An interesting presentation separating about a dozen factors, natural and human.
Source: What’s Really Warming the World? Climate deniers blame natural factors; NASA data proves otherwise
Author Archives: Richard McCann
Could Trumps win lead to global carbon tariffs?
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Former French President Sarkozy suggested that if the U.S. pulled out of the Paris Climate Accord, that the EU impose carbon tariffs on U.S. goods. Many economists have suggested that this may be the best solution to gaining collected global action. So perhaps Trump’s win will actually further action on climate change rather than delay it.
Reblog: Inconvenient Truths about Landowner (Un)Willingness to Grow Dedicated Bioenergy Crops: Choices Magazine
Dedicated production of biofuels has been a Holy Grail for the sector, but this study finds that this is unlikely.
Repost: ACA premiums at prices forecasted in 2009 – CNN.com
First, while these increases are eye-catching, insurers generally underpriced their plans when the marketplaces opened in 2014, and the current increases simply bring the premiums up to the level predicted when Congress debated the Affordable Care Act in 2009.According to the report, Congressional Budget Office projections from 2009 suggested average 2017 premiums of $5,538; HHS is projecting average premiums of $5,586. Indeed, premiums in many states are still below the cost of employer coverage.
Source: Don’t panic about rising ACA insurance premiums (Opinion) – CNN.com
Reblog: A true accounting of federal subsidies for solar and clean coal | Utility Dive
A detailed discussion about the successes, failures, and intent of these two federal programs.
Source: What Trump and Clinton miss about clean coal and renewables subsidies | Utility Dive
Reblog: Why Tim Cook is Steve Ballmer and why he still has his job at Apple • The Berkeley Blog
This post seems particularly apt for the electricity industry. IOU CEOs typically are “executioners” not “visionaries,” and this is at the heart of their existential conumdrum.
What happens to a company when a visionary CEO is gone? Most often innovation dies and the company coasts for years on momentum and its brand. Rarely does it regain its former glory. Here’s why. Mi…
Source: Why Tim Cook is Steve Ballmer and why he still has his job at Apple • The Berkeley Blog
Reblog: Paul Brown on the “optimization trap” and innovation | MAVEN’S NOTEBOOK
Paul Brown talks about how chasing “optimization” is a fruitless distraction, which I happen to agree with. We should be focused on exploring the consequences of different pathways and how to mitigate significant vulnerabilities.
Repost: Division on climate change follows ideology, not scientific knowledge | Utility Dive
Republicans and Democrats demonstrate similar levels of scientific knowledge, but they have different trust levels for climate scientists and the media.
Source: 10 charts that explain America’s divide on energy and climate policy | Utility Dive
Repost: Why Doesn’t the GOP Offer Alternative Solutions to Environmental Problems? | Legal Planet
There’s one thing we all know: the Republican Party hates regulation. Republicans want to roll back some key regulations and make it a lot harder to pass new ones. But there’s a curi…
Source: Why Doesn’t the GOP Offer Alternative Solutions to Environmental Problems? | Legal Planet
Why a cigarette tax is good public policy: the evidence
The American Economic Journal: Applied Economics just published this article finding that a $1 cigarette tax reduces childho0d sick days at school by 10%. This demonstrates a strong link between second-hand smoke and public health, and how responsive cigarette demand is to a tobacco tax.
| (6) Does Early Life Exposure to Cigarette Smoke Permanently Harm Childhood Welfare? Evidence from Cigarette Tax Hikes |
| David Simon |
| Evidence suggests that excise taxes on tobacco improve fetal health. However, it remains unknown if smoke exposure in early life causes lasting harm to children. I find that in utero exposure to a dollar increase in the state cigarette tax causes a 10 percent decrease in sick days from school and a 4.7 percent decrease in having two or more doctor visits. I present additional evidence for decreases in hospitalizations and asthma. This supports the hypothesis that exposure to cigarette smoke in utero and infancy carries significant medium-term costs, and that excise taxes can lead to lasting intergenerational improvements in well-being. |
| Full-Text Access | Supplementary Materials |
Economics Outside the Cube 