A Free-Market Energy Blog

Judith Curry as ‘Climate Heretic’ (Remembering the debate in 2010)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- February 2, 2021

“Whispered discreetly at conferences or in meeting rooms, these claims [against mainstream climate science] might be accepted as part of the frequently contentious process of a still evolving area of science. Stated publicly on some of the same Web sites that broke the so-called Climategate e-mails last fall, they are considered by many to be a betrayal, earning Curry epithets from her colleagues ranging from ‘naive’ to ‘bizarre’ to ‘nasty’ to worse.”

– “Climate heretic: Judith Curry Turns on her Colleagues,” Scientific American (reprinted in Nature), 2010.

The Climategate saga in 2009 (see here and here) opened the door to uncertainty and dissent regarding the ‘settled science’ view of carbon dioxide (CO2) and climate alarmism. The next year, Scientific American (October 25, 2010) published a piece by Michael Lemonick, then senior science writer at Climate Central, on respected scientist Judith Curry on the agenda-driven turn of climate science.…

Continue Reading

Environmental Activism as Carbon Imperialism: Nightmare for the Poor

By Vijay Jayaraj -- February 1, 2021

“One of the chief hurdles is bringing reliable, affordable electricity to all the people of India. Uninterrupted electricity is still a luxury that few Indians enjoy.”

Environmental activism can delay or even stop development projects in developing countries. Not all of it is wrong, but more and more of it is, especially concerning hydrocarbon-based power plants in developing (and developed) countries.

I live in India. With a population of 1.3 billion, nearly 300 million live in poverty, excruciating poverty compared to Western living standards.

India is in a race against time to achieve economic progress. In the past three decades its economy has grown by leaps and bounds, lifting hundreds of millions out of poverty. Yet it has a long way to go before it can become like nations in the developed West.…

Continue Reading

Climate Alarmism Reconsidered (2003 insight for Biden’s ‘climate day’)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 28, 2021

“A reliable worldview, respect for data, and humility in the face of the unknown allow older writings to have longevity and relevance. I believe that the above summary has held up well as the climate debate enters its fourth decade. I predict that fossil fuels will outlive and overcome the current attack just as was done back in the 1970s.”

In 2003, I published a booklet for the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) in London, Climate Alarmism Reconsidered. Written 15 years after James Hansen’s climate-scare testimony, and 16 years before Joe Biden’s ‘climate day‘ yesterday, I present the summary bullets of that study.

The ten points follow:

• The energy sustainability issues of resource depletion, reliability (security) and pollution have been effectively addressed by market entrepreneurship, technology, and, in the absence of private property rights, measured regulation.

Continue Reading

Texas Solar Tax Abatement: Will the Texas Gravy Train Slow?

By -- January 27, 2021
Continue Reading

Back to Gerald Ford? (Thomas Friedman on energy policy in 2007)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 26, 2021
Continue Reading

Market Failure and the Rule of Capture

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 25, 2021
Continue Reading

The Fundamental Weakness of Renewable Energy Sources

By Jon Boone --
Continue Reading

Andrew Dessler Latest Tweets (inside the mind of an angry climate alarmist)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 24, 2021
Continue Reading

Wind Power’s PTC: Chapter 14 (13th extension)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 21, 2021
Continue Reading

Trump Administration Accomplishments (Part II: ‘Massive Deregulation’)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 20, 2021
Continue Reading