A Free-Market Energy Blog

“Cognitive Dissonance” and Climate Change: A Takedown

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- February 7, 2023

“And here we are where Richard Lyons (et al.) are arguing and winning the intellectual debate, while the alarmist believers of a Cognitive Dissonance are stuck in their own … cognitive dissonance.”

Sometimes a rebuttal on social media is just too good to not memorialize. This one concerns a post about “Cognitive Dissonance” in reference to a 49-minute Apple Podcast, “Hidden Brain: When You Need It to Be True.” Its synopsis states:

When we want something very badly, it can be hard to see warning signs that might be obvious to other people. This week, we revisit a favorite episode from 2021, bringing you two stories about how easy it can be to believe in a false reality — even when the facts don’t back us up.

The upshot (see below) is that since we know climate science is settled and the verdict is a crisis (ahem), psychological explanations are necessary to understand why so many of us (the silent majority?)…

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Climate Anxiety: A Simple Cure (Heartland conference: February 23–25, 2023)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- February 6, 2023

“Do you have a loved one or just friend who needs to escape a mental rut about climate alarm and forced energy transformation? Someone with intellect and passion to examine the other side of a supposedly ‘closed’ debate? Someone who might even reverse course to challenge climate exaggeration, energy statism, and global government? This conference is for them.”

Bill McKibben writes a series for The New Yorker, “Climate Change: Documenting the Unfolding Environmental Crisis.” His most recent entry, “Climate Anxiety Makes Good Sense,” begins:

Even as we begin to emerge from the stress of the pandemic year, mental-health professionals are noting a steady uptick in a different form of anxiety—the worry over climate change and the future that it will bring.

He refers to surveys showing “about forty per cent of Americans feeling ‘disgusted’ or ‘helpless’ about global warming, and a poll from the American Psychiatric Association finding that more than half of the respondents were concerned about the effects of climate change on their mental health.”…

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“BP’s CEO Plays Down Renewables Push as Returns Lag” (‘beyond petroleum’ imaging wearing thin)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- February 2, 2023

“[CEO Bernard Looney] and other BP executives have suggested that the company could play down future investment in areas including solar energy and offshore wind, according to some of the people. Discussions about the company’s direction have caused rifts inside BP over the past year, people close to the company say.”

The Wall Street Journal published a very revealing piece yesterday. “Bernard Looney seeks to sharpen strategic focus, with less emphasis on environmental goals,” reported Jenny Stasburg (February 1, 2023).

She begins:

Chief Executive Bernard Looney plans to dial back elements of the oil giant’s high-profile push into renewable energy, according to people familiar with recent discussions.

Mr. Looney has said he is disappointed in the returns from some of the oil giant’s renewable investments and plans to pursue a narrower green-energy strategy, the people said.

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Houston Chronicle: Unpublished ‘Letters to the Editor’ (cancelling me)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- February 1, 2023
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Breaking Business Windows Okay? The Climate Cult Finds a Climate Judge

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- January 31, 2023
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Energy and Environmental Review: January 30, 2023

By -- January 30, 2023
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What Has Been the Role of Petroleum in Human Progress? (Part IV)

By Julián Salazar Velásquez -- January 27, 2023
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Have Fossil Fuels Progressed Humanity? (Part III)

By Julián Salazar Velásquez -- January 26, 2023
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Should Nations Stop Using Fossil Fuels? (Part II)

By Julián Salazar Velásquez -- January 25, 2023
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Does the Oil Industry Have a Future? (Part I)

By Julián Salazar Velásquez -- January 24, 2023
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