This is what I found on the DB Review list this morning. It's something to
contemplate. Nolan is a kind man, the original founder and moderator of the
DB Review list. The nonfiction books that he tends to recommend are books
that glorify World War Two. A few weeks ago, I sent him a private message,
suggesting that he read a book about that war by David Swanson from
Bookshare. I wonder if he has. He's always very polite and so was my
suggestion because he invariably sounds reasonable. But now this book
recommendation? You may think that all those folks who voted for Trump did
so because of their economic problems or because of Q Anon. But then there
are people like Nolan who apparently believes that climate change is a hoax
or that our concern about it is overwrought. There are people who really
just see the world very differently from the way I see the world.
Miriam
From: DB-Review@xxxxxxxxx <DB-Review@xxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Nolan Crabb
Sent: Saturday, January 23, 2021 7:31 AM
To: DB-Review@xxxxxxxxx
Subject: [DB-Review] Enthusiastic Recommendation: Apocalypse Never: Why
Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All by Michael Shellenberger DB100161
I'm enthusiastically recommending:
Apocalypse Never: Why Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All
by Michael Shellenberger
DB100161
https://t.ly/e4gd
This review originally appeared on my Goodreads page on September 5, 2020:
I've never been among those who was convinced that my death was imminent
because of someone else's SUV. I've watched with dismay the frenzied
freakishness of a little Swedish girl whose parents don't seem to have much
by way of common sense and her sometimes-plaintive cries and sometimes
unnecessary rage. We are not doomed for death in 10 years or eight or
however many remain on the doomsday clock of those who would send us all
back to the 16th century so long as our carbon emissions were at zero. I
have no problem accepting climate change as a reality, but the precise
degree to which humanity has created or exaggerated it is less exact for me.
This magnificent book helped me understand that while mankind can indeed
harm the environment, we don't fix it by placing unrealistic moratoriums on
the use of nuclear power, and we don't fix it by placing unrealistically
high hopes on all things wind and solar.
Some will try to dismiss Shellenberger as a rabid conservative who denies
science and fits whatever profile they want him to fit. Except he's not that
at all. But he's the first author I've read on the topic whose solutions
make any sense at all to me, and I'm thrilled I spent the audible credit on
this book, because it fills me with hope that the thoughts and feelings he
expresses in his epilogue turn out to be correct.
The author insists that by assisting developing nations achieve greater
economic acumen, we reduce emissions and reduce mankind's negative impact on
climate change. Again, his perspective makes perfect sense to me. Why burn
pesky wood when I can burn coal? Why burn coal when I can burn natural gas?
Why use natural gas when I can use safe, clean nuclear power? Why use safe
clean nuclear power when whatever else is new and better comes along? Can I
go straight from natural gas to whatever is next? Probably not. That nuclear
bridge is doubtless necessary, because whatever is next doesn't currently
exist in a form we can use. You can't find it in Tesla's batteries; you
can't find it in bird-and-insect-killing wind farms, and solar loses its
shine at sundown, to say the least. The author points out eloquently here
that as we assist developing nations economically rather than punish them
for their carbon emissions, we guide them into ever safer ever cleaner ways
of generating power and using energy. Loan these people money to build a
hydroelectric plant, and as their standard of living improves, they will
build cleaner more efficient systems. What right does a developed nation
have to force undeveloped nations to remain in poverty in the name of
lowering carbon emissions?
This was a fascinating book that left me with a lot to think about. I was
blown away by the corruption he details among the politicians and scientists
with their conflict of interest. The chapter on the alleged menace of
plastics was memorable and amazing. He points out the hypocrisy among the
celebrity class who insist that the rest of us live as they never will. This
book has tremendous credibility. It wasn't written by a science denier whose
politics is somewhere to the right of Calvin Coolidge. There is refreshing
honesty here--the kind that says of course, we must be good stewards of the
environment--better than we are at the moment in many ways. But we must also
be wise and thoughtful stewards--looking for real solutions rather than
quick harmful ones that will injure economies, damage nations, and
accomplish little else. I can't help but wonder about the creative ways in
which this guy has been canceled and hated by those--many of whom were once
friends and associates. It took a certain amount of courage to write this,
and I can't help but be impressed by that.
NLS:
<https://nlsbard.loc.gov/nlsbardprod/download/detail/srch/DB100161>
Apocalypse never: why environmental alarmism hurts us all DB100161
Shellenberger, Michael. Reading time: 12 hours, 20 minutes.
Read by Stephen Graybill.
Social Sciences
Environmentalist argues against the use of hyperbole and alarmism when
advocating for increased action against climate change. Topics covered
include examination of those pushing alarmist agendas, analysis of what
claims are scientifically supported, and arguments for ethical advocacy of
solutions to support environmental causes. Unrated. Commercial audiobook.
2020.
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