Someone asked me the other day what level of progress we’re making in phasing out fossil fuels in favor of renewable energy. My response to this question hasn’t changed much in the 15 years I’ve been studying this subject: as shown in the graph here, we’re definitely making progress in terms of decarbonizing the grid and the light-duty transportation sector.
A more important question is this: If this trend is extrapolated, and eventually takes on the more difficult-to-address sectors, e.g., commercial aviation and ocean-going cargo freight, will this be sufficient to avert the worst consequences of climate change?
The answer is that no-one knows. Personally, I doubt it, in the absence of some major technological breakthrough.
Our civilization consists of 200+ sovereign nation-states, as have shown essentially zero interest in coming together to address this existential threat.
If you want a steady stream of information about the supposed value that ExxonMobil is bringing to the world, you may want to sign up for this.
These people are playing for keeps, btw. They’re destroying a little piece more of this planet every day, and they understand that completely.
But there is money at stake. Lots of it.
ExxonMobil Has a PR Campaign that Will Appeal to Some People
To the reader who sent me this meme:
I wouldn’t say that Trump’s illegal invasion of Iran was done for “no … reason.”
What he did created world chaos and caused most Americans in particular to suffer. The more desperate we become, the more likely we’ll be to accept his repeated claims that “Only I can fix it.”
Chaos also helps to justify a claim of a “national emergency” that Trump could use to cancel the 2026 midterms. If November happens as everyone predicts, this will the end of his political and legal future.
Destroying renewable energy to further enrich his Big Oil megadonors makes Trump that much more powerful.
We’re in a pathetic position.
I’m not one to say, “I told you so,” but since my adolescence, I predicted that big money in government would soon ruin this country.
It’s hard to imagine that too many Trump supporters go to Canada for any reason.
Our neighbor to the north, once a close U.S. ally, now hates our guts–a tough feat to achieve indeed, considering the Canadians are such amiable people.
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