| Energy Realism this past week examined Biden’s ongoing failed energy dreams (err, nightmare) and why political favoritism must be rejected by those of us demanding affordable and reliable energy. Our Senior Fellow Rupert Darwall gets us started: there is no denying that this is Joe Biden’s energy crisis. The western anti-fossil fuel obsession is handing global energy markets to Russia and China. Contrary to what it claims, this administration is simply not serious about making energy affordable again. That is because high prices for fossil fuels, which supply 80% of our energy, are an intended part of the plan to force “green energy” into the system. David Holt also pushes back too since affordable and reliable energy is essential to American families and businesses. Our country’s energy policy is broken. And we are losing ground to raging inflation caused by supply shortages that the administration refuses to address out of fearing of anger its green-obsessed backers. And now, the fixation with renewables demands an absolutely gigantic build-out in transmission to connect windy and sunny spots to the population centers that use the electricity. Robert Bryce interviews Princeton’s Jesse Jenkins. Pie in the sky, Robert is rightfully incredulous that many tens of thousands of new high-voltage transmission miles can get built to surge wind and solar usage in the way that net-zero dreamers demand. Indeed, the collapse of Joe Machin’s permitting reform bill demonstrates that the “we need more wind and solar” mantra is far more politically complicated than advocates care to admit – let alone their problem with physics and natural intermittency. And in any event, Benjamin Zycher explains why the endless subsidies to get more wind and solar into the mix is the “institutionalization of irresponsibility.” It really is “the joy of spending other people’s money” that has Democrats forcing renewables into the system. The most dangerous and inefficient type of political favoritism is obsessing over provably more expensive and less reliable energy. And even while observing Yom Kippur, prolific Ben was able to give us another one this week: Biden’s ad hoc use of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is to artificially lower oil prices to help his party’s chances at the midterms. A “you must vote for me” scorched-Earth strategy that is just now starting to backfire. OPEC+ strongly punched back on the Fist Bumper this week as well. Essential Reading Joseph Toomey, RealClearEnergy The West is now facing its most severe energy crisis since the 1970s. It comes from an obsession with climate change policy and forcing seemingly endless amounts of more expensive and less reliable renewables and electric cars into the marketplace. In the News Robert Bryce, RealClearEnergy Benjamin Zycher, RealClearEnergy Tsvetana Paraskova, Oil Price William Allison, EID BBC Grace Toohey, LAT Marita Moloney, BBC Melisa Goldin, AP Yahoo News Alison F. Takemura, Canary Media UN Alejandro De La Garza, Time Josh Owens, Oil Price Joel Makower, GreenBiz Marwa Rashad, Reuters CNBC Television Goldman's Damien Courvalin joins Becky Quick and the 'CNBC Special: Markets in motion' to discuss what happens now that OPEC+ has decided to cut oil production by 2 million barrels a... Fox News FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo discusses OPEC cutting back on oil production and unpacks what impact this will have on U.S. energy. CNBC International TV Kaushal Ramesh of Rystad Energy says he's not expecting a "material increase in LNG supplies all the way until perhaps late 2024 or early 2025." AIER Europe and other Western nations are facing a very real energy crisis right now. Sanctions have prompted Russia to stop supplying natural gas to Europe, exacerbating the self-inflict... | 