Global Warming: Why Reducing Fossil Fuel Use is Essential

Why reducing fossil fuel use is essential, regardless of the outcome of the climate change debate

As the global warming debate heads into the 15th round, bold action to reduce fossil fuel use within the United States is still nowhere to be seen. But there are a number of compelling reasons to reduce fossil fuel use that have nothing whatsoever to do with lingering debates over global warming, and that have major economic and strategic implications for the very near future. It is long past time to decouple the climate change debate from considerations of how fossil fuel consumption, and particularly crude oil consumption, might be drastically reduced.