Links tagged “greta”

Greta claims we must overthrow "the whole capitalist system," which she says is responsible for "imperialism, oppression, genocide... racist, oppressive extractionism." There is no “back to normal,” she said.

Michael Shellenberger: "Greta's claims are absurd. The "whole capitalist system" has, over the last 200 years, allowed for the average life expectancy of humans to rise from 30 to 70 years of age. The "whole capitalist system" produces larger food surpluses than any other system in human history. And the "whole capitalist system" has resulted in declining greenhouse gas emissions in developed nations over the last 50 years. ... But capitalism is plainly better than any other system of economic organization yet devised. High levels of inequality are the result of more rich people, not more poor people, who are much better off under capitalism than feudalism or communism. The business cycle of booms and busts provokes manias and depressions, but it is much more efficient, and less oppressive than governments deciding what should be produced, by whom, and at what price. ... Capitalism is far better for the natural environment than feudalism or communism. Under feudalism, subsistence farmers rely on wood and dung for cooking fuels and must farm large tracts of land to produce a small amount of food. The industrial revolution not only liberated most people from back-breaking farming but also reduced the amount of land required, thanks to fertilizer, irrigation, and tractors. ... 

Left-wing parties, from communist to socialist to social democratic parties, used to be the parties of the working class. Now, across the Western world, they are the parties of educated elites." 

Greta Thunberg has described climate summits such as the Cop27 conference taking place in Egypt next week as a “scam” that is “failing” humanity and the planet by not leading to “major changes”.

The Swedish activist said people in positions of power were using the high-profile gatherings for attention and were “greenwashing, lying and cheating”. ... Activists must try to “make people realise what a scam this is and realise that these systems are failing us”, she added.

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Reuters: Climate activist Greta Thunberg on Sunday called out next month's United Nations climate summit in Egypt for being "held in a tourist paradise in a country that violates many basic human rights." Greta see's climate summit as an opportunity for "people in power... to [use] greenwashing, lying and cheating."

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Climate Depot's Marc Morano comments: "I will be attending the UN climate summit in Egypt in person and will report back on just how correct Greta's assessment of the process is. President Joe Biden will also be attending. Stay tuned! Kudos to Greta! She started out willing to travel great distances to attend these UN climate summits, but she now correctly realizes they are a 'scam.' Those of us opposed to the entire 'Net Zero' & Green New Deal agenda applaud Greta's moment of clarity when it comes to the undeniable scam that is the UN climate process. We welcome Greta now understanding that these summits have nothing to do with the climate.  Given the full exposure of the green energy mandate scam, this UN climate summit should be dubbed the 'The Cover Your A$$ Summit' as the climate activists will be furiously spinning the failure of green energy and the coming deadly blackouts as somehow Russia's fault or the fault of the free market and a great "opportunity" to double down (on green energy failure). At least one voice sounds sane -- Greta Thunberg finally gets what the UN climate process is all about."

Joel Kotkin and Hügo Krüger: Before the Industrial Revolution, human civilization invariably used animals and slaves as its primary source of energy. Change started in the late-18th century in the United Kingdom with the discovery of mechanized spinning, steam power, and iron production. ... 

Trillions have been spent on green energy over the past 20 years, notes energy entrepreneur and investor Brian Gitt, but the percentage of global power generated by fossil fuels has barely declined from 85.54 to 82.28 percent; the bulk of reductions have come from replacing coal with natural gas. ... 

Despair tends to stoke fanaticism. Among young Americans, the vast majority believe they face an imminent environmental catastrophe. The student movement around Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg recalls the youthful fanaticism of the Medieval sanctus puer or “holy children” who rampaged through Europe in the 13th century, or Mao’s Red Guards unleashed during the “cultural revolution” in communist China during the 1960s.

Ezra Klein in NYT: "No mainstream climate models suggest a return to a world as bad as the one we had in 1950, to say nothing of 1150. Was the world so bad, for virtually the entirety of human history, that our ancestors shouldn’t have made our lives possible? If not, then nothing in our near future looks so horrible that it turns reproduction into an immoral act."

Kelsey Piper in VOX Mag: "The world is a better place to live in — especially for people in lower-income countries — than it has ever been, and climate change isn’t going to make it as bad as it was even in 1950." ... In Our House Is on Fire: Greta Thunberg’s Call to Save the Planet, a beautifully illustrated picture book aimed at ages 3-8...“There might not be a world to live in when she grows up. What use is school without a future?” one page describes Thunberg as thinking. Even as a setup for Thunberg’s rise as an activist, I’m not thrilled about that message. Some kids might hear that and be inspired to speak before the United Nations, but most kids are going to hear that and be scared and disempowered.