Understanding Subsidies for Fossil Fuels

We read constantly about the subsidies for fossil fuels, but we note how hard it is to pinpoint exactly how large they are. For one, what exactly should be counted and what should be excluded? No one doubts that we fight wars over oil; how about all the military spending, not to mention the deaths, injuries, and other forms of suffering?

Here’s an article from The Economist that, I believe, does a very good job with this admittedly tricky subject. It’s built around the chart below, using data from the International Monetary Fund.