by Jason Stotts
My friend Alex Epstein has lined up a publisher for his new book The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels, but he needs our help!
Summary: Certain people in the publishing industry say that my next book, “The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels,” has an unacceptable title because it’s not okay to suggest that fossil fuels could be moral. They are claiming no one will buy the book, and trying to intimidate people into distancing them from it. Please help me counter them by pre-ordering as many as you can.
The Establishment Attacks the Moral Case for Fossil Fuels—Help Us Fight Back
On November 13, 2014, Penguin/Portfolio, one of the leading publishers in the world, will release a book with a title I never expected a major publisher would carry: The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels.
And for the same reason I never expected a major publisher to carry it (the anti-fossil-fuel establishment has a vested interest in keeping the moral high ground), it is already under attack.
Here’s the background—and what you can do about it. (Short answer to the second: pre-order a lot of books.)
Today’s mainstream discussion of fossil fuels has framed the debate in a lose-lose way for the fossil fuel industry and everyone who benefits from it (i.e., everyone). Environmental groups characterize fossil fuels as an unnecessary evil, an addiction to be ended in the next decade or two. The “defenders” of fossil fuels counter that, no, fossil fuels are a necessary evil—an addiction that will take many, many decades to end.
My essay “The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels” offered a new alternative: Fossil fuels are a necessary good—something that we should embrace, champion, and further. If we look at them big-picture, instead of focusing out-of-context on negatives, they are a boon to every aspect of human life, including our environment. This argument got the attention of hundreds of industry executives because it was unique and uniquely powerful. And it got the attention of a major book agent, my (now) agent Wes Neff of Leigh Bureau, who thought it was a unique contribution to the energy debate.
But now that the book has been announced, certain people in the publishing industry (not my publisher) have been saying that the title is inappropriate, that it goes too far, that they won’t carry the book. They’d rather see something bland like The Case for Fossil Fuels, which may go unnoticed because everyone will think it’s the same old “necessary evil” argument.
Think about it: We are in a world where someone can say it’s inappropriate to even argue that fossil fuels are morally good. And these people want to intimidate me into changing the title on the idea that no one will buy a book that openly argues that the fossil fuel industry is moral.
Well, there is one way to show these people—and the many who are sure to follow as the book comes closer to release—how we feel. Pre-order copies on Amazon. My agent tells me that if we can get 5000 pre-orders it will be a game changer in terms of the publicity the book gets. It will show that making a new, compelling case for fossil fuels is not a commercial liability but a commercial asset.
So I ask you, please pre-order multiple copies of this book and let me know how many you buy. If you like my current writing, I can promise you that this book is on a totally different level. It’s the book you will want to hand to any friend, family member, Republican, or Democrat who is interested in these issues. And if you’re considering buying copies, now is the time.
For anyone who buys 10 copies before the end of the month, I’ll send you a personalized, autographed copy.
For anyone or any group that buys 100, I will send you 100 physical copies of Fossil Fuels Improve the Planet to pass out while you’re waiting for the book to be released in November.
For any company that buys 1000 copies or more—and I sincerely believe every employee in the industry needs to read this book—I will come speak to your company about it for free.
It is an absolute guarantee that if we can drive up the pre-orders the book will get more publicity and be more influential. And I guarantee that you won’t be disappointed in the book. I work on it every morning, weekday or weekend, consulting with the best researchers, editors, philosophers, and energy experts I can find. Many on this list said they particularly enjoyed my recent Forbes piece, “The Unscientific Consensus,” which finally clarified the issue of how to think about the “climate change consensus.” That is material taken straight from the book, and there are 60,000 more words where that came from.
Please help me promote this book and stop those who disagree with us from trying to stop it before it gets started. Order now.