Free Republic

Cities looking to eliminate fossil fuels in buildings have notched a decisive court victory. Last week, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit brought by plumbing and building trade groups against a New York City ban on natural gas in new buildings. The decision is the first to explicitly disagree with a previous ruling that struck down Berkeley, California’s first-in-the-nation gas ban. That order, issued by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2023 and upheld again last year, prompted cities across the country to withdraw or delay laws modeled after the Berkeley ordinance. While New York City’s law functions...

Did you know that the European Union has sent more money to Russia in payment for petroleum products than they have provided aid to Ukraine. You read that right: the EU is funding both sides of the war. ... EU imports of Russian fossil fuels in the third year of the invasion surpassed the EUR 18.7 bn of financial aid they sent to Ukraine in 2024 ... All the virtue signaling from European leaders about standing with Ukraine is completely belied by this. They all continue to trade with Russia and import oil, gas, and coal. If they were really...

Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life is one of cinema’s most enduring classics, a sentimental yet profound exploration of how one person’s contributions ripple through a community. The story’s alternate timeline, where George Bailey never existed, paints a grim picture of what life would be like without his sacrifices. Inspired by this tale, let’s imagine an alternate reality of a different sort—a world where fossil fuels never existed. Could we, like George’s Bedford Falls, find ourselves in a global Pottersville? Let’s explore how the absence of fossil fuels might affect the very fabric of our lives, from economic systems to...

Increased use of natural gas for power generation has made the United States more dependent on fossil fuels for its electricity supply this year than China, the world’s top carbon emitter.Since June 2024, high U.S. summer electricity demand has been mostly met by increased gas-fired power generation, while a rebound in hydropower in China has limited to some extent the share of coal in its electricity supply.As a result, fossil fuels – including natural gas and coal – have had an average share of 62.4% of total electricity output in the United States since June. This compares to a lower...

In 1989, Shell published an internal report analyzing two possible futures, one in which fossil fuels were brought under control and one in which they weren't. In the former, which they called the "sustainable world" scenario, greenhouse gas emissions began declining rapidly around the year 2000 and global warming was kept in check. In the other, where fossil fuel production continued apace, Shell researchers predicted a world of climate chaos—one with massive increases in "violent weather," particularly "more storms" and "more deluges." These disasters, Shell concluded, would create crises of such severity that "[c]ivilization could prove a fragile thing."....... If...

🥫 3 Just Stop Oil supporters have thrown soup over 2 of Van Gogh paintings in the 'Poets and Lovers' exhibition at the National Gallery. VIDEO at link.................

Traditional and iconic American brands have been doing some pretty bizarre and self destructive things that make no sense , lately. But, when you look at the bigger picture and consider what China has been doing in the name of expanding its EV Industry, securing huge mineral resources via the Belt And Road Initiative and gaining control of American businesses, the ultimate end game becomes clear. Here's how it and Net Zero all time together.

When are we going to run out of energy? You don’t hear that as much as you used to, since Those Who Know Best are working to plug up all our energy sources anyway. Most energy sources put out carbon dioxide, and that’s going to make all the plants grow and devour us all, or it will heat the planet up and make Minneapolis a desert — and we’ll all fry. Or something. But we don’t hear much any more about running out of energy. What do the experts say about it? “According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA)...

Attorneys general in 25 states have banded together to file a legal challenge to another "unlawful" Environmental Protection Agency policy that is part of President Joe Biden's crusade to "end" fossil fuels and force an energy "transition." At issue this time: the EPA's final rule establishing "New Source Performance Standards for Greenhouse Gas Emissions From New, Modified, and Reconstructed Fossil Fuel-Fired Electric Generating Units" as well as "Emission Guidelines for Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Existing Fossil Fuel-Fired Electric Generating Units" and the "Repeal of the Affordable Clean Energy Rule." Stemming from a 2009 Obama-era EPA "conclusion" that greenhouse gas (GHG)...

I have a friend who frequently says that, if you control CO2 outputs, you control everything. Let me explain: Every aspect of modern life is dependent on hydrocarbons and, when hydrocarbons are burned for energy, they produce CO2. By demonizing CO2, you demonize hydrocarbons, which means…ta-dah!...you get to block hydrocarbons and control everything. We’re getting a glimpse of that with Joe Biden’s new energy emission rules, which will effectively make it impossible to build a gas-powered car in a few years, forcing people into costly, dangerous, unreliable, and dirty electric vehicles. Here’s the report from Fox:The Biden administration has finalized...

