Is Coal bad because of real pollution or because of CO2...?

More people have been killed (or had their life shortened because of lung disease) by coal than by nuclear. It's not even a contest, even if you include Chernobyl. Nuclear has a negative image, but coal is even worse. Even with the scrubbers, the mercury is still released. Don't forget to take into account mining and mining deaths as well.

People complain about the war in Iraq, but more people are killed by automobile accidents than the war. Why isn't the media demonizing cars and highways the way they do the war?

Well coal falls into this category as well. Somehow it escapes critical scrutiny, at least, as compared to nuclear. The pellets they use for nuclear are clean, and in fact, can be held in your had before they are used. It's only after they are used that they are dangerous.

We need to do something, just not sure what. Don't get me wrong, I don't believe cap and trade is the right solution, unless they give nuclear power plants the right to trade (credits). It's only fair because there is no CO2 emitted by an operating nuclear power plant. But I'm still against cap and trade because it infringes on freedom for the wrong reasons.

It's funny, because even thought I believe global warming to be a big time hoax concocted simply so that the political class can tax us all (regressive tax because energy prices will be much higher), it will turn out that cap and trade will indeed reduce coal use, but not by much. 

I don't believe the means to an end is justified. It is not justified placing a regressive tax on us all, simply to achieve my goal of less coal, even if it reduces mercury and SO2. If the politicians were to admit that it is REAL pollution that will be reduced by cap and trade, then I'd back the plan. But they don't admit that. This is a big lie from the politicians. They really are looking for a new revenue stream. They say it is to reduce CO2, which is not in any way a pollutant. And in fact global temperatures have been falling in the last decade, after the raised for the decade of the 90's. The scientists simply have not proven a link from man's emissions of CO2 to global temperatures. Period.