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One of the biggest jokes of "renewable energy" is ethanol.  Many studies show it requires more energy to create ethanol than the energy produced by it.  Henceforth you are actually using just as much gasoline when using ethanol, as it must be processed, refined, and shipped. The oil blowout in the Gulf of Mexico, is giving the ethanol industry an opportunity to expand.

Quoting from Matt Hartwig (Communications Director for the Renewable Fuels Association)

The Gulf of Mexico disaster serves as a stark and unfortunate reminder of the need for domestically-produced renewable bio-fuels.

Subsidizes are inefficient.  It goes against the free market and interferes with the principles of supply and demand.  If there were no subsidy,  the commercial production of ethanol would be non-existent.  That's because it doesn't make sense for the free market to produce ethanol.  Without subsidy, it would cost more, and it's less efficient than gasoline.  Your gas mileage also decreases with ethanol. Way pay more to get less?  Doesn't make sense, but we as tax payers are forced to make this happen.

Right now the maximum blend rate of ethanol in gasoline is 10%, but a new proposed bill will likely let the blend rate rise to 15%, despite the fact that only 7.5 million vehicles out of 250 million are designed for 10% or less ethanol.  A percentage above 10% can be the cause of catastrophic problems with vehicles, or any other machine require gas.  More ethanol also equates to more nitrogen oxide produced in emissions. 

Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Supplemental Reading

1. The Ethanol Trap [Slate]
2. Biofules: GM, New Sources Buoy Prospects [Farm Chemicals International]