2016 Tight Oil Reality Check
Every year, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA), publishes its Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) in which U.S. energy supply is forecast through 2040. The EIA’s yearly AEO has enormous influence with policymakers, the media, and through...
Meet the Guy Corralling Billionaires to Fight Inequality
Interview by Fran Korten In 1986, at the age of 26, Chuck Collins, the great-grandson of meatpacking giant Oscar Mayer, gave away his trust fund. He was working on forming community land trusts for affordable housing and helping mobile-home...
Localism in the Age of Trump
2016 will be remembered as the year Donald Trump—a wealthy, narcissistic political novice with a strong authoritarian bent—was elected president of the United States after campaigning against economic globalization. The events are fresh enough in many people’s minds that...
Howling at the USGS’s Wolfcamp Announcement
In a November 15 press release, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) announced that there might be a lot more oil in Texas than previously estimated: The Wolfcamp shale in the Midland Basin portion of Texas’ Permian Basin province...
So maybe this is a weird way of saying thanks
Like you, I’ve heard a lot of commentary over the last two weeks that runs the gamut from apocalyptic doom to willful optimism. The election of Donald Trump is either the worst thing that has ever happened to this...
Trump’s Coal Delusions
During the second presidential debate on October 9, Republican presidential nominee (now President-Elect) Donald Trump claimed that “clean coal” could meet the energy needs of the United States for the next 1,000 years. Now that Mr. Trump will be...
In Conversation: Justice & Equity After Fossil Fuels
Access to energy confers wealth—and power. As our energy system goes through a profound transformation away from fossil fuels, there will no doubt be winners and losers. The transition to 100% renewable energy raises profound questions for the future of...
Throw the bums out!
Embed from Getty Images America has plunged into the unknown. Why? Robert Parry has nailed it about as well as anyone. I leave it to him, and a thousand other pundits, to perform the post-mortem on yesterday’s surprising election...
Trump and the Two Sides of Populism
The 2016 election and the rise of both Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump can be explained by growing inequality and the nature of populist movements. Understanding this creates potential for serious radical change. The architects of our economy — both Republicans...
Before President Trump, fetch wood, carry water. After President Trump, fetch wood, carry water.
I watched the sun rise on the day Donald Trump became President Trump, sitting at my laptop, watching the clouds turn yellow, watching the results roll in. I had barely slept the night before, tossing and turning, wanting to...