Historically, the greatest scientists are great precisely because they broke with the consensus. Remember this when discussing global warming and other environmental issues. Such issues are always contentious, for they share two characteristics: They are technically complex and highly emotional. Can you think of a single environmental issue that isn’t both? Global warming tops the […]
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I was asked by a friend about my position on I-147, the initiative to repeal Montana’s ban on cyanide heap leach mining. He knows I am a strong supporter of free markets. He thought I would support repealing the ban, for it would generate jobs. He’s certainly wrong about my position, but his misunderstanding of […]
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In 1968 I had the immense good fortune to work with Garrett Hardin, a distinguished ecologist. His Science article, “The Tragedy of the Commons,” is the most reprinted article in the magazine’s history. Together, Garrett and I produced a book in print for nearly 20 years, Managing the Commons. (A second edition is published by […]
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I live in the Sourdough Creek watershed, just south of Bozeman. This mix of federal, state, and private lands is highly valued — as a recreation spot for city residents, for its wildlife habitat, and as one of Bozeman’s primary sources of drinking water. The watershed’s forests and soils are a natural filter for the […]
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We protect the environment because we care about clean air and preserving other species, not mainly for financial reasons. But we also value inexpensive supplies of power and fast and convenient transportation. All interesting and important policy questions involve choosing among competing values. Consider climate change. How does human action influence future climates? How willing […]
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I like open space and affordable housing. How can we have more of both in the fastest growing county in Montana? The good news is we don’t make all or nothing choices. However, we should remember two rules of public policy: not all good things go together and there are no cost-free solutions. Bozeman’s high […]
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For approximately 150 years Sears, Roebuck & Company was a retail giant. It made a fortune by selling quality products at low prices to middle- and lower-class Americans. Its innovative business strategies effectively drove its chief competitor, Montgomery Ward, from the market. The famous Sears catalog, for the first time, provided rural Americans access to […]
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My friends are not in Bozeman by accident. As they contemplated relocation, a key consideration was the quality of their children’s public schools. By any objective measure, ours are excellent. SAT scores at Bozeman High are well above the national average. Each year it produces a number of National Merit Scholars and sends several graduates […]
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Lava Lake in the Madison Range just south of Bozeman is a favorite destination for participants in our summer programs for federal judges and law professors. Most years the lake trail is clogged with snow until early July. But that’s changing. Shorter, warmer winters and drier summers are here. Warmer spring temperatures cause our rivers […]
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Many of my friends express concern at the rapid economic growth of China and India (9.9 and 8.4 percent annually, respectively). They fear the environment will suffer greatly if all these people adopt an American lifestyle. Since the Earth’s natural resources (e.g., timber, fossil fuels, and minerals) are limited, aren’t there natural limits to growth? […]
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