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The economic evidence is pretty clear that:

  1. The global warming that has happened to date (we’ve warmed the planet by 0.85 degrees celsius since 1880) has been, on net, an economic positive. That is, the world is richer and safer as a result of the global warming that has already occurred as compared to a counterfactual world where it stayed cooler. You may want to think about why. I WILL point out that the net benefits are not evenly distributed, they tend to be accruing in the rich countries.
  2. Economic models that use the Integrated Assessment Models derived by climate researchers are finding that global warming is going to continue to be producing net benefits for humanity for the very foreseeable future. Your mileage may vary on the timing of the turnaround (e.g. 2040 or 2070 or 2100 or beyond) but this is undeniably true.

How many people are even vaguely aware of this?

And if we are being paragons of science, under what conditions would “scientists” actually recommend subsidizing the activities that promote global warming if indeed the outcomes are going to end up being good? No economist I know of, by the way, endorses such a rigorous view of efficiency, but the thought question is worth asking.

3 Responses to “Weekend Ponderance: Science Denier Edition”

  1. Alex says:

    ‘Under what conditions would “scientists” actually recommend subsidizing the activities that promote global warming if indeed the outcomes are going to end up being good?’

    Probably only if all species were considered in the calculations and if the timeline went much longer into the future.

    • Harry says:

      Alex, of course you mean that ironically, right?

      • Alex says:

        Yes and no. Yes, in the sense that actual climate scientists shouldn’t be recommending subsidizing anything because they’re not qualified. No, in the sense that the “scientists” I thought WC was referring to, i.e. lay people who proclaim to understand the science behind why global warming is so terrible, probably really do care about keeping other animals/species alive and also about a world far more in the future than 2100.

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