Thought Piece
First, I noticed the gut-wrenching headline about the “worst winter in 42 years,” with 48,000 Brits dying this last winter. Now, we find out that 1 in 4 people in Ireland endured energy shortages from the same winter the Irish are calling “the beast from the east.” In fact, the British and Irish are likely suffering from the same “energy poverty,” with many people from both countries dying from the long, cold winter.
In addition, it is worth mentioning that cold weather kills more people than any other kind of weather. A fact often ignored by the global warmists.
The one important difference is that England has finally started exploring for natural gas using high tech horizontal drilling and Ireland still has a fracking ban in place. Given the rash of bad news coming out of Ireland, why are the Irish depriving themselves of the safe development of their natural resources? The European Union should update a study of the effects of winter and “energy poverty” on its membership.
PS. Please let me disclose that I have had a love affair with Ireland since 1971. There are several reasons: the poetry of William Butler Years, the literature of Jonathon Swift and James Joyce, the complexity of Irish history, Irish Music and Step-Dancing, and Irish influence in American history.
