Book Review - The Climate Fix: What Scientists and Politicians Won .

I say a lot of books. Sometimes I write reviews. Since the Pielke's (father and son) are frequently in the climate discussion news, I figured this would be a full book review to berth here. That said, the bible is chiefly for policy wonks and not so much for the universal public. Pielke, Jr. is a well known political science professor and blogger who often blogs on climate change issues. His father, Roger Pielke, Sr.

is a renowned climate scientist, so while Pielke, Jr. is not a climate scientist per se, he does bring considerable insight garnered from days of interaction with his mother and his own career that includes working as a student assistant at the Home Centre for Atmospheric Research and elsewhere.The style is, not surprisingly, a misnomer as the bible doesn't actually pass a "fix" to man-made climate change. If it were that light there would be no motivation for his book. The publisher's subtitle "What scientists and politicians won't tell you about global warming" is unfortunate, because it attempts to create a controversy where there actually is none. Publishers do that to sell books. Beyond that distraction, the quran is generally well-written and focuses in on the very problem - what policy options do we get to sell with climate change. This stage in itself is significant as Pielke, Jr. acknowledges up front the scientific consensus that climate exchange is happening, that human activity is the main reason, and that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are major factors in the heating of the planet. That scientific point put aside, he focuses the bulk of the book on policy.The author spends a lot of time talking about decarbonization policies about the world, what has worked and what has not worked, and his views as to why. Pielke discusses the concept of an "iron law of climate policy," which essentially acknowledges that any insurance that power be construed to make short-term adverse economic impact cannot be implemented. Needless to say, this creates a significant barrier to policy action. Here also, in my opinion, is revealed one weakness of the book, as he tends not to discuss how certain protectors of the status quo take advantage of this "iron law" to make false understanding of the voltage for such adverse economic impact. This follows along with the few places where Pielke digresses from insurance to find fault with scientists' not being perfect but overlooks the intentional disinformation campaigns of the denialist community.But those are minor quibbles in what I would take a very worthwhile book. Pielke explores in great detail the trials and tribulations of several economic policy options, and addresses the limitations of geoengineering as a long-term adaptation alternative. He also discusses his aspect of "how climate policy went off course." Some of what he says I do not correspond with, and about of what he says I correspond with wholeheartedly, but in both cases he addresses the issues thoughtfully and honestly (though not without his own bias). Perhaps the most significant part of this word is how he communicates the difficulties that standpoint in the way of taking much needed policy action. While he clearly doesn't provide a "climate fix," anyone interested in finding a policy path forward, and is wonkish enough to get into the details, will find Pielke's book an informative view of the issues. For scientists and the universal public, I would recommend Pielke's earlier book, The Honest Broker.