For as long as I can remember, Bill Gates has been warning the world that global warming/climate change is an existential crisis that must be averted at all costs. Over the years, he has made countless media appearances in which he has claimed that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels are the main source of the crisis. In 2021, he wrote a book titled "How to Avoid a Climate Disaster."
It is more than fair to say that Gates has been one of the most vocal and prominent climate alarmists over the past few decades.
In a stunning rhetorical reversal, Gates now says that climate change "will not lead to humanity's demise." In fact, according to Gates, "People will be able to live and thrive in most places on Earth for the foreseeable future."
Although these statements make good headlines, when one digs deeper into his recent blog post titled "Three tough truths about climate," one realizes that while Gates may be toning down the alarmist rhetoric, he continues to mislead about climate change in general.
His first tough truth, which I will solely focus upon in this article, is that "climate change is a serious problem, but it will not be the end of civilization." He is correct on the latter but wrong on the former.
A slightly warming Earth does not mean Armageddon for humanity. In fact, compelling arguments can be made that a little bit of global warming is a net benefit. Even Gates admits, "Surprisingly, excessive cold is far deadlier, killing nearly ten times more people every year than heat does."
Gates presents little evidence to support his claim that climate change is a serious problem. Instead, he assumes that carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels are the primary culprit, and the solution is a transition to green energy.
Gates concedes that "more energy is a good thing." He cites how energy is key to economic growth and "improving lives." He knows that AI and data centers require abundant energy.
Yet, he continues to peddle the lie that "wind and solar have gotten cheaper and better."
He touts "improvements like better electric vehicles, dramatically cheaper solar and wind power, and batteries to store electricity from renewable."
He says, "The Green Premium—the cost difference between clean and dirty ways of doing something—reached zero or became negative for solar, wind, power storage, and electric vehicles. By and large, they are just as cheap as, or even cheaper than, their fossil fuel counterparts."
This is entirely false. The truth is that wind and solar are unaffordable, unreliable, and bad for the environment.
Perhaps Bill Gates is biased toward green energy. He does happen to own a "green" energy company. And he has personally invested more than $2 billion in renewable projects and companies.
"With the right investments and policies in place, over the next ten years we will have new affordable zero-carbon technologies ready to roll out at scale," he says. In other words, with more mandates and subsidies, we can force the public to transition to green energy, whether they like it or not.
Ordinary cynics probably think Gates is pushing climate change/green transition propaganda for money and greed. Maybe. Perhaps power. He very well could believe that with just a little more time and government support, EVs, wind, and solar will become desirable.
Whatever the case may be, the simple fact is that Gates is downplaying the existential crisis/impending apocalypse narrative on one hand while doubling down on the green transition being good, inevitable, and almost ready for primetime on the other hand.
This is clever. I think Gates understands that most Americans don't buy the existential crisis story anymore. For years, predictions of rising seas swallowing coastal cities and other doomsday projections have not come to pass.
By admitting that climate change/global warming will not result in the demise of humanity, Gates seems reasonable and nuanced. However, he continues to peddle lies about the green transition. Beware, I think this is going to be the new strategy for the climate crew going forward.
Climate alarmism jumped the proverbial shark. Climate realism resonated and prevailed. But the American people are still vulnerable. The far Left uses climate change for a much bigger purpose than many realize, and will continue to use it as a tool in their arsenal as they seek to impose their stealth socialism.
Chris Talgo (ctalgo@heartland.org) is editorial director of The Heartland Institute.