While everyone’s busy watching Musk’s circus, Harold Hamm is quietly pulling the strings on the real show—gutting climate protections, stacking the administration with fossil fuel loyalists, and ensuring Big Oil keeps cashing in at the planet’s expense. Musk craves attention. Hamm craves control. Guess which one is more dangerous?
We knew this was coming. We all said so last year, to no avail. All we can do is call it out as much as possible until the government stops us, or we convince enough people to put a stop to all of this obvious corruption. Right now, things could go either way.
Thanks for turning over the rock and exposing Harold Hamm, a villain straight out of central casting. Trump's campaign riff on lowering pump prices was obviously an empty promise that gullible voters bought into. I agree the intent of the wrecking-ball policies is oil profits, but it's also a means to secure demand for petroleum for the decades ahead. Capital investments in refineries and pipelines and the marginalization of renewables and EVs together lock in fossil fuel hegemony for many years. They must fail.
Hannah Einbinder calling out the fossil fuel industry. Chappell Roan calling out the big music labels. Ladies using their platform to lead the charge once again.
Here's what is so incredibly myopic about dt's anti-environmental actions: climate change doesn't only affect the US, it affects the whole world. And the rest of the world isn't making idiotic decisions to drag us back into the glory days of 1973 - they recognize the problem and are taking steps to solve it. So, while dt drags us backward in technology and public perceptions, China and most other industrialized nations are steaming forward. This will leave the US in the dust, trying to catch up. Certainly not the way to make America great again.
Just a note-Chris Wright isn’t a climate denier, but he side-steps it by saying that zero energy poverty is more important than net zero greenhouse gas. I analyzed his crazy publication https://libertyenergy.com/esg/bettering-human-lives/ and it Cherry picks from IPCC documents saying that not having energy is more dangerous to people than climate change. He uses incomplete and misleading information. He doesn’t take into account the damage of climate change and additive effects that will create much more severe problems along with energy poverty in the future if we don’t stop emitting Ghg.
One thing that Hamm & the FF industry are doing is funding lots of energy disinformation disguised as "education" or un-"politicized" discussion. One vector has been through Scott Tinker and the Switch Energy Alliance. Apparently pals with Chris Wright. https://switchon.org/presentations
Very clever framing: E.g. "Exploring the Future of Energy and Sustainability through Civil Dialog and Critical Thinking."
They are big on spreading huge exaggerations of the energy and resource needs of wind and solar, and the environmental impacts of these, while downplaying the quickly accelerating contributions of wind and solar. (These met something like 3/4 of the worldwide growth in electricity use last year.)
Their viewpoints are infiltrating significant parts of the environmental movement. E.g. Scott Tinker was featured on "The Great Simplification" with Nate Hagens.
Just a moment of pre-bunking on that:
Wind turbine lifespan is typically 25 years, with most parts recycled, and new, better turbines installed in "repowering." Claims are made of 10-15 years and "all thrown away." Yes, there have been bad batches of wind turbines which required early replacement.
New solar PV systems lifespan is likely 35 years, with the "life" determined by a slow decline from the panels. Probably the racks will last for 100 years and get new more efficient panels 3x.
Emissions paybacks from solar and wind are in the one year range now. Lots of fancy footwork by FF PR to claim much longer, by using the primary energy fallacy while assuming older tech installed in places where it's not very windy or sunny.
The following link is the kind of thing that keeps my motor humming:
Thanks for recognizing the different treatments of fossil and wind and solar energy development by the GOP/fossil folks. A lot of media is just reporting that the new admin is "opening up" land to "energy development."
My take is that that domestic fossil gas is over-producing, for two key reasons. "Needed" new oil wells often yield lots of un-needed gas, and horizontal drilling has led to huge increases in output per well and per field. Last year, the inflation-adjusted wholesale prices for fossil gas were the lowest ever recorded. Ever.
The PR blitz against, and various restrictions on, wind and solar are because they have been successful at reducing demand growth for gas generation, and coal too. Worldwide, the solar PV and battery booms are scaring the fossil fuel industry along with the start of an EV revolution.
Thank you for shining a spotlight on another villain! Knowing more about these grifters allows me to successfully argue with Trumpers who seem to never get it. But, I still try. Stories like these are why I am subscribing to Heated.
I'd never heard of Harold Hamm. Thank you for this. It feels more terrifying to know the details of the people making these decisions outside of Trump. I'm not going to lie, I am scared. If people have ideas of how everyday Americans can fight back - outside of representative calls - share them here! Really good to know about those Dems! I wonder if there could be some Reddit action re: Liberty Energy being public
While everyone’s busy watching Musk’s circus, Harold Hamm is quietly pulling the strings on the real show—gutting climate protections, stacking the administration with fossil fuel loyalists, and ensuring Big Oil keeps cashing in at the planet’s expense. Musk craves attention. Hamm craves control. Guess which one is more dangerous?
