MOEN: Is climate action ethical? - The Post Millennial - Tim Moen, leader, Libertarian Party of Canada:
January 4, 2019 - "If we’re going to have a discussion about the ethics of climate action we need to ensure we have the same underlying values.... If you agree with me that human life is our highest value then we want to look at human activity as it pertains to human life..... So if we want to determine whether human activity is dangerous we need to look at metrics of human flourishing.
"Over the past 90 years while CO2 emissions have escalated we have seen climate related mortality drop by 98%. This is because Earths climate is full of unpredictable extremes; drought, flooding, heat waves, cold snaps, hurricanes, weather extremes. To protect against an adverse climate humans need a civilization powered by energy and thanks to fossil fuels we now have abundant energy.
"At the same time climate deaths have plummeted, we have seen dramatically improved food production, distribution and access worldwide. We’ve seen dramatic improvements in sanitation, clean drinking water, medicine, poverty, morbidity and mortality rates. As our physiological needs have dramatically improved the need for violent conflict and struggle has diminished and we have seen liberal democracy spread worldwide.
"So if you are a catastrophist, you ... should consider the catastrophe that would happen if fossil fuel use was cut by 45% over the next 12 years and completely eliminated by 2050 (IPCC goals). If this were to happen right now we would kill millions if not far more....
"The National Climate Assessment speculates that the worst-case economic cost of climate change will be 10% of US GDP by 2100... Noticeably absent is any mention of the cost of climate action.... What would raising the cost of everything that relies on energy have do to the economy? Crickets. What affect would these costs have on people living on the margins? Crickets....
"All of the solutions to mitigating the harm of climate change are focused on global collective consequences and none recognize the individual. We wouldn’t say that if my pollution has adversely affected a nameable individual then I ought to pay a tax to government. This does nothing to protect the individual, but rather sets up a system of payment to governments for the right to harm individuals and funds more government jobs and power in perpetuity. We wouldn’t say that I should pay money to a company working on green energy either. Again, this does nothing to repair the harm I’ve done or bring justice to the individual....
"Tort is a far better solution to mitigating climate harm than a tax or subsidy. Tort helps us derive the actual cost of CO2 emissions rather than having government funded institutes guess at the cost of carbon dioxide emissions while failing to take into account the unseen costs of climate action.
"It is estimated that 80% of CO2 emissions come from 122 corporations. A few high profile class action lawsuits brought by individuals who have been harmed by CO2 emissions could dramatically change the game.
"A focus on promoting property rights and installing legal institutions to defend those property rights seems like a superior approach on all levels of analysis. It gets individuals who have had their property flooded by the ocean or their arable land made barren by climate change access to restoration. It passes the cost on to corporations and the consumers of their products and sends a price signal that allows them to weigh the actual cost versus benefit of their activity. It incentivizes innovation towards lower CO2 emitting energy alternatives.
"It avoids the growth of government. It gives scientists their day in court and clarifies and communicates the actual state of climate science free of ideological spin. It focuses science on measuring metrics of human flourishing rather than metrics that get them government funding....
"Recognizing the individual and protecting property rights (aka liberty) seems like the best path forward to a future that both liberals and conservatives can endorse."
Read more: https://www.thepostmillennial.com/moen-is-climate-action-ethical/
'via Blog this'
January 4, 2019 - "If we’re going to have a discussion about the ethics of climate action we need to ensure we have the same underlying values.... If you agree with me that human life is our highest value then we want to look at human activity as it pertains to human life..... So if we want to determine whether human activity is dangerous we need to look at metrics of human flourishing.
"Over the past 90 years while CO2 emissions have escalated we have seen climate related mortality drop by 98%. This is because Earths climate is full of unpredictable extremes; drought, flooding, heat waves, cold snaps, hurricanes, weather extremes. To protect against an adverse climate humans need a civilization powered by energy and thanks to fossil fuels we now have abundant energy.
"At the same time climate deaths have plummeted, we have seen dramatically improved food production, distribution and access worldwide. We’ve seen dramatic improvements in sanitation, clean drinking water, medicine, poverty, morbidity and mortality rates. As our physiological needs have dramatically improved the need for violent conflict and struggle has diminished and we have seen liberal democracy spread worldwide.
"So if you are a catastrophist, you ... should consider the catastrophe that would happen if fossil fuel use was cut by 45% over the next 12 years and completely eliminated by 2050 (IPCC goals). If this were to happen right now we would kill millions if not far more....
"The National Climate Assessment speculates that the worst-case economic cost of climate change will be 10% of US GDP by 2100... Noticeably absent is any mention of the cost of climate action.... What would raising the cost of everything that relies on energy have do to the economy? Crickets. What affect would these costs have on people living on the margins? Crickets....
"All of the solutions to mitigating the harm of climate change are focused on global collective consequences and none recognize the individual. We wouldn’t say that if my pollution has adversely affected a nameable individual then I ought to pay a tax to government. This does nothing to protect the individual, but rather sets up a system of payment to governments for the right to harm individuals and funds more government jobs and power in perpetuity. We wouldn’t say that I should pay money to a company working on green energy either. Again, this does nothing to repair the harm I’ve done or bring justice to the individual....
"Tort is a far better solution to mitigating climate harm than a tax or subsidy. Tort helps us derive the actual cost of CO2 emissions rather than having government funded institutes guess at the cost of carbon dioxide emissions while failing to take into account the unseen costs of climate action.
"It is estimated that 80% of CO2 emissions come from 122 corporations. A few high profile class action lawsuits brought by individuals who have been harmed by CO2 emissions could dramatically change the game.
"A focus on promoting property rights and installing legal institutions to defend those property rights seems like a superior approach on all levels of analysis. It gets individuals who have had their property flooded by the ocean or their arable land made barren by climate change access to restoration. It passes the cost on to corporations and the consumers of their products and sends a price signal that allows them to weigh the actual cost versus benefit of their activity. It incentivizes innovation towards lower CO2 emitting energy alternatives.
"It avoids the growth of government. It gives scientists their day in court and clarifies and communicates the actual state of climate science free of ideological spin. It focuses science on measuring metrics of human flourishing rather than metrics that get them government funding....
"Recognizing the individual and protecting property rights (aka liberty) seems like the best path forward to a future that both liberals and conservatives can endorse."
Read more: https://www.thepostmillennial.com/moen-is-climate-action-ethical/
'via Blog this'
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