OpinionJournal - Taste: Only Moonlight for Vermont

re: Geoffrey Norman: "...The Green Mountain State is seriously green. It is also seriously small. Its population of some 600,000 is about equal to that of Charlotte, N.C. Its signature export is maple syrup. None would mistake it for a player on the world stage. Still, the Vermont Legislature has lately been engaged--to the exclusion of just about all other matters--in a discussion of how it might lead the world in the mortally serious fight against global warming. The president pro tem of the state Senate, Peter Shumlin, was emphatic on this point. "Historically, when we do bold things in Vermont, others follow," Mr. Shumlin was quoted as saying in January. "It is our moral imperative to lead again . . . and if we succeed in being part of the solution, we can help regain America's moral leadership and trust in the eyes of the rest of the world." A charming vision. Millions and millions of people in China and India, waiting on orders from little Vermont before they fall in and march. Las Vegas turning off unnecessary lights to conserve electricity and reduce greenhouse gases because Vermont has shown the way. Movie stars flying coach because they crave approval from the citizens of Bethel, Brattleboro and Bennington..."...