Alex Epstein: More Than Just a Man Who Loves Fossil Fuels
By Ashley Renteria
Alex Epstein
Alex Epstein, a Duke graduate in philosophy of 2002 and author of the book The Moral Case of Fossil Fuels, attended this years West Kern Petroleum Summit in Taft, California.
Sporting a green t-shirt which read “I love Fossil Fuels” under his blazer, the founder of Center for Industrial Progress delivered an informative and detailed discussion about the future of energy, what it means for the world and environment to really “be green” and the moral philosophy of how do we know what is wrong or right for the environment and the people in it.
“Humans change nature,” Epstein argued that society and environmentalists are focused on being green and what it really means for humans and the earth to be green.
Epstein believes there is “No debate over morals, but there is a debate over expiration dates” when talking about green energy versus petroleum and fossil fuels. As a believer in energy abundance, Epstein expressed that “being green is not about saving humans, but we should save the planet from humans.”
In terms of going green with our energy sources by taking fossil fuels out of the equation and reducing our carbon footprints in order to help preserve our environment, Epstein notes if we look at North and South Korea at night, South Korea is lit up and bright with lights while North Korea is completely dark which makes sense why North Korea has the lowest carbon footprints in the world.
That isn’t the point, while North Korea may have the lowest carbon footprint in the world, South Koreans are happy and they live their lives to the fullest in ways that they can. Another point Epstein brought up was that if society and those who want to preserve the environment by reducing carbon footprints, should those people not have children?
When talking about shifting our energy sources to something more “natural” or sun powered, Epstein pointed out that fossil fuels are already fueled by the sun, they’re just preserved by nature. While all forms of energy are manufactured in some way because “humans invented resources by turning nothing into something.”
Alex Epstein may have a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and written a book, but there is more to him than just the data and statistics he provides for his discussions.
After speaking on stage in front of hundreds at the West Kern Petroleum Summit, Epstein went outside of the tent where Mercedes-Benz of Bakersfield was hosting an after celebration and began talking and mingling with guests.
This year was Epstein’s first time being a key speaker at the West Kern Petroleum Summit.
“I had been to Kern County once, years ago at the beginning of my career and was very impressed by the oilfields and by the history.” This being his first time speaking at an event where the main focus is energy and petroleum issues, Epstein wanted to emphasize key ideas in his speech to inspire those who listened to be champions and thought leaders rather than just supporters of the moral case of fossil fuels and green energy.
In his speaking career he has gone from speaking to an audience of about 3 people to 5,000. When asked if he still gets nervous speaking in front of crowds, Epstein stated “Nervous is just really about ‘are you confident you can do the job?’ and how important do you think the job is . . . . It’s important I get nervous.”
Epstein said he likes to socialize and talk to his fans and supporters because he has been in the same position where he’s been a fan of someone’s work and has tried to talk to them and get them to sign books. He put forth a positive, confident attitude that made it easy for supporters to engage and socialize with him.