Bill Gates Rethinks Climate Catastrophe

Ahead of COP30, the billionaire is sounding like our long-time contributor Bjorn Lomborg

WSJ editorial. Excerpts:

"Bill Gates . . . now says the “doomsday view” about the climate is wrong, and “it’s diverting resources from the most effective things we should be doing to improve life in a warming world.”"

"rising temperatures are “a serious problem” but “will not be the end of civilization.”"

"Mr. Gates now sounds like Bjorn Lomborg, the “skeptical environmentalist” whose writing often runs in these pages. Mr. Lomborg has been arguing for years that while warming temperatures are a reality, the world’s poor in particular face far more urgent challenges. He believes, as these columns have also long argued, that the best way to cope with rising temperatures is through innovation, adaptation, and policies that continue to spread economic growth and prosperity."

"While about 500,000 people a year die from excessive heat, he says, “surprisingly, excessive cold is far deadlier, killing nearly ten times more.” Mr. Lomborg has been assailed by the climate left for making that same point"

"Mr. Gates also recognizes that “using more energy is a good thing,” because it means economic growth."