A nuclear decriminalization platform

In this issue:

  • Decriminalizing nuclear
  • Steps toward decriminalizing nuclear with Robert Hargraves
  • Talking points
  • Fact checking PolitiFact
  • Some Cool Stuff

Decriminalizing nuclear energy

For the last year or two I’ve been advocating the policy of “decriminalizing nuclear.”

Recently I’ve started working on a comprehensive “nuclear decriminalization platform,” identifying what policies need to be eliminated and what policies need to be implemented. I am getting a lot of interest in this platform from elected officials I’m working with.

As I work on this project I am noticing a trend: most of the best commentators on nuclear do not offer a clear policy alternative. There is a lot of complaining about the NRC, about overregulation, and certainly about wrong public perception. But not a positive policy that could actually be implemented.

I aim to change that.

If you have expertise on this issue and want to suggest policies for the nuclear decriminalization platform, let me know.

“Steps toward decriminalizing nuclear” with Robert Hargraves

In pursuit of my goal of a nuclear decriminalization platform, on this week’s Power Hour I interviewed Robert Hargraves, cofounder of ThorCon and author of “Thorium: Energy Cheaper Than Coal.” Here are some of the topics we covered:

  • Why since the creation of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) over 45 years ago not one nuclear power plant has been designed and built to completion.
  • Why the Linear no Threshold guiding the NRC should be abolished.
  • What ALARA is, and how it increases nuclear costs.
  • Why South Korea builds nuclear plants at 1/3 US costs.
  • Should the NRC exist at all?

You can watch on YouTube or listen on Apple Podcasts.

Talking points

Here are some of my favorite talking points I’ve shared on Twitter this week.

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Link to the Tweet

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Link to the Tweet

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Link to the Tweet

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Link to the Tweet

Fact checking Politifact

I saw recently that the website PolitiFact, which purports to be an objective fact-checker, wrote a biased and inaccurate “fact-check” of Representative Dan Crenshaw on the Texas blackouts. I decided to point out one obvious error on Twitter in the hopes that PolitiFact would acknowledge it and apologize.

So far that hasn’t happened, but Crenshaw shared my post with his million followers. Let’s hope PolitiFact responds to me.

Here’s a link to my full explanation of the issue, which ends with “If @PolitiFact publicly admits its misrepresentation of wind subsidies in its “fact-check” of @RepDanCrenshaw‘s comments, I will gladly point out numerous other errors. I hope this will lead to reform at PolitiFact.”

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Link to Rep. Crenshaw’s post.

Some other cool stuff

  • The Center for the American Experiment in Minnesota has created the well-titled website GreenEnergyFails.com to oppose wind/solar mandates in their state.
  • If you want to thoroughly understand what has gone wrong with TX energy, from details about the recent outages to the bad philosophy driving TX’s obsession with maximizing wind generation, watch this panel I did last night at for the SalemCenter at UT-Austin.The interviewer was Greg Salmieri, the philosopher who helped me most with The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels. We were joined by Carlos Carvalho, a Statistics Professor with a lot of knowledge of markets, who contributed some very valuable points.
  • Another example of an influential thinker using one of my points. Economist Saifedean Ammous, famous in the Bitcoin world, wrote the following in response to a claim that solar is cheaper than fossil fuels:
    • This is silly fiction. Solar is unreliable which means you always need full capacity reliable hydrocarbons as backup, so spending on solar plants is just superfluous waste. Read The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels by @AlexEpstein to see a different perspective on these scams.  

Next Monday at 9 pm EST, 6 pm PST, I’ll be hosting my next Accelerator Zoom call.

I’ll be discussing:

  • The All Star group of readers I’ve put together for Fossil Future
  • The new visuals I’m working on to make energy issues far clearer
  • My ongoing and expanding work with top elected officials on energy messaging and policy

If you’re already an Accelerator, you’ll get an invitation very soon. If you’re not, you can become one here.

Contributions from Accelerators are making possible new research, new visuals, and new promotional efforts to bring the truth to millions (and then tens of millions of people).


To Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Energy,

Alex