I love your writing.
Aw! Thanks Keith!
We knew this was coming. We all said so last year, to no avail. All we can do is call it out as much as possible until the government stops us, or we convince enough people to put a stop to all of this obvious corruption. Right now, things could go either way.
Thanks for turning over the rock and exposing Harold Hamm, a villain straight out of central casting. Trump's campaign riff on lowering pump prices was obviously an empty promise that gullible voters bought into. I agree the intent of the wrecking-ball policies is oil profits, but it's also a means to secure demand for petroleum for the decades ahead. Capital investments in refineries and pipelines and the marginalization of renewables and EVs together lock in fossil fuel hegemony for many years. They must fail.
Hannah Einbinder calling out the fossil fuel industry. Chappell Roan calling out the big music labels. Ladies using their platform to lead the charge once again.
Here's what is so incredibly myopic about dt's anti-environmental actions: climate change doesn't only affect the US, it affects the whole world. And the rest of the world isn't making idiotic decisions to drag us back into the glory days of 1973 - they recognize the problem and are taking steps to solve it. So, while dt drags us backward in technology and public perceptions, China and most other industrialized nations are steaming forward. This will leave the US in the dust, trying to catch up. Certainly not the way to make America great again.
Just a note-Chris Wright isn’t a climate denier, but he side-steps it by saying that zero energy poverty is more important than net zero greenhouse gas. I analyzed his crazy publication https://libertyenergy.com/esg/bettering-human-lives/ and it Cherry picks from IPCC documents saying that not having energy is more dangerous to people than climate change. He uses incomplete and misleading information. He doesn’t take into account the damage of climate change and additive effects that will create much more severe problems along with energy poverty in the future if we don’t stop emitting Ghg.
One thing that Hamm & the FF industry are doing is funding lots of energy disinformation disguised as "education" or un-"politicized" discussion. One vector has been through Scott Tinker and the Switch Energy Alliance. Apparently pals with Chris Wright. https://switchon.org/presentations
Very clever framing: E.g. "Exploring the Future of Energy and Sustainability through Civil Dialog and Critical Thinking."
They are big on spreading huge exaggerations of the energy and resource needs of wind and solar, and the environmental impacts of these, while downplaying the quickly accelerating contributions of wind and solar. (These met something like 3/4 of the worldwide growth in electricity use last year.)
Their viewpoints are infiltrating significant parts of the environmental movement. E.g. Scott Tinker was featured on "The Great Simplification" with Nate Hagens.
Just a moment of pre-bunking on that:
Wind turbine lifespan is typically 25 years, with most parts recycled, and new, better turbines installed in "repowering." Claims are made of 10-15 years and "all thrown away." Yes, there have been bad batches of wind turbines which required early replacement.
New solar PV systems lifespan is likely 35 years, with the "life" determined by a slow decline from the panels. Probably the racks will last for 100 years and get new more efficient panels 3x.
Emissions paybacks from solar and wind are in the one year range now. Lots of fancy footwork by FF PR to claim much longer, by using the primary energy fallacy while assuming older tech installed in places where it's not very windy or sunny.
The following link is the kind of thing that keeps my motor humming:
https://agrisolareurope.org/article/tackling-the-polycrisis-agri-pv-offers-a-win-win-solution/
Excellent and important post today - Hamm is the shadow Musk!
Shame on all of them
Nature bats last.
Thanks for recognizing the different treatments of fossil and wind and solar energy development by the GOP/fossil folks. A lot of media is just reporting that the new admin is "opening up" land to "energy development."
My take is that that domestic fossil gas is over-producing, for two key reasons. "Needed" new oil wells often yield lots of un-needed gas, and horizontal drilling has led to huge increases in output per well and per field. Last year, the inflation-adjusted wholesale prices for fossil gas were the lowest ever recorded. Ever.
The PR blitz against, and various restrictions on, wind and solar are because they have been successful at reducing demand growth for gas generation, and coal too. Worldwide, the solar PV and battery booms are scaring the fossil fuel industry along with the start of an EV revolution.
Dear Emily,
Thank you for shining a spotlight on another villain! Knowing more about these grifters allows me to successfully argue with Trumpers who seem to never get it. But, I still try. Stories like these are why I am subscribing to Heated.
Best,
Jan Rasmussen
I'd never heard of Harold Hamm. Thank you for this. It feels more terrifying to know the details of the people making these decisions outside of Trump. I'm not going to lie, I am scared. If people have ideas of how everyday Americans can fight back - outside of representative calls - share them here! Really good to know about those Dems! I wonder if there could be some Reddit action re: Liberty Energy being public