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The problem is Moloch. Tragedy of the Commons. No individual has an incentive to care. And even if they do, even if you do consume less, nothing stops someone e

The problem is Moloch. Tragedy of the Commons. No individual has an incentive to care. And even if they do, even if you do consume less, nothing stops someone else from burning up the resources you would have used. The only solution is political. Not just a tax on using fossil fuels, but a tax on mining them out of the ground in the first place. If they aren't kept in the ground, they will keep pumping them out until its not ecomical to do so.

spodek 11y ago
> No individual has an incentive to care. I agree, for everyone who stays in a more-material-stuff-is-better mentality. By contrast, I've found reducing how much I pollute has improved my life. My experiment to buy no food for a week where I'd have to throw away packaging -- http://joshuaspodek.com/avoiding-food-packaging http://joshuaspodek.com/avoiding-food-packaging -- went incredibly well. After avoiding packaging for a 2.5 weeks, I don't completely avoid it not, but I've switched to almost only fresh fruits, vegetables, and dried legumes I get in bulk with bags I bring. Similar experiments in other areas have improved my life in many ways I wouldn't have expected before. People found ways to be happy before oil, many probably more happy than most are today.