Earth Hour And Reality

Bjorn Lomborg writes, (bold highlights mine)

When we switch off the electricity, many of us turn to candlelight. This seems natural and environmentally friendly, but unfortunately candles are almost 100 times less efficient than incandescent light bulbs, and more than 300 times less efficient than fluorescent lights. Using one candle for each extinguished bulb cancels the CO2 reduction; two candles emit more CO2.

That’s basically the law of unintended consequence at work. Populist political ‘feel good’ actions tend to defeat the noble intentions which it tries to achieve in the first place.

The economic implications is that:

First, we get inefficient and more costly ‘alternative’ energy (this reduces people’s purchasing power—thus we become POORER). Making us poor saves the environment (duh!).

Second, atavistic lifestyles poses more environmental hazards than the current one.

As a Latin proverb goes, Aegrescit medendo or the cure is worse than the disease...