Monday, November 14, 2016

Climate science is compatible with conservatism

Oh for the days when American, British and Australian conservatives didn't regard science as the enemy.  In the incoming Trump's administration's bid to exit the Paris Climate Change Accords as fast as possible (instead of waiting the mandated four years), there has been talk of voiding the agreement on the Rio accords of 1992, the parent treaty, signed by George H W Bush (who had watered it down) and most of the world's leaders.
But why this antipathy towards climate science in particular and scientists in general? Admittedly, especially in America, there is a line of conservative thought rooted in religious fundamentalism that rejects science and would prefer to return to medieval shibboleths - naturally, this is about power rather than morality as this would (and does) cement the hold the fundamentalists retain over their followers.  Yet, in general, science and scientific advances (outside of genetics) do not clash with a social conservative agenda e.g. on the debate surrounding abortions or gun control (and its absence).
Also, 'Anglo-Saxon' conservatives like the Republicans, the British Conservative Party and the Australian Liberal Party have been painted as the parties of business, especially big business.  Even here, however, there is no fundamental clash because if the 'green' technology of the future was harnessed by the private sector, with no government obstacles, that would benefit the economies of each country, such as solar panels have had for Germany and China (not coincidentally, the world's two biggest exporters).
The answer is that the megabucks fossil fuel corporations owned by right-wing billionaires have captured the movers and shakers in the Anglo-Saxon conservatives.  As such, they are turning the clock back far more effectively than the religious fundamentalists to a dead-end industry that could have a devastating impact on the world's climate, hurting the poorest the most (Trump is going to cut climate impact subsidies to the world's least wealthy countries and communities).

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