We've heard a lot lately about "green-collar" jobs. Democrats promise to create millions of them -- saving the planet and boosting the economy in one brilliant stroke of good-government activism. Why hasn't anyone thought of this sooner?

We'll refrain from commenting on the sartorial nightmare suggested by a buzz phrase that is as silly as it is deceptive. But we cannot resist the chance to expose the economic nonsense that surrounds the green-collar solution. Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both promise to create high-paying jobs for workers who will battle global warming, pollution, and all manner of environmental ills. Of course, the economy is already doing just that -- and as environmental technology develops, more jobs will be created.

The free-market approach is not, however, what the Democrats have in mind. They will devote additional billions in government money to the creation of green-collar work. Whenever the government takes money from the private sector, it depletes the ability of businesses to create jobs. Any student of the past century knows businesses are much more efficient than the government at creating jobs. More important, businesses tend to hire people for work that meets a need -- as determined by free people functioning in a market economy.

Government, on the other hand, tends to fabricate jobs that keep interest groups and politicians fat and happy. Government-mandated green-collar jobs will surely destroy an even larger number of blueand white-collar positions. Labor is not manufactured out of thin air -- or in this case, hot air. It requires capital.

We recognize the potential threats from climate change -- including the distinct possibility that human activities contribute to warming -- and acknowledge that government must play a role in studying and addressing the problem, along with other environmental challenges. We don't believe global warming is a lie just because Al Gore says it's true. And we don't think the environmental movement harbors a conspiracy to spark a Marxist revival.

But we're tired of all the happy talk -- mostly from the left -- that suggests environmental progress will be easy, painless, and paid for by someone else. Investment, innovation, and technology may be able to ameliorate many environmental challenges. But progress will take time.

We're already seeing the results of another ill-advised government intrusion on the markets in the name of global cleansing. The rush to subsidize ethanol has done nothing to heal the environment or produce "energy independence," another meaningless buzz phrase. But the ethanol fiasco has sparked sharp increases in grain prices around the world and food riots in desperately poor nations.

Ethanol's primary environmental legacies may be increased fertilizer runoff and depleted water tables. Republicans and Democrats deserve equal blame for this rapid-fire failure. The consequences of government-mandated green-collar initiatives could be even more damaging. And -- make no mistake -- you'll be paying the price.