The Inflation Reduction Act is being hailed by the mainstream climate movement, Congress members, and the media as the most important climate bill in U.S. history. That's a pretty low bar, and it says more about our government's long record of failure on climate than it does about whether this law can prevent dangerous temperature increases in coming decades.
In many regards, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 is a story of contradictions. Narrowly passed over unanimous Republican opposition in the Senate last week, the bill is expected to pass the House of Representatives soon. The IRA bill devotes $369 billion to accelerate the transition to green energy, making it by far the biggest climate change legislation in US history. But the price of West Virginia senator Joe Manchin’s support was the inclusion of measures intended to boost fossil fuel production.
"Make no mistake; these profits mark a large transfer of wealth from working- and middle-class people to wealthy oil executives and shareholders," said Jordan Schreiber of Accountable.US.
As fossil fuel giants this week reported record profits for the second quarter, an analysis out Friday highlighted how eight oil companies have raked in nearly $52 billion over the past three months “while Americans continue to struggle at the pump.”
Editor: "a historic achievement for the climate left and a tribute to both its moral fervor and its political realism" maybe, but not for climate emergency realism!
By focusing on reciprocity and the common good—both for the community and the environment—sea gardening created bountiful food without putting populations at risk of collapse.
“A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death” – Martin Luther King.
Everything is interconnected: armed conflicts – human rights violations – environmental pollution – climate change – social injustice…
Thirty years ago, a bold plan was cooked up to spread doubt and persuade the public that climate change was not a problem. The little-known meeting - between some of America's biggest industrial players and a PR genius - forged a devastatingly successful strategy that endured for years, and the consequences of which are all around us.
A very important political reality that many of us progressives don't really know about and understand the workings of. Obviously, Canada is not immune. Not mentioned in the article is a commercial movie on related matters that you all might find interesting. It's entitled "The Loudest Voice" and deals with the career of Roger Ailes and his FOX News. Russell Crowe plays Ailes convincingly.
