“Perhaps the most distressing characteristic displayed by the pushers of soft energy was the intellectual poverty of their grand designs, their impatient dismissal of all criticism, their arrogant insistence on the infallible orthodoxy of their normative visions.”
“There is little doubt about the origins and the real message of soft energy dogma: the roots are in the muddled revolts of young Americans in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, the goal is a social transformation rather than simply a provision of energy. The latter fact explains the widespread appeal of soft energy sources among zealous would-be reformers of Western ways.”
Vaclav Smil is one of the leading energy scholars of our day. He has, time and again, tried to inject energy reality into energy fantasy. Some of his previous posts at MasterResource (see here) include ‘The Limits of Energy Innovation’: Timeless Insight from Vaclav Smil and the five-part Power Density Primer.…
“I’d like to see a rebirth of the country — go back where there’s equal rights for everybody, as I said, and that people succeed to the extent that they help other people improve their lives. To lead toward a society that maximizes peace, civility, and well-being for everyone.”
A series of posts at MasterResource has examined the views on business/government relations by classical-liberal entrepreneur Charles Koch, who has become a rare voice for government-neutral business relations. These post include:
Charles Koch: An Entrepreneur for Liberty
‘Good Profit’: Charles Koch on Cronyism (Part 2)
Charles Koch on Cronyism (Part 1)
Who is Charles Koch? (A builder of business and critic of political capitalism)
Charles Koch’s most recent thoughts on cronyism have been provided in an interview by the Washington Post’s Jim Tankersley (misleadingly titled “‘I don’t like the idea of capitalism’: Charles Koch, unfiltered.”…
“I know it’s a long shot, but there has to be someone telling the truth and showing a clear vision moving away from capitalism to an eco-socialist future that is just for everyone.”
– Gary Stuard (Green Party). Quoted in Kim McGuire, “Greens Steadfast on Environment.” Houston Chronicle, August 6, 2016, p. A4.
Milton Friedman once said: “One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results.” The uncommonly wise economist also said: “Concentrated power is not rendered harmless by the good intentions of those who create it.”
Let’s assume that the Green Party is made up a fair number of well meaning, non-corrupted (as in ‘crony capitalist’) individuals that really want the common person to have a good life and entrepreneurial opportunities.…