[ROCKMAN]

I don't think you get it: he very specifically critised fossil fuel development...the source of his wealth. And while he might be using some of it for alt development check out how he's using it to support an extravigent life style which includes consuming more fossil fuels in one year then most individuals will in a life time.

And you do understand that the good golks of San Fran govt followed the same investment strategy as folks that don't give a crap about the environment, don't you? And you do understand that they didn't donate their fossil fuel profits to charity...or to groups fighting climate change, don't you?

[Graeme]

How to join the divestment movement – your questions answered

Anyone with a checking account, savings or a 401(k) will almost certainly have money invested in oil, gas and coal companies. Find out how to divest by reviewing the questions and answers in this live chat with our expert panel.

theguardian

[Outcast_Searcher]

Hmmm... For clothing, there is wool and cotton and linen and silk and leather and ... shall I continue?

More seriously about divestment, I suspect a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" position from its opponents. "If you don't like the company, then don't buy its stock. You have no right to do anything else.", combined with "you are hurting yourself, and you are hurting lots of innocent people, if you don't buy that company's stock."

So in your mind, sheep and cows and cotton, etc. are magically grown without using ANY fossil fuels? If you believe this, you are totally delusional.

[Outcast_Searcher]

Excellent, rockdoc. I was going to point out that it would be nice if the FF divestment crowd would do less preening and self-congratulating, and more reducing THEIR OWN fossil fuel usage in a meaningful way.

Ah, but that would be so .... inconvenient.

[ROCKMAN]

outcast - "...it would be nice if the FF divestment crowd...". Just a minor tweak: it's actually the FF STOCK divestment crowd. The good folks in San Fran and elsewhere have not divested themselves from FF consumption. They still buy the products and thus directly contribute to the profits of the FF extraction industry.

[Graeme]

If more people divested, we wouldn't images like these:





California Drought Caused By Canadian Tar Sands Deforestation Funded By Koch Brothers

[lpetrich]

Hmmm... For clothing, there is wool and cotton and linen and silk and leather and ... shall I continue?

So in your mind, sheep and cows and cotton, etc. are magically grown without using ANY fossil fuels? If you believe this, you are totally delusional.

They were grown without any fossil-fuel input before the Industrial Revolution. Likewise for clothing items made from them. Leather from animal skin, thread from wool and cotton and linen and silk, fabric from thread, dyes from various sources, ...

There is no law of nature that says that an industrial civilization has to be run on fossil fuels. Our big challenge is to get off of fossil fuels while there is enough of them to easily power the transition. First-generation renewable systems will have to be built using fossil fuels, and I fully concede that. But later generations should require less and less.

[ROCKMAN]

I - "There is no law of nature that says that an industrial civilization has to be run on fossil fuels.". So true. OTOH the utilization of ff is governed by economic law...not Mother Earth. Which is why the world is producing more Btu's from ff today then ever before in history. And will until the same economic laws dictate otherwise. IOW the alts will rule the day...when they satisfy the same laws that ff do today.

BTW kudo's the San Fran govt: they bought ff stocks low and sold them high before the crash. Some pretty savvy ff investors they have out there. LOL. I wonder if they'll make the same front page announcement when their money managers eventually slip back into the ff market? After all buying an oil pubco's stock from other shareholders doesn't fund the company's activities...it only changes the name on the certificates.

It always amazing to see folks who really don't understand the dynamics that drive ff development.