If Only All Problems Were This Intractable

The government announced yesterday that US carbon dioxide emissions fell last year despite a growing economy. The reasons, according to President Bush:

"We are effectively confronting the important challenge of global climate change through regulations, public-private partnerships, incentives, and strong economic investment," Bush said in a statement. "New policies at the federal, state, and local levels -- such as my initiative to reduce by 20 percent our projected use of gasoline within 10 years -- promise even more progress." A number of factors helped reduce emissions last year, according to the government, including weather conditions that reduced heating and air-conditioning use, higher gasoline prices that caused consumers to conserve, and a greater overall reliance on natural gas. [Emphasis added]

In other words, global warming results in a more temperate climate that reduces energy consumption.