Earth Hour: A Dissent
Ross McKitrick
In 2009 I was asked by a journalist for my thoughts on the importance of Earth Hour.
Here is my response. I abhor Earth Hour. Abundant, cheap electricity has been the greatest source of human liberation in the 20th century. Every material social advance in the 20th century depended on the proliferation of inexpensive and reliable electricity. Giving women the freedom to work outside the home depended on the availability of electrical appliances that free up time from domestic chores. Getting children out of menial labour and into schools depended on the same thing, as well as the ability to provide safe indoor lighting for reading. Development and provision of modern health care without electricity is absolutely impossible. The expansion of our food supply, and the promotion of hygiene and nutrition, depended on being able to irrigate fields, cook and refrigerate foods, and have a steady indoor supply of hot water. Many of the world's poor suffer brutal environmental conditions in their own homes because of the necessity of cooking over indoor fires that burn twigs and
dung. This causes local deforestation and the proliferation of smoke- and parasite-related lung diseases. Anyone who wants to see local conditions improve in the third world should realize the importance of access to cheap electricity from fossil-fuel based power generating stations. After all, that's how the west developed.
The whole mentality around Earth Hour demonizes electricity. I cannot do that, instead I celebrate it and all that it has provided for humanity. Earth Hour celebrates ignorance, poverty and backwardness. By repudiating the greatest engine of liberation it becomes an hour devoted to anti-humanism. It encourages the sanctimonious gesture of turning off trivial appliances for a trivial amount of time, in deference to some ill-defined abstraction called “the Earth,” all the while hypocritically retaining the real benefits of continuous, reliable electricity. People who see virtue in doing without electricity should shut off their fridge, stove, microwave, computer, water heater, lights, TV and all other appliances for a month, not an hour. And pop down to the cardiac unit at the hospital and shut the power off there too.
I don't want to go back to nature. Travel to a zone hit by earthquakes, floods and hurricanes to see what it’s like to go back to nature. For humans, living in "nature" meant a short life span marked by violence, disease and ignorance. People who work for the end of poverty and relief from disease are fighting against nature. I hope they leave their lights on.
Here in Ontario, through the use of pollution control technology and advanced engineering, our air quality has dramatically improved since the 1960s, despite the expansion of industry and the power supply. If, after all this, we are going to take the view that the remaining air emissions outweigh all the benefits of electricity, and that we ought to be shamed into sitting in darkness for an hour, like naughty children who have been caught doing something bad, then we are setting up unspoiled nature as an absolute, transcendent ideal that obliterates all other ethical and humane obligations. No thanks. I like visiting nature but I don't want to live there, and I refuse to accept the idea that civilization with all its tradeoffs is something to be ashamed of.
Ross McKitrick
Professor of Economics
University of Guelph
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Prison Farms the Way of the Past
Farming used to be a good match for inmates who were on the farms, but in today's society we could use plumbers, welders, mechanics, chefs, warehouse operators and the like more than ex-con farmers. The system was useful but its time has passed or so says Craig Jones, executive director of the John Howard Society of Canada; certainly no antagonist to prisoners. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/story/2009/02/25/prison-farms.html
I think training in a skilled trade of any sort outweighs the farm system of yesteryear.
P.S. My dad and uncle learned good skills in prison when they were very young, but the job skills have to match what employers are going to be looking for.
There is another system that Corcan has that produces office furniture which works pretty well that should be expanded, so that prisoners can work in all phases of the system; receivers, unloaders, cutters, etc. etc. all the way to the shipper of the finished product and many of the office staff. These would be skills and positions which can be transferred directly to a job.
I am a firm believer that prisoners should either be in the classroom, on the shop floor, or doing hard manual labour no laying around and wasting time watching tv or relaxing.
I think training in a skilled trade of any sort outweighs the farm system of yesteryear.
P.S. My dad and uncle learned good skills in prison when they were very young, but the job skills have to match what employers are going to be looking for.
There is another system that Corcan has that produces office furniture which works pretty well that should be expanded, so that prisoners can work in all phases of the system; receivers, unloaders, cutters, etc. etc. all the way to the shipper of the finished product and many of the office staff. These would be skills and positions which can be transferred directly to a job.
