Kathleen Hartnett White: Energy and Climate Insight (Part II)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- March 19, 2018 1 Comment

[Editor Note: This continues our series on Kathleen Harnett White, distinguished senior fellow and director, Armstrong Center for Energy and the Environment (Texas Public Policy Foundation). White’s nomination to head the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) was recently withdrawn due to extreme opposition from climate activists and allied politicians (see Part I of this series). Part III tomorrow will review White’s views on energy consumerism, a major part of the ‘social justice’ movement.]

“A grasp of a few hard facts, a little arithmetic, and some basic physics are necessary to avoid calamitous blunders in energy policy.”

“Public discourse about global warming and climate policies ignores fundamental physical realities about energy and overlooks the profound benefits of carbon-rich energy.”

– Stephen Moore and Kathleen Hartnett White, Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy (Washington, DC: Regnery, 2016).

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More Tributes in the Energy and Climate Debate (Part II)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 11, 2018 2 Comments

Last week, I recognized twelve individuals associated with free-market, classical-liberal energy analysis and advocacy. Here is a second “tribute” to those who have labored against the mainstream of Malthusianism and energy statism–and now find themselves with new opportunities to formulate, summarize, and promote pro-consumer, taxpayer-neutral energy policy.

This list is in alphabetical order. It is subjective and hardly exhaustive. Other candidates (such as the present writer) could also be included–and could be in a future iteration.

ROBERT BRYCE is a force for energy realism. His highly readable, well researched books (three on energy, two on energy-related cronyism) are joined by highly effective opinion-page editorials in leading publications, such as the Wall Street Journal. A convert to the free-market beginning with his third book (from a politically correct all-of-the-above energy view), Bryce has  reached progressive audiences with a message that renewable energies are quite imperfect substitutes for dense mineral energies.…

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Nixon Price Controls and Exiting Paris: A Bad Analogy (enslaved vs. freed energy)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- June 13, 2017 1 Comment

“Until last week, Richard Nixon was responsible for the two worst-conceived American energy policies. On June 1, Donald Trump’s announcement of U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accords displaced all competitors as the worst presidential initiative on energy in our nation’s history.”

– Hakes, “Quitting the Paris Climate Pact in Historical Perspective” (June 6, 2017)

“Historian Hakes got it exactly backwards. President Nixon violated economic law by imposing federal pricing on energy; President Trump removed an impetus to federal pricing for carbon-dioxide (CO2). Only if Trump had stayed in Paris would the Nixon analogy come into play.”

His bio line at Real Clear Energy reads: Jay Hakes is an energy historian who has worked for three presidents on energy issues. Experience aside, Mr. Hakes made just about the worst analogy possible regarding Donald Trump’s courageous decision to withdraw the United States from the redistributionist, toothless, ill-conceived Paris climate agreement.…

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Fossil Fuels: Abundant, Chemically Stable, Energy-dense

By Mark Miller -- October 13, 2016 11 Comments

“Energy fundamentals explain why oil, gas, and coal brought an end to mankind’s renewable energy era. The same fundamentals explain why decreasing the market share of fossil fuels requires so much government intervention at the expense of consumers and taxpayers.”

The use of fossil fuels grew and remained widespread for several reasons. First, they are abundant. Vast amounts of living matter on the earth accumulated over eons of time. This accumulation, combined with the ever-active nature of the earth’s surface, meant that large volumes of ancient bio-matter were captured in the earth’s crust and transformed into fossil fuels.

Secondly, hydrocarbon compounds (those consisting mainly of carbon and hydrogen) are very chemically stable. Though these compounds might change form over long periods of time and under intense pressure and temperature beneath the earth’s surface, chemical stability preserves their inherent structure and subsequent energy content.…

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Primary Energy Consumption (Part II—Electricity Sector)

By Kent Hawkins -- October 13, 2015 4 Comments Continue Reading

Green Energy Plunders the Biosphere

By Viv Forbes -- July 20, 2015 5 Comments Continue Reading

Cornwall Alliance to Pope Francis: Be Realistic for Humanity’s Sake (energy/climate policy in the balance)

By E. Calvin Beisner -- April 28, 2015 2 Comments Continue Reading

AWED Energy & Environmental Newsletter: October 20, 2014

By -- October 20, 2014 1 Comment Continue Reading

“Advanced Energy for Life”: Peabody Energy Puts Coal on High Moral Ground (energy poverty must end, CEO Boyce argues)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- April 29, 2014 5 Comments Continue Reading

‘The Limits of Energy Innovation’: Timeless Insight from Vaclav Smil

By Vaclav Smil -- November 22, 2013 5 Comments Continue Reading