Robert Pollin

A little too unspecific for my taste. But it’s a decent primer for climate change and policy needed for change to happen.

I feel most books about climate change these days are too general. Also too much goes into repeating research that human induced climate change is real and that action is needed (wouldn’t think the audience of this book needs convicing, a climate denier isn’t going to pick up a book by Chomsky). I maybe had the wrong expectations for this book going in, as I was looking for a more nuanced breakdown and analysis of specific potential strategies within a global green new deal.

The first third of this book was repetition of arguments why action is needed. Mid part of the book discussed potential solutions and tried to put them into perspective. The discussion got more insightful towards the end. I found Noams thoughts on civil disobedience, systemic change, whether one should consider tactical consequences of civil disobedience and several other topics to be surprisingly pragmatic, given his reputation as a politicsl activist.… (altro)

I REALLY enjoyed this book... Why only three starts?

I enjoyed this because it is the first (and I'm willing to bet, the only) time that I feel superior to Noam Chomsky! This book shows such an amazingly fascicle look at the climate problem. It is perhaps a mark of how far behind the USA are, after four years of Donald Trump but, this work has a simplistic, "use less/no fossil fuels and everything will be well." The implication is that no real change to our lifestyle is necessary and that Capitalism will flourish.

Oh dear!… (altro)

This is what I've been looking for - a practical roadmap for how the world can achieve net zero global emissions by 2050, presented in an easily understandable format, and written without overly complex economic jargon. In the political sphere, both sides of this argument tend to oversimplify the issue; one arguing it will lead to massive job creation, the other that it will lead to the destruction of all jobs everywhere - but I wanted to read something that could give me a fairly good working knowledge of the true cost-benefit analysis of such a massive economic & lifestyle shift, and specific ways nations could begin to make it happen.

I was pleasantly surprised, as well, to find that Chomsky and Pollin address the topic of how wealthy western countries are by far the most culpable in the current climate crisis, and emphasize their obligation to support less developed nations overcome some of the challenges they face in converting to clean energy. Expecting developing nations, which struggle to feed and house their populations, to somehow suddenly electrify rural areas with wind and/or solar power is ridiculous, especially when the urgent need to do so rests pretty squarely on the shoulders of the world's historical colonialist nations.

My only complaint here is that Chomsky occasionally devolves into a kind of despair with regards to the chances the world will actually succeed in averting climatological disaster (an outlook I can sort of understand given that the book was written during Trump's reign, um, I mean, term). I don't need all that negativity, though; I can handle that bit myself. Don't show me what's possible, then point out that we're probably screwed anyway.

Otherwise, a great introduction to what is a complex and often thorny but vitally necessary topic.… (altro)