Malthusian Danger Cage Match Round II

Steve Bodzin joins the Malthus-McArdle team against Greg Clark and Brad DeLong:

Hoisted from Comments: Steve Bodzin: Howdy Brad,

It's not so simple, is it? Real estate and urban planning lock in high levels of energy consumption in the U.S. There is no easy way for the U.S. to approach a Danish level of consumption without, in Clark's word, "suffering." Some of this "suffering" -- fewer vehicle and air trips and a reduction in use of climate control -- would be very good for the environment and economy, but when choices become more constrained by a lack of resources, that is indeed suffering.

Except for the high-schoolers being forced to bike to school in Davis. That isn't suffering.

It is in June! And in August! Being forced to leave one's bathtub in Davis during the summer is suffering!

Comments

[Matt]

I used three tanks of gas ($120) per year. I quit driving when I got a bogus no turn signal ticket.

Since my ticket, the county and state have probably spent $300 trying to collect. They already burnt their gas they expect me to pay.

Give me a legal meter in which I can drop a few bucks and pay all my legal costs for the ten days or so a year I do major shopping. Put the electronic thingy on my car, charge me my legal fees by the mile. Give me better accuracy.

[Ian Whitchurch]

Then either suffer, or pay people like me what we ask.

Ian Whitchurch

[a]

How much air conditioning is used by computers today vs. 40 years ago?

[Mads Keller]

The US problaby have a huge potential for reducing the energy consumption.

A former minister of the environment told a story about an base in Greenland the Danish military took control over from the US. The danish was to run the base and do the same operations. The use of energy was cut in half. This was told to an audience of economists, at the danish national economics association. Now this minister have a reputation of being to lose with the data when he tells story's, but the core of the story I believe to be true.

Beside the lack of control with the overuse of energy, there is (according to the few danish house builders I know who has build in the US) the question of isolation. A typical US house just leaks more heat (and cold) than a danish house. We have some rules about how much isolation the walls and the roof must have. I think. When the price of oil rises, people will probably isolate the buildings them self. That will off course mean a reduction in consumption, at least in the short run.

[nodakdude]

I grew up in Davis. Before 10 am and after 7 pm, the summers aren't bad at all.