Al Gore's Electric Bill

Looks like Al Gore is using enough juice to warm a fair portion of the globe himself.

The average household in America consumes 10,656 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, according to the Department of Energy. In 2006, Gore devoured nearly 221,000 kWh—more than 20 times the national average.

Via Glenn Reynolds.

More at Captain Ed's, with discussion of "carbon credits" in comments. Concerning which Ecototality points out a Nashville Tennesseean article which mentions that

Gore helped found Generation Investment Management, through which he and others pay for offsets. The firm invests the money in solar, wind and other projects that reduce energy consumption around the globe…

Translation: Gore isn’t just buying carbon offsets - he’s buying them through his own investment firm, perfectly demonstrating how the rich will get richer via “cap and trade” by posing as friends of the earth.

Gore uses polluting energy and then “punishes” himself by investing in his own green-energy investment fund. [But see update, below.]

Al Gore has been using the environment as a hobby horse, and he has ridden it pretty far. Some of those who arrived at the party sooner are leaving, now that it's become a riot. Patrick Moore, co-founder of Greenpeace, now runs Greenspirit and Greenspirit Strategies. An article in the NY Times today about Stewart Brand, Mister Whole Earth, shows that he like Moore has become an advocate for nuclear power, no longer an opponent. Via Glenn Reynolds, who says

Environmentalism should be about good planetary hygiene and honest science, not romantic Luddism.

I agree. On nuclear power, a persuasive book that should be right next to Helen Caldecott's Nuclear Power Is Not the Answer, is Petr Beckmann's The Health Hazards of Not Going Nuclear. There was also an Ace edition with a much prettier cover.

Update March 7 2007: Well, maybe he's not exactly buying them from himself. This story just has me more confused:

Gore's Company Says He's Not Profiting from 'Carbon Offsets'

… Al Gore is not profiting from his crusade against global warming, a spokesman for an investment firm co-founded by the former vice president said Tuesday. … The confusion, Campbell said, arose because GIM pays to offset the energy use of its operations and the personal emissions of its 23 employees, including Gore.

So, the firm will cover the cost to offset the energy use at Gore's home, or his global jet travel, as it would the offset cost of any other employee, Campbell said.

But Iain Murray at NRO seems able to make sense of it:

So he, himself, personally is not actually paying for any carbon offsets at all.

Al has his Oscar

Which puts him right up there with Michael Moore. I couldn't miss the clenching of his jaw as he stood next to Leo DiCaprio for the announcement-interruptus gag. I still expect that he will announce. It will be interesting to see the dirt that Hillary!'s machine will be able to dig up on him.

Meanwhile, there is a couple of feet of global warming in the midwest.

DETROIT, Michigan (AP) -- A huge winter storm plowed toward the East Coast on Sunday after dumping as much as 2 feet of snow in the upper Midwest, grounding hundreds of airline flights and closing major highways on the Plains.

Eight traffic deaths were blamed on the storm, seven in Wisconsin and one in Kansas.

Utility crews labored Sunday to restore power after the storm blacked out hundreds of thousands of homes and business in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, Nebraska and Ohio.

One Iowa utility alone had more than 500 miles of power lines down.

Ann Althouse has pictures. And lots of comments.

If it gets any warmer, we may have to do something about it.

One always fears for the future of one's country, because one's children live there. If we put the future of our country in the hands of people whose children spend most of their time elsewhere, in Gstaad or St. Moritz, is it wise for us to do that? Gore, Kerry, the international jet-set, this lot can relocate anywhere on short notice. I don't want leaders who are rootless.

History of climate change hype

Laura of Pursuing Holiness left a comment at Wizbang which references this article which references the NY Times, back in 1895, being upset about climate change.

On Feb. 24, 1895, the Times announced “Geologists Think the World May Be Frozen Up Again.” The article debated “whether recent and long-continued observations do not point to the advent of a second glacial period.” Those concerns were brought on by increases in northern glaciers and in the severity of Scandinavia’s climate.

Selling papers is what it's all about.

An Oscar for Al?

Jerry Pournelle thinks it's likely. And that it may have consequences.

Global warming: science or politics?

Via commenter Dminor at Tim Blair's place:

The governor of Delaware knows where she stands:

WILMINGTON, Del. — Gov. Ruth Ann Minner has directed Delaware's state climatologist to stop using his title in public statements on climate change, citing a clash of views on global warming and confusion over the position's ties to the administration.

An inconvenient … scientist.

Two hits in a row

at Chicago Boyz. First Ginny with The Free Market Looks at the Environment. Václav Klaus speaks to the press, at least partly to promote a book, of course. I will be looking for it. The interview includes this gem:

HN: You do not believe that we're destroying our planet?
[Klaus:] I'm going to act as if I did not hear that. That could only be said by Mr. Al Gore; a normal person would be hard-pressed.

Next, a brief history of Communist propaganda in the 20th century, featuring the work of Willi Münzenberg, from Helen: The big lie or many small lies. This makes a nice companion piece for Eric S. Raymond's Suicidalism, from Sept. 13, 2005, and Gramscian damage, from Feb. 11, 2006. The amount of "conventional wisdom" that started out as enemy psyops is amazing. Sun Tzu probably said something about this. If you can make your enemy give up, because they have become convinced that they are just no damn good, you have won.

It's cold on Presidents' Day

Ironic that this last week and I suppose the week to come are seeing such effort from Congress to, as Rep. Murtha put it, "undermine" the President -- or was that the troops he was undermining? Both at once, I guess, and the security of the nation along with, and Western Civilization, dammit, along with that.

How democracies perish. More context here and here.

The Dems seem determined to lose the war and tank the economy in order to create campaign issues for 2008. They will call the results "Bush's recession" and "Bush's lost war." Never mind the harm done to the country along the way. Haven't I heard this before, about the ends justifying the means?

Oh no, not Pluto!

We knew about Mars, but really:
Pluto is undergoing global warming, researchers find

This from 2002.

Global Warming Links

A few interesting links about global warming, starting with Christopher Monckton's first article on the Stern Report, in the Telegraph, Climate chaos? Don't believe it.

Monckton's second article: Wrong problem, wrong solution.

Unsigned Telegraph editorial with comments: Green blinkers.

Gore's response: At stake is nothing less than the survival of human civilisation.

Monckton's response to Gore: Gore Gored.

Monckton on the Summary of the IPCC report: IPCC Fourth Assessment Report 2007 Analysis and Summary.

Melanie Phillips on doctoring evidence in IPCC report: Dirty work at the green crossroads.

another, from Timothy Ball, the first Canadian to receive a Ph.D. in climatology: Global Warming: The Cold, Hard Facts? via The Reference Frame, at which Luboš Motl has quite a bit more.

Update, March 12: Timothy Ball has been receiving death threats.

Update, Oct 23: Gore and Monckton are having another go-round.

Update, April 11, 2008: Monckton's movie is now available.

Update, January 27, 2009: Monckton writes again.

Update, April 23, 2009: There was nearly a joint appearance of Gore and Monckton before the House Energy and Commerce committee, debating the Markey-Waxman ACES Bill, but alas, it was not to be. The Democrats would not let the out-of-town challenger in the ring with their champ. So he retains the title, but we all know what happened.

Update, Oct. 22, 2009: Monckton spoke at Bethel College in St. Paul, MN, on the upcoming Copenhagen conference. "Is Obama poised to cede US sovereignty?"

Update, Nov. 21, 2009: Monckton spoke with Michael Coren on Canadian television in October.

Update, Dec 3, 2009: Monckton on Climategate: "The Whistle Blows for Truth."