I am a firm believer that prisoners should either be in the classroom, on the shop floor, or doing hard manual labour no laying around and wasting time watching tv or relaxing.
Friday, April 8, 2011
Iggy the Visitor
No one is faulting Iggy for his absence from Canada. We take offense to his living abroad for 34 years while slagging Canada at every turn, claiming allegiance to the States, then only returning after a couple of Libs get on a plane and go to Boston to tell him he can be PM if he returns.
If Iggy came back 20 years ago ran for MP won then went on to run for PM, he wouldn’t have seemed to be such an opportunist. He was given the leadership of the Lib party without even a vote.
Personally, I think Iggy’s views would line up better with the Cons than the Libs, but unfortunately he keeps recanting long held views about foreign policy and national defense that made him such a rock star of the foreign policy world. I have read his Biography, Iggy’s family have a great story; too bad he has tried to change that as well while trying to look like a Joe Six-pack. If I was to pick a cabinet for the government I would choose Iggy for Foreign Affairs and National Defense; there is no one better in this country, but I also think Harper is the best suited to be PM. I don’t want either of them to be my best buddy, I just want someone who will make the ugly decisions that no one else is willing to. I have never understood people wanting their politicians to be like Jimmy Carter (lovable moron), but when push comes to shove in the world we want them to suddenly turn into Vlad Putin (Darth Vader). Be happy Harper isn’t as stupid as Carter or as Hard as Putin.
If Iggy came back 20 years ago ran for MP won then went on to run for PM, he wouldn’t have seemed to be such an opportunist. He was given the leadership of the Lib party without even a vote.
Personally, I think Iggy’s views would line up better with the Cons than the Libs, but unfortunately he keeps recanting long held views about foreign policy and national defense that made him such a rock star of the foreign policy world. I have read his Biography, Iggy’s family have a great story; too bad he has tried to change that as well while trying to look like a Joe Six-pack. If I was to pick a cabinet for the government I would choose Iggy for Foreign Affairs and National Defense; there is no one better in this country, but I also think Harper is the best suited to be PM. I don’t want either of them to be my best buddy, I just want someone who will make the ugly decisions that no one else is willing to. I have never understood people wanting their politicians to be like Jimmy Carter (lovable moron), but when push comes to shove in the world we want them to suddenly turn into Vlad Putin (Darth Vader). Be happy Harper isn’t as stupid as Carter or as Hard as Putin.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Bob Rae's Jihadis
Bob Rae calls the Prime Minister's staff 25year old jihadis because he would like ammo to attack the government with and they won't play along. The question about the defunding of Kairos was just the stepping off point for "Furious Bob"; he went on to complain about message control, civil service and diplomatic free speech, Mulroney's African policies and the like.
I always thought the government should speak with one voice when it comes to policy; it removes confusion and doubt about what direction the government is going in.
I have never really seen the need for civil servants to talk to the press as they are employees of the government not elected representatives who we hire on a rotating five year basis to decide on policy and make decisions. That is the whole issue though; there are certain civil servants who don't agree with the people we elected and take it upon themselves to vent in front of a like minded journalist who would like nothing better than to help Jack, or Iggy score some points.
I don't recall ever having a situation where the ambassador or the diplomatic core would have to speak to the press on their own accord, they are in their position to communicate the policy decisions of the government and nothing more.
Sure Mulroney did great things in S. Africa but that is only because a decision was made up the chain of command, probably the PMO's office, and they stayed on message. Hey that sounds just like whats happening now. Bob complains that if the 25 year old jihadis can't control it then it doesn't happen; but I know that in the churches that I have attended through the years things were happening in far off places all the time without the 25 year old jihadis involved at all; just church organizations seeing a need and then trying to fix it. Of course the churches that I have attended would never think of asking the government for money because the government should not be involved with the church. Separation of church and state has always been a big thing with the left except when its a leftist church group in bed with the government.
