Despite an all-out assault on coal, including the Extend and Expand Poverty Agency (EPA) games of "Rope-A-Dope" (refusing to make decisions on permits for new mines), "Let's Play Favorites" (offering no regulatory rhyme or reason and playing favorites) and "Regulatory Whack-A-Mole" (let's keep coming up with new roadblocks to producing and using coal as the affordable energy it is), this International Energy Agency chart shows -- surprise, surprise -- black rock's future vitality.

"What surprised us, however, was the coal’s durability," writes Claudia Assis of the Wall Street Journal's Market Watch. "It will remain the top fuel for generating electricity for the next 20 years, with growth in coal-fired power in emerging markets outweighing its decline in rich countries, the IEA said."

It doesn't surprise us, however.

Considering the fact that Kentuckians get 93 percent of their electricity from coal, that the Bluegrass State has some of the lowest energy rates in the nation and the technological advancements in creating a much-cleaner coal, all of the evidence suggests that coal is a viable energy source for the future.

That's why Kentucky policymakers should support the protection of coal that never leaves our borders from EPA attacks.

It's also another reason why liberty-minded Kentuckians should support the Bluegrass Institute's mission. The IEA agrees, writes Assis: "As the IEA’s page about coal reminds us, 'coal use has never stopped increasing and the forecasts indicate that, unless a dramatic policy action occurs, this trend will continue in the future.'”