1) I blame the media.But the real question is why there isn't wide spread awareness and powerful movements, or then why the movements that do exist have so far failed. The denialist industry was and still is well funded, but it's not really a given they would win, and they've only really "won" in the US; here in Europe there's not really much climate denialism, but the policies are weak sauce; the "concerned" politicians of Europe never get together and do anything of significance.
I'm honestly not sure; it's not like the information is in secret books that an institution will systematically burn both the books and anyone possessing them. "Truth" seems to have gotten out far worse obstacles. — boethius
It's not a vague solution; technical detail is lacking, but it's a specific idea, likely adequate to the problem, and if so, the least disruptive solution, with maximum benefit at least cost. — counterpunch
God intended nothing other than survival, maintenance, and contingent harms along the way. — schopenhauer1
It's vague idea. You have no clue about its technical or economic viability. You don't even have a proof of concept at this point. — Benkei
Scientifically and technologically speaking, that's not only untrue, but fatal. — counterpunch
Wild, unfounded assumption that's just necessary to prop up your capitalist ideology. I don't share it nor the idea capitalism is a good system. — Benkei
It's vague idea. You have no clue about its technical or economic viability. You don't even have a proof of concept at this point. — Benkei
I am a philosopher addressing the question of whether a sustainable future is possible — counterpunch
I would have thought it were obvious capitalism is a good system — counterpunch
in that a left wing approach to climate change will undermine capitalism — counterpunch
A solution overlooked by the thousands of actually qualified people working on this important issue. — Xtrix
People tend to be myopic, it's hard motivate them with something that is gradual and in the longterm. If some accident happens they typically do want to jump into action. — ChatteringMonkey
There's the denialists definitely, but not so much in Europe indeed. I also do think green parties, and the left in general, have been bad strategically in selling their ideas to the public... to much finger pointing blame game, and to little constructive motivating vision put forward. — ChatteringMonkey
It has been dragging for a long time, and for someone invested in the topic as long as you have been I get that this doesn't exactly fill you with optimism, but I think once things start moving, they might move a lot faster than one thinks. I don't think the conversion to renewables is a linear process. — ChatteringMonkey
1) I blame the media.
The journalists pick up the most damning forecast (from a variety) and run with the worst possible early outcome. — ssu
2) Then I blame that some issues have been overcome. DDT has been banned. The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer has been working: Since the ban on halocarbons, the ozone layer has slowly been recovering and the data shows a trend in decreasing area of the ozone hole – subject to annual variations. It has even closed sometime. We have already hit peak conventional oil production and oil production hasn't grown for some time. — ssu
3) And finally, I think that the society can cope with even more problems. We can have this economy limping with the pandemic limitations for years. We can not travel as much as before. Tens of millions of jobs have been lost in the tourism sector and flights have basically halved. We can change our behavior and never ever shake each others hands. Who needs so much travel? The fact is that our societies can endure radical changes. Thanks to the pandemic, carbon emissions have fallen at the most rapid rate since WW2. Primary energy consumption fell by 4.5% in 2020, the largest decline since 1945, yet solar Wind, solar and hydroelectricity all grew despite of this plummeting demand. — ssu
Above all, in 2020 we saw the lowest population growth in the World since at least 1950 with 1,05%. Just in 2012 the growth rate was 1,2%. It may be that some of us (those younger) will witness peak human population. — ssu
That's because you're an embarrassingly simpleminded individual who is too busy with his own delusions to hear a word anyone else says. — Xtrix
Talk about delusions of grandeur. Leave the little crackpot to his illusions. — Xtrix
Cringe-inducing. No self-awareness whatsoever. — Xtrix
Since capitalism is the cause of this mess, one would hope it's not only undermined but destroyed completely. — Xtrix
Capitalism is not to blame. — counterpunch
Yes, it is. Short term profits, all else is externalities. That’s the only reason we’re here right now. You’re not a philosopher, and you have no solutions — because you don’t know what you’re talking about. — Xtrix
invested in making capitalism the villain of the piece, but it's just not true. — counterpunch
. It is a minimally disruptive approach to do this in support of capitalism; as capitalism is the prevailing economic paradigm, and so much nicer than slavery - to have some degree of personal and political freedom. — counterpunch
That the effects could be extremely bad -- that hitting a tipping in arctic ocean ice, which may trigger tipping points with permafrost, forest ecocystems, land-based ice, and the system can accelerate and dominate human emissions (i.e. further human emissions become irrelevant) etc. -- is the reason to not run this experiment in the first place.
These tipping points are already breached. We’ve recently had 30+ centigrade heatwaves in all permafrost regions. They are melting rapidly, there is enough methane there to accelerate climate change beyond what we can mitigate. Even if we had zero carbon production now this methane would more than compensate for the reduction. It’s acceleration and a rollercoaster ride from now on, whatever we do. — Punshhh
Capitalism is the reason for climate change. That’s a fact. Holding your hand to help you understand it isn’t of interest to me. When a system values short term profits, and anything else is considered an externality, this is what happens. Seen clearly in the Exxon memos. Take your capitalist/magma wet dreams elsewhere. — Xtrix
False dichotomy. — Benkei
The root cause of climate change is the ideological context within which capitalism operates — counterpunch
exclude science as an understanding of reality. — counterpunch
I don't see it. A left wing approach to sustainability, based on Malthusian pessimism and limits to resources, dates back to an era when communism was still a thing. Communism is no longer a thing; yet a left wing approach to sustainability remains violently anti-capitalist.
Ostensibly concerned with sustainability, the left haven't even considered whether capitalism might be sustained, because of their political interest in promoting communism. In the 1960's and 70's maybe, that was a justifiable political position, but it's not anymore.
Perhaps I'm being slightly bullish in drawing a direct parallel between communism and slavery, but communism does not allow for the kind of personal and political freedom capitalism allows for. And it would clearly be less disruptive to sustain capitalism, than force a failed economic ideology on capitalist societies under the guise of sustainability.
Scientifically and technologically, I believe it's possible to sustain capitalism. There's limitless amounts of clean energy available in the molten interior of the earth, we could use to meet all our energy needs plus capture carbon, desalinate and irrigate, produce hydrogen fuel, and recycle. This would internalise the externalities of capitalism without internalising them to the economy. — counterpunch
One of the worse developments was that of limited liability, for profit corporations and that has exactly zero to do with capitalism. — Benkei
Capitalism is an ideology. It’s the religious belief in the free market and the primacy of profit— all else is externality. Capitalism doesn’t exclude science at all. — Xtrix
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