of losing investor tends to have two words come out of their mouth when they have an investment go against them: "Double down!"

This same analogy works for gambling addicts as well.

So why do people suffering a severe losing-streak not admit they are wrong? Well, the answer lies in the question – they will not admit they were wrong. Many times, this is due to ego and a lack of education on the subject matter at hand. Bearing this fact in mind, it seems Obama has an enormous ego and clearly does not know the first thing about clean energy. If he did, U.S. taxpayers would not be losing money on his pet projects.

Solar Trust for America

The latest gaffe in the push for clean energy by the current administration can be found in Solar Trust for America, a company that received $2.1 billion in conditional loan guarantees from the Department of Energy to build a solar energy project near Blythe, CA. It would have been the largest solar power plant in the world and the $2.1 billion loan is the largest amount ever offered to a solar company.

The bad news is that the company filed for bankruptcy protection. The good news is that the company filed for bankruptcy protection before $2.1 billion of taxpayer money could be wasted on another solar project that flops. Add Solar Trust for America to the list that includes disgraced solar company Solyndra, which cost taxpayers $500 million.

Let the Free Markets Decide

If the solar industry was a viable energy option today, or in the near future, there would be billions of dollars flowing into the sector via venture capital firms not named the U.S. government. There are many bright and wealthy privately run firms throughout the world that are poised 24/7 to invest in new technology that will make them money. Apparently, most do not view solar energy as lucrative, otherwise we would see capital flow into new ventures such as the Solar Trust for America, rather than see its bankruptcy filing.

If you still do not believe the numbers, simply look at the Guggenheim Solar ETF (TAN), which is a basket of solar power-related companies traded around the globe. The fund is down 75 percent in the last two years. This is a clear indication that smart money does not believe in the future of solar power in the current state.

Scientific and engineering experts believe this is because the technology and the physics to produce a commercially viable, solar-powered alternative to oil is simply "not there yet."

Seek Help!

What Obama needs now is help. Clearly, an intervention is the next logical step in steering the president back on the wagon and away from throwing our money at the sun and his pet solar projects. Just look at Germany -- it realizes what the president does not. The world’s biggest market for solar energy is cutting their subsidies for solar companies by up to 29 percent. Let’s call Chancellor Angela Merkel and get her in on the intervention.