“IER/AEA have thousands of individual donors, reflecting the intellectual case for a free market and the goodness of civil society. This is a proud fact.”
A Mother Jones article from 15 years read: “Meet the 12 loudest members of the chorus claiming that global warming is a joke and that CO2 emissions are actually good for you.” And number 12 of the “dirty dozen” was the educational nonprofit Institute of Energy Research and its advocacy arm, the American Energy Alliance.
IER/AEA would surely make the list today–and be ranked higher. This is a badge of honor. The message of classical liberalism applied to energy remains strong and consistent. Consumers matter. Taxpayers matter. Energy resource efficiency matters. Respect for the energy decisions of voluntarily consenting adults matter.
Here is the piece by Josh Harkinson from December 5, 2009, verbatim, with my critical comments.…
Continue ReadingDenmark’s Marcus Feldthus, with 22,000 followers on social media, some months ago claimed that “Degrowth is breaking into the mainstream” in his post, “Exploring how to align business with the planetary boundaries. Sharing what I learn along the way at Post Growth Guide“. He stated:
… Continue ReadingCovered by: UN, Harvard Business Review, NY Times, Ernst & Young, BBC, and Bloomberg Festival as something to be explored, not ridiculed. Here is a quote from each 👇
Bloomberg Festival: Ted Talk by Gaya Herrington
“Our choice is not whether to keep growing or not. But whether the end of growth is coming by design or disaster. Either we choose limits or have them forced upon us.”
Harvard Business Review: In Defense of Degrowth
“The core of the degrowth argument is the historical fact that economic growth and emissions are inexorably connected (…) To be realistic about the fundamental challenges of growth, we must adjust our cultural assumptions and reconfigure unsustainable business models.”
“Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself.” – Milton Friedman
Even since the Great Texas Blackout of February 2021, I have tried to engage classical liberal scholars with the lost tradition of free market electricity in theory, practice, and public policy. An interesting exchange with economist Steve Postrel on social media some months ago is worth preserving, in this regard.
Postrel is very critical of Lynne Kiesling’s uber-technical optimism with governmental chess pieces (wind, solar, batteries, another story). But he rejects a free market in electricity.
I reproduce the exchange and then offer a critical comment. It began with my reference to my AIER primer: Free Market Electricity.
Postrel to Bradley: I am familiar with the old Primeaux and Demsetz [free market] arguments, but they have little concordance with each other or with the pre-regulation utopia you try to resurrect in your article.…
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