Roy Cordato

We've all learned not to expect much from the "experts" at the John Locke Foundation, but today's story in the Carolina Journal reaches a hilarious new low.

RALEIGH – A model the Appalachian State University Energy Center used to project the economic impact of N.C. climate change policies has “serious flaws” that undermine its credibility. That’s the verdict of a new peer review report (pdf version) from a Boston-based economic research group.

The John Locke Foundation is drawing attention to the peer review it commissioned from the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University. The peer review raises red flags about the model’s projections. “The Appalachian State Energy Center used this model to predict hundreds of thousands of new jobs and a major positive impact on North Carolina’s economy,” said Dr. Roy Cordato, JLF Vice President for Research and Resident Scholar. “Trained economists conducting this new peer review found that the model is so flawed that no one should trust the results.”

Today's edition of the Carolina Urinal, the fount of all wisdom from the John Locke Puppetshow, features a one-two Puppet punch that'll knock your socks off.

First up is Roy Cordato with one of the most bizarre pieces I've ever read from the Puppetshow, which is saying a lot. Bear with me though, because it's worth dissecting the methods of their madness.

Imagine that a commission or study group was formed by the state of North Carolina to consider and evaluate proposals for reforming North Carolina’s business regulations. Furthermore, the state hired consultants to assess the economic impact of the different changes being considered. Now imagine the consulting group was formed by a very conservative out-of-state think tank or advocacy group, known for opposing business regulations – the Cato Institute or the Heritage Foundation. In addition, most of the group’s funding was coming, not from taxpayers, but from four wealthy foundations known for supporting right-wing causes.

If you've ever seen a three-year old stomping his feet and holding his breath because the mean old adults won't do what he wants, you've seen Puppet Doctor Roy Cordato in action. Well, today the little Puppet goes into a full-fledged tantrum in the latest Puppetshow "Report" on North Carolina's Global Climate Change Commission.

The report itself is typical of every other JLF report: short on insight, long on whining, obstructionist to its core, and full of crap. Don't bother to read the whole thing, the Puppetshow press release will tell you all you need to know.

A special N.C. global warming study group has ignored state law while pursuing predetermined policy goals, according to a new John Locke Foundation Spotlight report. “Whether through negligence or willful omission, the N.C. Legislative Commission on Global Climate Change has made no significant attempt to pursue the mandated mission set out in a 2005 state law,” said Dr. Roy Cordato, JLF Vice President for Research and Resident Scholar.