Joaquim Resende Neto
The Paw Print
The world has never been so rich and developed. First world countries are in constant development, making new discoveries that humans never thought would be possible. As a result, more energy is needed to support this growth. Andrew Sayer comments in his article “Geography and Global Warming: Can Capitalism be Greened?” about how capitalism contributes to the global warming and says that in order to stop global warming, we would have to stop capitalism from growing.
Global warming has been happening for a long time, but now the consequences of this climate change are starting to appear. Andrew Sayer says that although rich, developed countries may be able to afford defensive infrastructures, in poor countries such as Bangladesh, millions are likely to be displaced from their homes by flooding, while at the same time others by desertification.
Sayer states that according to the World Health Organization, global warming is already estimated to contribute to more than five million illnesses each year. Also, he talks about the danger of a 5o C increase in global average temperature. Such change in the planet’s climate could lead to several major catastrophes to humans, including where and how they live.
Second, Sayer claims that global warming is anthropogenic, caused or produced by humans. With that being said, he suggests that the causes of it are capitalism and capitalism culture. Capitalism is not just “addicted to growth” but growth of a particular kind, growth in exchange-value, more specifically profit, pure, abstract quantity that acknowledges no environmental constraints or concept of environmental well-being. He also compares capitalism to “pleonaxia” (insatiable acquisitiveness), stating that people are never satisfied with what they already have, but are always wanting something more or better.
What is interesting in Sayer’s article is how he relates global warming to capitalism. If we stop to think about it, his argument makes total sense. If we think about how dependent developed countries are on low-cost energy from fossil fuels, it is hard to imagine major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
Fossil fuel use is reflected in many damages to the planet. Fossil fuels are non-renewable, which means once they are gone nothing can be done to replace them. The area where they are extracted becomes unusable after the removal. Also, the burning of the fossil fuels releases many harmful substances and gases that cause air pollution, with the main release being carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is naturally present in the atmosphere and traps the heat obtained from the sunlight. It is because of this gas that our planet is warmer than any other planet in the solar system. Once there is a rise in the percentage of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the amount of heat captured by it also increases, contributing toward an overall rise in the surface temperature of the earth.
Andrew Sayer states that it is hard to imagine reductions in greenhouse gas emissions without reductions in growth and hence capital, which must mean economic crisis. Therefore, capitalism might be more damaged by attempting to stop global warming than by allowing it to happen. Stopping capitalism from growth means to abandon pleona ia, implying fundamental change in modern ways of life.
When the author presents the reasons and evidence related to global warming and capitalism, he demonstrates logical appeals. It touches our emotions; global warming will affect every single person on the planet and everyone knows that it is happening. Andrew Sayer, a member of the Department of Sociology of Lancaster University, presents ethical appeals when he gives us researched information from well-known organizations.
I strongly agree with the Sayer’s arguments. As a part of today’s society, I can say how hard it will be to stop capitalism from growth in order to reduce the emission of gases that contribute to global warming. We are used to always having more than we already have, became lazy, and now want things to come to us as easy as they possibly can. If stopping global warming means letting go of these luxuries, it may take a while until it starts happening.
The evidence the author states in his article is obvious. The effects of global warming are visible to our eyes. All the catastrophes that have been happening on the planet are due to changes in the earth’s climate. This includes such disasters as flooding, hurricanes, and earthquakes that we are now encountering. Countries want to become more powerful, richer, and better off than the others. These competitions among nations allow more development and new technologies. On the other hand, in order to generate more development of new technologies, more energy is needed. Countries tend to use cheap sources of energy, such as fossil fuels, which once removed from underground to become energy can release many harmful gases into the atmosphere.
It is like a snowball that just keeps getting bigger as it rolls. Will we be able to choose between more development, more technologies, or less pollution? Will we be able to stop global warming without stopping capitalism?
What’s Been Said…