Cold season

With both kids exhibiting cold symptoms, this week has hit somewhat of a roadblock as I am starting a new course with 120 students tomorrow and still have to pack up the house. Luckily, I invested in some biscotti to go with my morning Americano as I am reading the news of the Nord Stream explosions. In the commentaries, it is common to hear that the German dependency on Russian gas was caused by insufficient commitment to its “energy transition” when, in fact, it is that very transition that is the reason behind the dependency. After all, as I have pointed out in the past, the proper way to think of wind and solar power is as fuel-saving devices for gas plants. As such, when moving away from coal and nuclear baseload, deepening gas dependency is precisely what you would expect for those cold days when the wind does not blow or the sun does not shine.