We're Always Out-of-Touch with the Future

As we all know, the future didn't work out the way the magazine writer envisioned...Just a little something to keep in mind the next time we read about the deadly nightmare catastrophe tsunami corral-reef-free devastation that awaits us in 2060.

Financial Times Editorial: A Himalayan gaffe

The amateurishness of the Himalayan claim makes it look more like a blunder than something sinister. But given the IPCC's central role in climate science, it needs to be whiter than white. To restore confidence, it should commission an independent audit. This would look at all the claims in the 2007 report and remove any that were not soundly based. The auditor might also look at the IPCC's decision to report only those findings that fall within a certain consensus. Is it really right to exclude scientifically rigorous but outlying opinions, especially when this hands ammunition to its critics, who accuse it of suppressing dissenting views? Lastly, the IPPC must be smarter in the way it engages with the wider world. Mr Pachauri's handling of the allegations has been lamentable. Considerably more humility in the face of criticism is required.

A Revenue Neutral Cap and Trade System? | The Foundry: Conservative Policy News.

Highlights of the EPA budget include:

Revenue Neutral Cap and Trade: Last year, President Obama’s Budget said a cap and trade system would generate $646 billion in revenue from 2012 to 2019 from higher energy taxes. This year, a footnote in the President’s budget says that cap and trade will be deficit neutral since “proceeds from emissions allowances will be used to compensate vulnerable families, communities, and businesses during the transition to a clean-energy economy.” The reason a cap and trade bill is revenue neutral is because most of the energy tax revenue was handed out to big businesses lobbying for a slice of the pie.

So if you take in $646 billion, feed a large chunk to new bureaucracy and fraudsters, then return any remainder, exactly how much bad weather will be avoided?

Cartoon: See You in the Funny Papers - Edward John Craig - Planet Gore on National Review Online