There are two types of climate denialism. The first type, practised by Liberals and Republicans and Murdoch hacks, is to deny the science, to deny that humans have been and are continuing to heat the planet in an unsustainable manner. The second type, practised by pretty much everyone else, is to deny the politics and the psychology, to deny that human society appears incapable of altering its behaviour sufficiently to deal with scientific reality.
The New Yorker has just published an essay by Jonathan Franzen on this second type of denialism, on the refusal to confront our current and impending death. Franzen’s essay is gentle, heartfelt, pleading and depressing. The essay, along with its author, has also been condemned far and wide.
Franzen’s essay has not convinced me that we are doomed. Much more convincing has been the vicious and fundamentally empty response, which does nothing so much as to prove Franzen’s point.
There’s nothing we can do about it except sit and wait and see what happens.
I think it depends what you mean by “we”. Contrary to the snarky reporting, Franzen wasn’t arguing for inaction. He just doesn’t see it happening.
Hi,
We can all do something to make elected officials more aware of the climate emergency
I like the environmentalist attitude and philosophy of atlassian . Peter Nicholson highlighted how out of touch some elected parliamentarians have become in today’s AFR
https://nicholsoncartoons.com.au/category/cartoons
Steve R
Hi,
I think we can all do something to encourage elected politicians,corporations etc to be accontable for the effect of the climate emergency.
I like of the philosophy of large tech start up Atlassian who often speak out and take action for the environment
Nicholson in AFR summed it up nicely in yesterday’s cartoon
https://nicholsoncartoons.com.au/category/cartoons
Steve R
Hi Steve, and sorry for the double post thing. For some reason your first post was awaiting for approval.
I agree we should all be yelling at politicians, and anyone pretending the opinions of Queensland hicks are more important than the opinions of climate scientists. But I don’t think politicians are remotely out of touch. It’s worse than that.
ps. I think “accontable” is spelled with a “u”.
And no “o”.
Marti
Sorry about the missing u and double post… .Fault between seat and image of keyboard?
Steve R