Assume, for the moment, you separated the "green energy" arguments from the "climate change" fanaticism.
It's difficult, I know, but let's try a thought experiment. After all, many of the arguments that liberals have made over the years have claimed that transitioning to so-called "green" energy would create enormous economic benefits, and that the benefits of avoiding climate change's consequences were just one variable in the equation.
The argument was simple: nobody sacrifices anything by pushing forward the green revolution, because "renewable" energy is cheaper anyway, and many new industries will spring up during the transition. Oil companies are lying and just want to protect their profits, and skeptic like me are just tools of the oligarchy.
European politicians promised voters that continent’s green transition would be a win-win: Citizens would benefit from green jobs and cheap, abundant solar and wind energy, while saving the planet. But the 2 decades green revolution has driven up electricity prices and crippled… pic.twitter.com/ngaOzxbzGa
— Helen Raleigh (@HRaleighspeaks) December 3, 2025
Yeah, well, nobody who made those claims actually believed them, and the realities are actually worse than many of the advocates themselves believed because they never bothered to think deeply about the costs and benefits of the policies they were flacking for. They saw dollar signs for themselves and increased political power, and that's all that mattered.
As insane as American energy policies have been at times, the "green" lobby in America has made far less headway than in Europe.
Europe has been committing economic suicide, which, I suppose, is totally on brand since they are destroying themselves every way possible.
European politicians pitched the continent’s green transition to voters as a win-win: Citizens would benefit from green jobs and cheap, abundant solar and wind energy alongside a sharp reduction in carbon emissions.
Nearly two decades on, the promise has largely proved costly for consumers and damaging for the economy.
Europe has succeeded in slashing carbon emissions more than any other region—by 30% from 2005 levels, compared with a 17% drop for the U.S. But along the way, the rush to renewables has helped drive up electricity prices in much of the continent.
Germany now has the highest domestic electricity prices in the developed world, while the U.K. has the highest industrial electricity rates, according to a basket of 28 major economies analyzed by the International Energy Agency. Italy isn’t far behind. Average electricity prices for heavy industries in the European Union remain roughly twice those in the U.S. and 50% above China. Energy prices have also grown more volatile as the share of renewables increased.
Europe is deindustrializing in pursuit of Net Zero. As these countries export their production to places like China, they are strangling their own economies, as those other countries emit much more carbon dioxide while producing the same goods.
A coal-fired power plant in China's Sichuan province.
— Based Jessica (@RealJessica) October 23, 2025
China now emits more CO2 than the USA, Europe, Canada, Japan and South Korea combined.
Meanwhile, Europe is regulating their manufacturing out of business to "save the planet". It is all ridiculous. They close their… pic.twitter.com/s6yNnKbbDF
On net, European policies have ensured that more carbon dioxide is emitted in total, which is exactly the opposite of their stated goal.
But let's stick to the economics. European leaders claimed that they would become an economic superpower by focusing on green energy. Yet the opposite has happened. As the United States and China have continued to grow, Europe has completely stagnated. Germany, which used to be the beating heart of the European economy, has seen its GDP shrink as it has been tearing down nuclear plants.
Sixteen years ago, the US and EU economies were nearly equal in size.
— Steve Hanke (@steve_hanke) December 30, 2024
Today, the US economy is 50% larger than the EU.
Europe is being STRANGLED by the EU and its Commission President von der Leyen's red tape. pic.twitter.com/NC23A1QZNZ
The "green economy" claims were not just wrong; they were a lie. A fairy tale spun by a transnational elite who saw an opportunity to seize control of entire sectors of the economy, grab massive subsidies to create a fantasy.
Think "California High Speed Rail" on a scale that makes that one look like a pimple on an elephant's behind. Instead of billions, think trillions. John Kerry was arguing that the West should pour 3-5 trillion dollars a YEAR into the green energy scam.
Trillion. A year.
You see the results in Europe. That is what the Democrats have been trying to do in America.
Whatever you think about CO2 and climate, it's impossible to argue that these policies have produced the promised results. CO2 levels are still climbing, and China is increasing its energy production and carbon output at a rate that makes the Western industrial revolution look slow.
What's infuriating is that most of these advocates knew they were selling a lie.
And yet we are called the "science deniers."
- Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy Hot Air's conservative reporting that takes on the radical left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join Hot Air VIP and use the promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your VIP membership!
Join the conversation as a VIP Member