The jihadis in question were all controlled by the Prime Minister on one hand and had way too much responsibility on the other. Bob should make up his mind; is the PM an autocratic dictator or is he letting the kids mind the store?
I am glad about one thing though, this is the first I have ever heard Bob call anyone a jihadi, too bad it isn't directed at the true jihadis from the religion of peace.
I always thought the government should speak with one voice when it comes to policy; it removes confusion and doubt about what direction the government is going in.
I have never really seen the need for civil servants to talk to the press as they are employees of the government not elected representatives who we hire on a rotating five year basis to decide on policy and make decisions. That is the whole issue though; there are certain civil servants who don't agree with the people we elected and take it upon themselves to vent in front of a like minded journalist who would like nothing better than to help Jack, or Iggy score some points.
I don't recall ever having a situation where the ambassador or the diplomatic core would have to speak to the press on their own accord, they are in their position to communicate the policy decisions of the government and nothing more.
Sure Mulroney did great things in S. Africa but that is only because a decision was made up the chain of command, probably the PMO's office, and they stayed on message. Hey that sounds just like whats happening now. Bob complains that if the 25 year old jihadis can't control it then it doesn't happen; but I know that in the churches that I have attended through the years things were happening in far off places all the time without the 25 year old jihadis involved at all; just church organizations seeing a need and then trying to fix it. Of course the churches that I have attended would never think of asking the government for money because the government should not be involved with the church. Separation of church and state has always been a big thing with the left except when its a leftist church group in bed with the government.
The jihadis in question were all controlled by the Prime Minister on one hand and had way too much responsibility on the other. Bob should make up his mind; is the PM an autocratic dictator or is he letting the kids mind the store?
I am glad about one thing though, this is the first I have ever heard Bob call anyone a jihadi, too bad it isn't directed at the true jihadis from the religion of peace.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Unreported Crime
I was thinking today about some comments from an online article about new prisons, and unreported crime. I thought that it was a weak argument to say that unreported crime is a real and serious thing when obviously people didn't think it important enough to make a report to the police. Then it occured to me that I had been the victim of crime and didn't bother to make a report.
While on Thanksgiving break from university I flew down to Southern Ontario to spend some time with my family and upon my return I took my keys from the hook and went out to find my truck door was swinging in the breeze. All of my coffee money stash was taken from the dash and the contents of the glove comartment were strewn about. I was just putting things back together when the neighbour from next door came over and asked if any of our cars had been broken into because someone broke into his car then left the door wide open and killed his battery.
I asked him if he called the police and he said he couldn't be bothered as nothing ever comes of it and it wastes a perfectly good afternoon, so I agreed with him and we both ended up being victims of unreported crime, the kind the left says doesn't exist.
My landlord later told me that some people's cars were broken into by his mother's house two blocks away.
Today I wasn't lamenting my truck being broken into, crime happens, but I was wondering to myself, why I wouldn't report the crime in the first place then I remembered the last time I had a vehicle broken into. It was back about 1997 and I was driving a transport for a living and had parked my GMC van in a fuel stop just off the 409 and Kipling. I jumped into the van at the end of the week and thought to myself, "I really should clean this van up", then I noticed my ownership on the floor and my cassettes all over the place, so I jumped in the back and saw that my beautiful hand tied fenwick rod and expensive reel were gone along with my tackle box. I called the police to make a report and waited, and waited, and waited then after two hours I called again and they told me that I wasn't the only victim of crime in the city, so I explained that I had been on the road all week and lived over an hour outside the city and just wanted to go home. So about a half an hour later a cop pulled up and rolled his window down and said "it's 5:45 and I get off at 6:00 if you want to make a report got to this station" then he handed me a card with the police station address on it and drove away. I went to the station filled out a report and asked the officer at the desk if I would ever get my rod back and he said not likely. I told him I would have been happier if the had left my rod and taken the van, he laughed.
So the neighbour was right at least for small crimes, "nothing ever comes of it and it wastes a perfectly good afternoon".
I wonder if my neighbour had a similar experience in his hometown of Calgary as I had in Toronto and if this is the case; is there a correlation between the police not encouraging reporting and the statistics telling us that crime is going down?
