It doesn't come down to polar bears, it comes down to cost – and
while the cost of acting is steep, the cost of inaction appears
to be steeper, experts say. AP Photo/The Daily Tribune News,
Dayton P. Strickland/FILE For those who think the battle over US
carbon emissions legislation is already in full swing, this past
week was a reminder that it's just beginning. The central
debating point: the numbers. How much will it cost American
taxpayers to curb US carbon-dioxide emissions? Or, conversely,
how much would it cost to just drop the blinds, turn up the air
conditioner, and not do much at all? The answer to the question
of economic impact - far more than the issue of polar-bear
survival - will determine the outcome of the climate bill
battle, political observers say. On May 20, government witnesses
told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee how much
the leading climate change legislation - the Lieberman-Warner
bill (also known as "America's Climate Security Act") - is
likely to cost the US econom