A laurel and hearty handshake to fellow blogger (and imaginary nemesis of Env-Econ) Matt Kahn for his skepticism towards California's global warming plan:
California, the leading U.S. state on climate change, set detailed goals on Thursday to cut greenhouse gases and address global warming but faced criticism the plan's economic assumptions were hopelessly optimistic...
Critics have urged the board to reconsider, including some economists who argue the analysis is full of rosy assumptions and ignores potential problems.
"All economists are skeptical when approached with a free lunch," said University of California, Los Angeles economist Matthew Kahn. "I wonder if there would be less likelihood of a backlash if there were more discussion now."