Climate Fatalism

 “An Inconvenient Apocalypse – Environmental Collapse, Climate Crisis and the Fate of Humanity” by W. Jackson & R. Jensen, 2022

What else can be said about this issue? Most people following the topic have seen, heard or read about it so much they are already 'up to here.' Real solutions on the ground are the thing lacking. I'll try to parse anything new the book contributes, while pointing out it's predictable errors. These two seem more like socio-biologists than anything else and are basically middle-class climate fatalists.

The authors (J&J) verge on deep ecology, as they start off with a discussion of how to limit the world's population to 3 billion a la Malthus and Ehrlich. It's at around 8 billion now. They put the blame for the present environmental crisis on the development of agriculture thousands of years ago – humanity's original sin. They want us to do away with cities, nations or large social bodies and go back to living in small communities of about 150 people – perhaps becoming hunter-gatherers again. They suggest forming these communities now. If this doesn't point to deep ecology anarchism, I don't know what does. J&J predict a world apocalypse based on scientific facts, not one based on the nonsense in Revelation. It's too late to stop these 10 horsemen, so they recommend adaptation. Consumerism is a big enemy. Speed is of the essence. All of that is true.

To them, the overwhelming cascade of complex and dangerous problems is key. Here is their list: 1, over-population; 2, decline of resources like water; 3, mass extinctions; 4, global warming; 5, pollution by chemicals; 6, food insecurity and nutritional deficiency; 7, nuclear arms; 8, pandemics; 9, uncontrolled technologies; 10, national and global political failures. No mention of massive migration, failed states, starvation and war, though those might be related to #10 or #6.

J&J don't believe in a Goreite techno-utopian capitalist solution - like solar, wind, EVs and batteries.  They don't support survivalism, growth in any area, a commodity economy or the efficacy of individual efforts to deal with climate change. They advocate a future of necessities only and call the future 'gritty and grim.' 

They ignore the 'great acceleration' hockey-stick of world carbon rates and the car economy that shot upward after WWII. They seem not to have heard of the severe drop in birth rates in countries like Japan, South Korea and China and the low rates in many other center countries. This is due to higher economic development, abandonment of religion, women's liberation and contraception. They understand modern agriculture as using massive chemical and carbon inputs but don't focus on organic, veganic or agro-ecologic methods - though they hint in that direction. They generally tip-toe around the overwhelming arc of carbon capital in so many economic sectors, afraid to take it head on with a social revolution. They talk about a future steady-state economy but ignore the word 'socialism,' mentioning eco-socialism once. 

They endorse Jared Diamond's analysis of 'collapse' related to social over-complexity and environmental weakness. They propose that we focus on a 'remnant' that will be left after the collapse. Yet they want to forestall being called 'preppers' and are not buying canned food and bullets. Maybe they should.

J&J's idea of preparing for the future is 'envisioning' what is going to happen, a passive method if there ever was one. They see a frugal and low energy future that will affect agriculture, communication, social spaces, transport and which distinguishes real needs from unnecessary consumerist wants. They make the point that the consumerism of 'high-energy' stuff is at an end, or should be. They claim to be deeply Christian and secular at the same time, which accounts for their Christian references and touchy-feely approach, even rattling on about the patriarchy. Perhaps the frugality of a community of monks is their real attraction. They end by rejecting hope and making a plea for love. Really?

Reading this stuff shows the limitations of basically hard-liberal but comfortable environmentalists who realize the game is up but have no clue as how to weather this storm. Not a word about socializing the carbon companies, their banking allies or the Federal Reserve. Not a word about a mass movement or organizations of any kind. Not a word about political action, internationalism or a total overturn of erroneous capitalist 'growth.' Not a word about capital's very recent carbon drive, which is not just associated with agriculture or industrialism, but spiked to incredible levels as capital covered the globe after 1945. All of this is ignored, so put your head in the sand, find some friends, get quiet and start growing your vegetables.

Prior blog reviews on this subject, use blog search box, upper left, to investigate our 17 year archive, using these terms: “Collapse” (Diamond); “Tar Sands,” “Climate Emergency,” “Planning Green Growth,” “Robbery of Nature,” “Marx and the Earth,” “Marx's Ecology,” “Against Doomsday Scenarios” (all 4 by JB Foster); “Oneness vs. the 1%” (Shiva); “Vanishing Face of Gaia”(Lovelock) “Reflections on the Environment and Consumerism,” “The Ministry for the Future” (KS Robinson); “The Insect Crisis,” “The Sixth Extinction,” “The Tragedy of the Worker,” “A People's Green New Deal,” “Catastrophism,” “On Fire – The Burning Case for a Green New Deal,” “This Changes Everything” (both by Klein), “Reinventing Collapse” (Orlov), “How to Blow Up a Pipeline” (Malm); “Rally Against Enbridge and Line 3.”

May Day Books has many left-wing takes on the environmental crisis

And I got it at the Library!

Red Frog / April 10, 2024