Robert Bradley Jr., a very knowledgeable energy economist with significant experience in the energy market, recently interviewed me for MasterResource, a blog covering energy issues from a free market perspective: Bradley: How did the just-completed Texas legislative session deal with the February Blackout that caused so much damage to life and property? Peacock: The session had two issues to address here….
Author: Bill
Subsidies to Nowhere
A Year-by-Year Estimate of Renewable Energy Subsidy Costs for Texas and for the U.S. The Texas electricity market is being overrun by renewable energy generation. Since 2018, 79.3% of all new generation has been intermittent renewable energy. Only 19.1% has come from generation that can be dispatched, and all of that comes from one source—natural…
Troy I.S.D and Jack County Set to Bring More Renewables to Texas
Residents in two Texas counties may soon face new renewable energy farms if local officials don’t change their tune. Monday night (June 21 @ 6 p.m.) the trustees on the board of Troy I.S.D. can approve a tax abatement for Big Elm Solar. The solar farm will cover about 3,000 acres in Bell County, and…
The Liberty Café 42: The Texas Legislature’s Whiff on the Great Texas Blackout
Dealing with the Great Texas Blackout of 2021 was near the top of the to do list for Texas Legislators this session. This week on the Liberty Café we take a look how the Texas Legislature failed to deal with both the causes and the fallout of the blackout–though we’ll suggest different reasons than are…
The Liberty Café 41: What Jesus Said about the Ruling Elite and Corporate Cronyism – A Discussion w/ Jerry Bowyer
Jesus is making all things new, but some things stubbornly remain the same. That is particularly true about current ruling elites when compared to those of the 1st Century A.D. On Episode 41 of the Liberty Café, economist Jerry Bowyer helps us understand what Jesus said about rulers, wealth, and corporate cronyism in his day…
The Houston Chronicle Takes on Chapter 313
I don’t usually find a lot worth quoting in the mainstream media. But the Houston Chronicle as been on a bit of a rampage of late against corporate welfare in the form of Chapter 313 property tax abatements offered by Texas school districts to big businesses–especially renewable energy wind and solar farms: “As millions of Texans…
Three Cheers for Cultural Christianity
by Timon Cline It is presently in vogue amongst evangelical cultural elites to decry “Cultural Christianity,” or alternatively, “Bible Belt Religion.” Ray Ortlund’s tweet from April 12th encapsulates this mood. “I rejoice at the decline of Bible Belt Religion,” he wrote. “It made bad people worse—in the name of Jesus. Now may we actually believe in Him,…
Shutdowns Were a Disaster
by John Hinderaker The Wall Street Journal notes that, as the coronavirus disappears in the rear-view mirror, two Americas are emerging: The unemployment rate in April nationwide was 6.1%, but this obscures giant variations in the states. With some exceptions, those run by Democrats such as California (8.3%) and New York (8.2%) continued to suffer significantly higher…
Being Conservative is No Longer Enough
We don’t need to spend time calling Americans back to conservatism; we need to call them to faith in Jesus. The modern conservative movement came to life in the 1950s around William F. Buckley, Jr. and National Review. Thirty years later Ronald Reagan and the Heritage Foundation brought it into the mainstream. When Newt Gingrich…
The Liberty Café 40: The Corrupting Power of Government-Texas Edition
Earthly power is corrupting. Unfortunately, most power exercised today by our elected officials–including those in Texas–is earthly, not biblical. Yes, their authority as rulers comes from God, but most of what that they do with their God-given authority defies God’s commands in Scripture. On Episode 40 of the Liberty Café, we examine what this means…