In an August 7 article, New York Times columnist Paul Krugman claimed that “technological progress in renewable energy has made it possible to envisage major reductions in emissions at little or no cost in terms of economic growth and living standards.”
None of the claims in Krugman’s August 7 column are new. For years, academics from elite universities, climate activists, leaders of the anti-industry industry, and legacy media outlets (and the New York Times in particular) have been peddling shopworn claims about “all-gain-no-pain” renewables.
Of course, these facts don’t fit the narrative that Krugman and others are pushing. So they go unreported and unmentioned in the pages of the Times. Krugman ended his piece by saying the incentives available to corporate interests and communities are giving them “a stake in continuing the green transition.” But, he said those incentives “won’t do much to persuade people who believe that green energy is a conspiracy against the American way of life.” Krugman’s right. There is a conspiracy afoot. It’s called the Iron Law of Power Density. It will not be repealed.
