An Appeal To Reason

Global warming is an issue on which everyone – from layman to scientist, besides politicians, economists, policy makers and businessmen – has a stake, and an opinion that often borders on the extreme. In this persuasively argued work, Nigel Lawson calls for a fresh look at global warming, without in any way discounting the importance of the subject.  Lawson carefully and succinctly examines all aspects of the debate: the science, the economics, the politics and the ethics. He concludes that conventional wisdom on global warming is suspect on a number o grounds; that global warming is not the devastating threat to the planet it is widely alleged to be; and that the remedy being proposed is, for very good reasons, not politically attainable; and even if it were, it would be worse than the warming it is supposed to avert.  This hard-hitting response, argued with logic, common sense and wit, is particularly relevant to India, given that as a prime mover of the so-called ‘Basic’ countries (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) India is at the forefront of the environment debate, and that policies on emissions applicable to developed nations would have a direct impact on its rapid economic development – and livelihoods.