Articles by David Roberts

A nice old-fashioned polemic

Reader WH sent along a link to this CBC Fifth Estate documentary -- "The Denial Machine" -- about the scientists and industries working to obfuscate basic global warming science. You can watch the full hour on their site.

As far as I can tell, it's a full-on polemic. The Pielkes of the world will no doubt tsk-tsk, lament the lack of proper qualifications and hedges, and scold it for being shrill. But I say: more polemic, please.

Hopefully tenacious butt kicking will ensue

Eliot Spitzer's eco-lieutenant to be made executive director of NRDC:

For those concerned about the blogger’s floor

So, last Friday and this whole weekend, I've been moving. Moving with two small kids is so fun! I wish I could do it every week! [Beats head on desk.]

Anyway, it reminded me that a while back I wrote a post soliciting flooring advice. I thought I'd do a quick follow-up for the vanishingly small number of you who care.

No, really

Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) recently released a report called Why the "Peak Oil" Theory Falls Down -- Myths, Legends and the Future of Oil Resources. It's getting a lot of attention, and has produced much consternation in the peakoilosphere.

The definitive response, as usual, is on The Oil Drum.

I must say, the more I read about peak oil, the less complicated the whole thing seems to me. That may sound crazy, since everyone involved in discussions of oil prides themselves on their engineering acumen, impeccable logic, and devotion to empirical data (in the form of charts and graphs, of course!). Pull any one thread of the oil tapestry and you quickly uncover a skein of irreconcilably opposed viewpoints, all backed by reams of data, all contemptuous of the illogic and wishful thinking of the others.

So why do I think it's simple?