| Energy Realism over the past week offered a reality check on some key issues: renewables, California’s energy policies, the Biden-Harris ticket, and the growing trend of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria for private companies. James Taylor continues to reveal dirty secrets about “clean energy”—for example, the immense quantity of land required by renewable-energy systems. It appears that a significant build-out of renewable energy capacity would require unsustainable government subsidies and other market interventions. Energy Realism examines a report from the Texas Public Policy Foundation that shows how market intervention and the forced development of wind power has overburdened the state’s ratepayers. No U.S. state, though, has been shoe-horning more renewables into the electricity grid than California. Joel Kotkin has seen firsthand how bad energy policies have helped derail the California dream. Blaming the state’s wildfires on “global warming” is simply an excuse for decades of failed leadership. And Daniel Turner warns that California’s obvious energy problems will spread across the country if Joe Biden and Kamala Harris win in November. To close the week, editors at RealClearEnergy report on a recent ESG eventcast from the Manhattan Institute that discussed the push for “stakeholder capitalism,” which extends corporations far beyond their traditional model of profit-seeking. This mission creep, by applying ambitious operating guidelines only to American firms, will shift more investment and jobs overseas—to the benefit of China, where such standards are enforced less strictly. Energy Realism also summarizes a study from the University of Chicago Law School that concludes that the ESG push for fossil-fuel divestment could be causing trillions of dollars in shortfalls for pension-fund holders. This open door for claimants and litigation could ultimately prove the undoing of “woke capitalism.” In the News Lee Barney, Plan Adviser Donald van der Vaart, Charlotte Observer Robert Bryce, Forbes Dale Kasler, Sacramento Bee Rebecca Moore, Plan Sponsor Robert Bryce, FREOPP Imogen Tew, FT Adviser Pippa Stevens, CNBC Michael Schellenberger, Forbes Staff, Reuters Staff, Bloomberg Richard Morrison, Competitive Enterprise Institute Dieter Holger, The Wall Street Journal Andrew Stuttaford, National Review Staff, Financial Times Alex Epstein's Improve the Planet On this week's Power Hour, Alex Epstein brings back Michael Shellenberger, our most popular guest of 2020, for an in-depth look at the California blackouts and the California wildfires. Manhattan Institute As Americans of all stripes debate contentious social issues, one group in particular is making its voice heard: corporate leaders. Citing the doctrines of “stakeholder capitalism” a... Alex Epstein's Improve the Planet On this week's Power Hour Alex Epstein interviews Mark Mills, Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, on the future of energy in general and "renewable energy" in particular. Real Engineering California has made an unprecedented push for more renewable energy. Is this making the power grid less reliable? | 
