'Green Stimulus' Gets $100 Billion Jolt

A short-term booster shot for the economy? Or a complete rethinking of the way businesses and individuals consume energy? Those are the crucial questions as Congress debates the more than $100 billion in initiatives that are currently part of the nearly $900 billion stimulus package. As it stands, the bill would use tax cuts and government spending for a wide range of projects — everything from building wind farms to helping you replace your energy-hogging refrigerator. Some critics say the spending will take too long to really kick in, and that the government is making decisions better made by the free market. Others say it doesn't go far enough: If the country is serious about oil independence, it's got to spend more to develop alternatives.