While on Thanksgiving break from university I flew down to Southern Ontario to spend some time with my family and upon my return I took my keys from the hook and went out to find my truck door was swinging in the breeze. All of my coffee money stash was taken from the dash and the contents of the glove comartment were strewn about. I was just putting things back together when the neighbour from next door came over and asked if any of our cars had been broken into because someone broke into his car then left the door wide open and killed his battery.
I asked him if he called the police and he said he couldn't be bothered as nothing ever comes of it and it wastes a perfectly good afternoon, so I agreed with him and we both ended up being victims of unreported crime, the kind the left says doesn't exist.
My landlord later told me that some people's cars were broken into by his mother's house two blocks away.
Today I wasn't lamenting my truck being broken into, crime happens, but I was wondering to myself, why I wouldn't report the crime in the first place then I remembered the last time I had a vehicle broken into. It was back about 1997 and I was driving a transport for a living and had parked my GMC van in a fuel stop just off the 409 and Kipling. I jumped into the van at the end of the week and thought to myself, "I really should clean this van up", then I noticed my ownership on the floor and my cassettes all over the place, so I jumped in the back and saw that my beautiful hand tied fenwick rod and expensive reel were gone along with my tackle box. I called the police to make a report and waited, and waited, and waited then after two hours I called again and they told me that I wasn't the only victim of crime in the city, so I explained that I had been on the road all week and lived over an hour outside the city and just wanted to go home. So about a half an hour later a cop pulled up and rolled his window down and said "it's 5:45 and I get off at 6:00 if you want to make a report got to this station" then he handed me a card with the police station address on it and drove away. I went to the station filled out a report and asked the officer at the desk if I would ever get my rod back and he said not likely. I told him I would have been happier if the had left my rod and taken the van, he laughed.
So the neighbour was right at least for small crimes, "nothing ever comes of it and it wastes a perfectly good afternoon".
I wonder if my neighbour had a similar experience in his hometown of Calgary as I had in Toronto and if this is the case; is there a correlation between the police not encouraging reporting and the statistics telling us that crime is going down?
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Having an effect.
I was contacted by my philosophy prof. last weekend to ask me out for a coffee so he could pick my brain about the Tea Party in the States, conservative thought, and libertarian ideas in general. He is putting together a proposal paper for a conference at Carlton in the near future and read some very disparaging remarks by the organizers about the Tea Party and wanted to get a "right wingers" view on the whole matter. He is slightly left wing but in his class all views are welcome and no one is ridiculed or patronized for holding a certain view; which is quite refreshing considering the types of characters running a lot of the classes these days.
I had to take philosophy because in the political science class I had originally chosen the prof openly ridiculed, (unprovoked other than Christine O'Donnell had won the GOP nomination the night before), conservatives and creationists within 10 minutes of the first class of the year. I know a lot of people would say they would stay and argue the merits of both views but I am a middle aged engineering student who has better things to do than fight a loosing battle with an entrenched ideology. The good news is that the philosophy prof said he is planning on arguing the strength of the Tea Party platform and that the conference organizers may not be happy with his views. He didn't say exactly how he plans on defending the Tea Party view however he did take a lot of notes about my point that the constitution is not just an abstract group of idea that has yet to be tested and the federalist papers, many of which he has read, clearly indicate that government was meant to be bound and kept in check by the people not the other way around.
I had to take philosophy because in the political science class I had originally chosen the prof openly ridiculed, (unprovoked other than Christine O'Donnell had won the GOP nomination the night before), conservatives and creationists within 10 minutes of the first class of the year. I know a lot of people would say they would stay and argue the merits of both views but I am a middle aged engineering student who has better things to do than fight a loosing battle with an entrenched ideology. The good news is that the philosophy prof said he is planning on arguing the strength of the Tea Party platform and that the conference organizers may not be happy with his views. He didn't say exactly how he plans on defending the Tea Party view however he did take a lot of notes about my point that the constitution is not just an abstract group of idea that has yet to be tested and the federalist papers, many of which he has read, clearly indicate that government was meant to be bound and kept in check by the people not the other way around.
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