Roger Pielke Jr.'s Blog: Thomas Friedman's Tall Tale

Thomas Friedman, columnist for the New York Times, again trots out the "if only we were doing as good as China" story:
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It is a great story. Except for the fact that it is not true...

Proof we are responsible for Global Climate Change (2): Blogs: Doug Craig's blog

But scientists tell us that if two or three molecules in our atmosphere out of every 10,000 were not CO2, the average temperature would plummet nearly 60°F. Life as we know it never would have evolved. And the exact amount is crucial!

If only two out of 10,000 are CO2 much of the planet is covered with ice. When three out of 10,000 are CO2, we enjoy our perfect climate. But now that we are approaching four out of 10,000, the temperature has already climbed 1.3°F since 1900.

Party With The UAE’s “Green Sheikh” On 10/10/10 | Green Prophet

An aspiring environmental engineer emboldened by Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Ali Al Nuaimi’s strong pro-environment disposition, 16 year old Rishi Avala contacted him to discuss creating a well-publicized event for 10-10-10.

Also involved is Dr. Osama Al Alami, who is both a Zayed University professor with the Department of National Science and Public Health and co-chair of the Zayed Environmental Impact Network (ZEIN) established in August, 2009.

The trio hope to attract such strong environmental voices as Al Gore, David Attenborough, and Arnold Schwarzenegger to their “global environmental salon” expected to be held at Zayed University.

A 132-Year Payback On The All-Electric Car - The Philadelphia Bulletin

We economists call such lobbying “rent seeking” and those who engage in it as “rent seekers.” Rather than seeking the cooperation of other men in the free market, a rent seeker lobbies government to impose some special privilege. The cost of the rent seeker’s efforts is greatly reduced, because he need convince only a few elected officials or government bureaucrats rather than the entire market. His job is made all the easier by the knowledge that the elected official or government bureaucrat can grant the privilege with no cost to himself. And when a rent seeker gets a job in government itself, well, the fox is in the henhouse. Officials move billions of dollars and coerce millions of people with no responsibility whatsoever. If a program fails to achieve its grand design, no government official suffers the consequences. Furthermore, failed regulations are seldom repealed, because, despite the net burden to the economy, a few new constituents do benefit and lobby mightily to keep them in place.