There are indeed critical issues being overlooked in the current energy discussion. By focusing so much attention on the climate change component of energy policy, issues like jobs, energy prices, and the development of the full spectrum of energy resources available to us are being overlooked to the detriment of our economy. What we need is a comprehensive, balanced and long term approach to energy policy – one that looks at ways to not only to control climate change, but also to lower prices, create jobs and build the US economy.

The fact of the matter is that for decades to come our global economy will rely on oil and natural gas for the vast majority of our energy needs, while we continue to work towards developing a diverse energy portfolio that includes wind hydro and nuclear (among others). To get there from here, we need to focus on a sensible and balanced US energy policy that includes provisions for access to our offshore and onshore oil and gas supplies. Failure to do so is costing this country millions of jobs and putting us as significant competitive disadvantage relative to other countries that more effectively utilize their natural resources.

What happens when there are no more wolves, bears, cougars and other predators? Lots of things, and very few of them are good. That’s the conclusion of my summer book, “Where the Wild Things Were: Life, Death, and Ecological Wreckage in a Land of Vanishing Predators,” by William Stolzenburg. Stolzenburg, a wildlife journalist, takes a hard look at the damage done to ecosystems by removing top predators. The loss of sea otters in much of the north Pacific has left ocean floors stripped of kelp by sea urchins, one of the otters’ favorite foods. The lack of top predators in the eastern U.S. has led to a white-tailed deer population explosion, with results ranging from stripped vegetation to increasing numbers of dangerous vehicle collisions with deer.

Meanwhile, smaller predators move in to fill part of the void left by the loss of wolves and cougars. Coyotes have moved eastward and started invading the suburbs. Raccoon numbers are up, along with opossums, squirrels, and even predatory birds. The delicate balance between predator and prey has been upset, Stolzenburg says, and the repercussions continue to ripple outward.

I saw this firsthand in the years leading up to the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone National Park. Before wolves returned, elk were devouring young trees and destroying river banks and wetlands, driving out other native species like songbirds, fish and beaver. Now that wolves are back, streambed vegetation such as willow and aspen is regenerating after decades of overbrowsing, and migratory birds have returned to the growing trees along the river valleys. Even the elk populations are healthier, as wolves cull the oldest and weakest members of the herd.

Stolzenburg offers us a cautionary tale about the vital place of predators in a healthy environment. It’s a great, timely, compelling read, and well worth picking up.

I am reading Nick Stern's latest book - but in light of William O'Keefe's reference to readings about carbon taxes, check out this idea to simplify the ACES behemouth: www.justcapit.org (and it only takes a few minutes away from your beach book).

Anyone else looking for a break from dense energy policy tomes? August is the ideal month to step away from being buried in energy policy and reading other things.

Right now I am halfway through "Land of Marvels," by Booker Prize-winning author Barry Unsworth. It is a piece of historical fiction set in Mesopotamia (present day Iraq) in 1914, and offers insight regarding how the region's past has contributed to today's realities on the ground. Unsworth also wrote "Sacred Hunger," a fascinating, masterfully-written novel focused on the slave trade.

Lined up behind "Land of Marvels" I have "The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family," by Annette Gordon-Reed. The book was a literary Triple Crown winner - National Book Award, Pulitzer Prize and George Washington Book Prize (given annually to the "most important new book about America's founding era.")

If any of you are looking for additional reading ideas for the month, two other novels I have loved this year include "The Time Traveler's Wife," by Audrey Niffenegger and "Kafka on the Shore," by Haruki Murakami.

I’m going to spend my summer vacation reading the Waxman-Markey energy tax. There are more than enough job-killing provisions, mandates, and taxes in this 1,427 page best seller to keep me glued to my reading for the entire month of August.

In our culture of 24-hour news and 140 character “tweets,” many want knowledge to come bite-size . Yet, essential lessons can still only be assessed and understood in the pages of a full-length book or report. Sometimes it is a book that has little to do with a specific topic but one that imparts important lessons from history. Here’s a short list of my “must reads” on some of the most pressing issues of the day:

Climate Change

Just in time for August recess, the George C. Marshall Institute has prepared “The Cocktail Conversation Guide to Global Warming” -- a handy reference for anyone following the efforts of Congress and the White House to construct domestic and global restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions. Although science has been relegated to the back seat, this pamphlet explains why it should be front and center. For those interested in learning more about possible alternatives to the cap-and-trade system outlined in the recently passed House bill, check out the work by Robert Shapiro, former Undersecretary of Commerce for President Clinton, on why a carbon tax is preferable and also Harvard international economics professor Richard Cooper’s “The Case for Charges on Greenhouse Gas Emissions.”

Health Care

Stanford Professor Alain Enthoven has published a great deal of work on the options for controlling health care costs. He makes a strong case for Health Insurance Purchasing Cooperatives.

On line articles dealing with health care in Europe, tort reform, and related information provide a good basis for judging what is going on in Congress.

History

In “The March of Folly,” Historian Barbara Tuchman gives new mean to the old adage, “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Tuchman chronicles from Troy to Vietnam the disastorous consequences of the failure to reassess preconceptions in light of new information. She terms that trait "wooden headedness" In that same vein, the J. Howard Marshall II biography “Done in Oil” shows how the life and legacy of this Texas oil titan can provide critical lessons for today’s government and industry leaders on successfully navigating energy challenges of the 21^st century.

General

Once your brain refuses to absorb any additional facts or theories, it’s time to switch to non-fiction. John Grisham, for instance, is an author who consistently delivers absorbing and entertaining storylines, so I’d recommend picking up something like his “The Appeal and The Associate.”

If you’re craving light reading, fit it in sometime before the first week of September. Because once Congress is back in session, it’s safe to assume that your nightstand will once again be crowded with policy-heavy reading like the Senate’s expected draft climate bill. And though cap-and-trade -- like Grisham’s works -- may fall under the “Thriller” genre, we’ve seen from Europe’s poor experience with its carbon market that this kind of climate policy doesn’t deliver a happy ending.