Energy Consumption is Good for You

The Wall Street Journal recently published data from the World Resource Institute on per capita energy consumption by country. And guess what? The United States was not on top of the list.

Instead, we were tenth on the list. The top 10 is dominated by smaller countries, with a number in the Middle East and the Caribbean. But Canada was ahead of us. Doesn't that left-leaning nation realize what an outrage their lifestyle is?

Not only is there nothing wrong with consuming a great deal of energy, but in fact it is wonderful to do so. Whether it is for climate control, the use in industrial and commercial activity, transportation, powering modern medicine, or the enjoyment of electronic devices, our lives are immeasurably better because of energy usage.

More broadly, harnessing energy for human purposes has done more to improve the material conditions of our lives than any other activity.

Barack Obama apparently thinks so too, although his public comments on the subject toe the environmental line. He keeps the Oval Office at very high temperatures, so high that David Axelrod said, "He likes it warm. You could grow orchids in there."

If only his policies and rhetoric matched his deeds.