Letter: Fossil fuels brought mankind out of the dark ages

Before the recent climate talks in Paris, the Pope said it will be “catastrophic” not to curb fossil fuel emissions since global warming is “... mainly manmade.” If global warming is mainly manmade, did man cause the global warming over previous climatic warming periods — 800, 2,000, 4,500, and 6,500 years ago?

He says the poor are largely excluded from today’s fossil fuel-based global economy. This is not even a true statement. Today’s fossil fuel-based economy (cheap, plentiful, on-demand electricity, inexpensive oil and natural gas) is what brought mankind, including the poor, out of the dark ages. It brought a reduction in infant and child mortality rates from nearly 50 percent to under 1 percent, and an increase in life expectancy from under 30 years to nearly 80.

The Pope says it would be catastrophic for special interests to prevail, manipulating information for their own interests. The largest special interests are world leaders and politicians who claim the earth is doomed unless we pay a trillion dollars per year global tax.

This tax will only assure third-world dictators and despots get rich and maintain oppressive control over the lives of the very people the Pope rightly says need help — the poor. And the U.S. middle class will end up footing most of this bill.

This story was originally published January 19, 2016 at 5:19 PM with the headline "Letter: Fossil fuels brought mankind out of the dark ages."