James Hanley
Contributor
James E. Hanley is a Senior Policy Analyst at the non-partisan Empire Center for Public Policy. He earned his Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of Oregon, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship under 2009 Economics Nobel Prize winner Elinor Ostrom, and nearly two decades of teaching Political Science and Economics at the collegiate level. The ideas expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of his employer. He can be followed on Twitter at @empire_hanley.
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The Lesson of Joe Biden’s Disappearing Presidency
“Despite allegedly being the most powerful person in the world, Presidents frequently find that events – particularly geopolitical events – control them, rather than vice versa. Derailed presidencies may be more the norm than the exception.” ~ James E. Hanley
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The Battle for 1.5 Degrees of Warming Is Already Lost, So What’s Plan B?
“If the understanding of the link between CO2 and warming is correct, we are not stopping at 1.5 degrees warmer than in the pre-industrial era. The IPCC indicates that we are likely to experience between 2 and 3 degrees of warming. So what do we do?” ~ James E. Hanley
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Why President Biden’s Climate Goals Are Fictional
“President Biden’s climate goals have something in common with many science fiction movies. The future that seems so far away is in reality too temporally close to make the story plausible.” ~ James E. Hanley
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Do We Have A Climate “Crisis” Only Because We’re So Comfortable?
“It’s sad that creating an increasingly comfortable world isn’t a grand enough battle to capture human attention and spirit. But as always in politics, we must take humans as they are, not as we wish they were.” ~ James E. Hanley
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Africa Needs Carbon Fuels
“It’s time to end environmental colonialism. Let Africa develop – quickly – and they, like people elsewhere, will choose more environmental protection as they grow wealthier.” ~ James E. Hanley
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Institutions, Incentives, and the Impending Death of the Senate Filibuster
“If the old rules failed to function as intended, there would be more justification for junking the filibuster altogether. That would be a sad day for the republic, but at least we would have tried to save it.” ~ James E. Hanley
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Critical Race Theory Does Not Dismantle, But Reinforces Social Power Structures
“Just as CRT advocates argue that white supremacist power structures harm white people as well, their maintenance of those power structures will continue to harm people, including those they claim to want to help.” ~ James E. Hanley
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Green Jobs Are a Cost, not a Benefit
“If we have decided to transition to clean energy for environmental reasons, then we should hope for clean energy that requires fewer jobs. That would be a real benefit.” ~ James E. Hanley
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All Value Is Subjective, and That’s a Good Thing
“If anything had intrinsic value, we could only either exchange it for a price precisely matching that value, with neither of us becoming better off, or exchange it for a price different from its ‘true’ value, with one person ending up worse off because of the exchange.” ~ James E. Hanley
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Will We Accept Nuclear Fusion When It Comes?
“By using the most abundant element on earth, hydrogen, Fusion provides a limitless future. The only question is whether our politics allows us to accept this good fortune.” ~ James E. Hanley
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The Lesson of Joe Biden’s Disappearing Presidency
“Despite allegedly being the most powerful person in the world, Presidents frequently find that events – particularly geopolitical events – control them, rather than vice versa. Derailed presidencies may be more the norm than the exception.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
The Battle for 1.5 Degrees of Warming Is Already Lost, So What’s Plan B?
“If the understanding of the link between CO2 and warming is correct, we are not stopping at 1.5 degrees warmer than in the pre-industrial era. The IPCC indicates that we are likely to experience between 2 and 3 degrees of warming. So what do we do?” ~ James E. Hanley
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•
Why President Biden’s Climate Goals Are Fictional
“President Biden’s climate goals have something in common with many science fiction movies. The future that seems so far away is in reality too temporally close to make the story plausible.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
Do We Have A Climate “Crisis” Only Because We’re So Comfortable?
“It’s sad that creating an increasingly comfortable world isn’t a grand enough battle to capture human attention and spirit. But as always in politics, we must take humans as they are, not as we wish they were.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
Africa Needs Carbon Fuels
“It’s time to end environmental colonialism. Let Africa develop – quickly – and they, like people elsewhere, will choose more environmental protection as they grow wealthier.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
Institutions, Incentives, and the Impending Death of the Senate Filibuster
“If the old rules failed to function as intended, there would be more justification for junking the filibuster altogether. That would be a sad day for the republic, but at least we would have tried to save it.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
Critical Race Theory Does Not Dismantle, But Reinforces Social Power Structures
“Just as CRT advocates argue that white supremacist power structures harm white people as well, their maintenance of those power structures will continue to harm people, including those they claim to want to help.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
Green Jobs Are a Cost, not a Benefit
“If we have decided to transition to clean energy for environmental reasons, then we should hope for clean energy that requires fewer jobs. That would be a real benefit.” ~ James E. Hanley
-
•
All Value Is Subjective, and That’s a Good Thing
“If anything had intrinsic value, we could only either exchange it for a price precisely matching that value, with neither of us becoming better off, or exchange it for a price different from its ‘true’ value, with one person ending up worse off because of the exchange.” ~ James E. Hanley
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•
Will We Accept Nuclear Fusion When It Comes?
“By using the most abundant element on earth, hydrogen, Fusion provides a limitless future. The only question is whether our politics allows us to accept this good fortune.” ~ James E. Hanley