Republicans in the Kentucky House are proposing a resolution that would create “a sanctuary state” for fossil fuel-powered generators. The resolution, which was assigned to a committee Wednesday, appears to be modeled after the concept of “sanctuary cities,” which are local jurisdictions that have agreed not to comply with federal immigration regulations. The resolution aims to exempt Kentucky from EPA regulations regarding coal- and natural gas-fired power plants. Permitting for such facilities would be done by the state, and Kentucky agencies would be prohibited from collecting fines or penalties for violations of federal regulations related to fossil fuel-fired power plants.

Banks, governments, and businesses would face failure due to the essential role of fossil fuels in the economy.Critical infrastructure like electricity, internet, and trade systems would collapse without fossil fuel support.Agriculture and home heating would become inefficient and inaccessible to many, leading to widespread social upheaval.It is now popular to talk about leaving fossil fuels to prevent climate change. Pretty much the same result occurs if we run short of fossil fuels: We lose fossil fuels, but it is because we cannot extract them. Practically no one tells us about the extent to which the current system depends upon fossil...

Bill C-372 seeks penalties up to $1,000,000 and two years in prison for promoting fossil fuels as anything less than an existential threat to humanity. Just when you thought Canada couldn’t get any more Stalinist, an MP from the country’s far-left NDP party is calling for any speech that “promotes fossil fuels” – even truthful statements like comparing the relative emissions of natural gas to coal – to be banned and criminalized. MP Charlie Angus, from Timmins, in northern Ontario (where the average temperature in February runs -7C to -21C) has introduced a private member’s Bill C-372 called “The Fossil...

The global climate is always changing, but contrary to the popular narrative, the science on the exact causes is far from settled. Alarmists claim that humans burning fossil fuels for energy will catastrophically ruin the climate, and they demand a “net-zero” future to save the world. What would happen if the climate alarmists actually succeeded in the United States? Although it is impossible to predict the future, early warning signs from President Joe Biden’s policies don’t paint a pretty picture. Decreased Individual Mobility First, if the federal government bans gas-powered cars, individual transportation would get less reliable and more expensive....

Ep. 62 If fossil fuels come from fossils, why have scientistsfound them on one of Saturn’s moons? A lot of what you’veheard about energy is false. Dr. Willie Soon explains. TIMESTAMPS(01:49) Fossil Fuels in Space (14:27) Global Warming Throughout History (25:31) Outside Forces are Ruining Science (40:41) Evidence of God (48 minutes and 49 seconds video of interview in link below)https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1744777758507504061

On Sunday, the president of the COP28 climate summit launched a broadside atttack on the zero-emission policies being supported by the United Nations, noting that there is “no science” which would demonstrate that stage-by-stage cuts in fossil fuel use will decrease global warning. Speaking as the chair of the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai, Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber said if you impose a gradual reduction in fossil fuel consumption, you will reduce the advance of sustainable development, and that would take humanity back to the paleolithic period. He made the comments during a live online event, while...

Jack Hellner recently suggested that oil spills are only moderately harmful to the environment. I disagree. Oil in the environment is normally there and has been for centuries. That’s how people first discovered the stuff. In California’s uber-environmentalist Santa Barbara County, an estimated 11 to 160 barrels of oil seep into the ocean daily and have for countless centuries; the locals have made attempts at capping it. They have failed so farIn nature, there are the butanes, gasolines and kerosene in the oil, which, when deposited on the surface, evaporate off as naphtha (probably the basis of the ancient Greek...

When Connecticut Democrat Ned Lamont took office as the Governor, he had some big climate change plans in place. And with his party controlling much of the state legislature, he had plenty of support for those ambitions. One of the big ticket items he was pushing for was a ban on the sale of all gasoline-powered vehicles in the state by 2035. For a time, it looked like the plan would go through. In fact, the legislature was scheduled to vote on it today. But now it appears that the vote will not be taking place and the announcement will...

News of record installations of so-called renewable energy electric generation in China may have kindled the hopes of those supporting the "green" agenda and hostile to fossil fuels. However, China is in no position to give up hydrocarbons, particularly coal.During the first half of 2023, China approved 52 gigawatts (GW) of new coal power, which was more than all the approvals issued in 2021. These new approvals are in addition to the 136 GW of coal capacity that are already under construction. Together, these new plants represent more than 67% of all new approvals in the world. Why is China...

Four headlines struck me, over my morning coffee, this week. They are headlines that I think will change forever our understanding of energy sources. From Germany comes “Wide-Scale Bankruptcies in the EU’s Solar Sector Now Seem Likely” and “Germany to Fire up ‘Brown Coal’ Power Plants because of Fears of Energy Shortage.” From Sweden, “Sweden Embraces Nuclear Energy,” and from France, “Nuclear energy now non-negotiable.” All four headlines are courtesy of the E.U.’s disastrous missteps in solar — and successes in nuclear. The disasters are the result of what I call “the seven dirty secrets of solar.” Germany has led...