Posted on 06/26/2018 4:45:53 AM PDT by reaganaut1
A federal judge on Monday threw out a closely watched lawsuit brought by two California cities against fossil fuel companies over the costs of dealing with climate change. The decision is a stinging defeat for the plaintiffs, San Francisco and Oakland, and raises warning flags for other local governments around the United States that have filed similar suits, including New York City.
The judge, William Alsup of Federal District Court in San Francisco, acknowledged the science of global warming and the great risks to the planet, as did the oil and gas companies being sued. But in his ruling, Judge Alsup said the courts were not the proper place to deal with such global issues, and he rejected the legal theory put forth by the cities.
“The problem deserves a solution on a more vast scale than can be supplied by a district judge or jury in a public nuisance case,” Judge Alsup wrote in a 16-page opinion.
The cities wanted the defendants — including BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell — to help pay for projects like protecting coastlines from flooding.
...
Judge Alsup said that climate change was an issue of global importance but that the companies were not solely at fault. “Our industrial revolution and the development of our modern world has literally been fueled by oil and coal,” he wrote. “Without those fuels, virtually all of our monumental progress would have been impossible.”
In light of that, he asked: “Would it really be fair to now ignore our own responsibility in the use of fossil fuels and place the blame for global warming on those who supplied what we demanded? Is it really fair, in light of those benefits, to say that the sale of fossil fuels was unreasonable?”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
The judge must have known that it’s .... TRUMP’S FAULT. /sarc
I see danger in his statement where he validates this fictitious money grab hoax of Climate change . A real judge would have omitted the view (personal opinion of a political football) he expressed on the non-issue of climate change .
Environmentalists should stop using fossel fuels. i.e. get the log out of their own eye first. :)
Only if you're a progressive Marxist agitator.
I agree it’s a partial victory. The Judge agreed with the hoax but was not willing to lay all the blame on the oil companies.
He's saying, in essence, is it really fair for the restaurant customer to bitch and complain about the service and food they ordered and received...
...while at the same time demanding more food to fill their plates?
I keep hoping that a defense law firm in these kinds of lawsuits would bring up the fact that the same governmental entities bringing these lawsuits also issue municipal bonds, sometimes for beach or shoreline development.
The prospectus for the bonds invariably includes some verbiage in the “Risks” section that basically says not to worry about “climate change” because they don’t know if the doomsday predictions are legit or not. So go ahead and invest in our half-billion-dollar beachfront mall.
Unbelievably smart logic coming from a judge in San Francisco.
Good ruling, your Honor, but, FWIW, Glowbull Warming is #FakeScience. Pure bunkum.
The only place the Liberals can try to win is in the courts now.
“The only place the Liberals can try to win is in the courts now.“
For now, anyway.
L
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