There is some kind of meeting going on in Copenhagen this week. Most of what the Antiplanner might say about it has already been said by others, such as this article or this one.
Aside from these stories, one of the reasons I’ve always been skeptical of anthropogenic climate change is that it is tailor-made for a greedy environmental movement. I spent nearly two decades immersed in that movement, and during that time everyone seemed to be looking for the Ideal Issue that would win them the debate over whatever little piece of earth they were trying to save.
The Ideal Issue is one that appears scientifically valid but is actually scientifically irrefutable. The Ideal Issue represents a major crisis, but — like the end-of-the-world predictions made by religious prophets — not one that will happen soon enough that its failure to take place will prove the issue invalid. For some, the Ideal Issue was a true public good, which meant it could only be solved through massive government interventions.
