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I think the population is less manipulable than people think. On the case of Trump, we’re talking about 2-3% swings, if that much. The man is genuinely popular

by graeme 7y ago

I think the population is less manipulable than people think. On the case of Trump, we’re talking about 2-3% swings, if that much. The man is genuinely popular with a large part of America. To change opinion on climate you’re talking 30-705 swings. Even those who believe in it don’t take it that seriously for the most part. Support for a meaningful level of carbon taxation is quite low. I think it’s beyond the level of billionaires to sway. They could buy politicians, who are easier to influence. But politicians can’t move far ahead of the people. Yes, I’m aware the petroleum industry and Fox News have a very effective disinformation campaign. But that’s moving in a short term direction people are already inclined to support. Look at Japan and Germany, two countries largely uninfluenced by American media propaganda and renowned for sensible planning: they’re both tearing down nuclear plants and increasing their carbon emissions. The world population at large doesn’t take climate change seriously, and it’s damned hard to swing public opinion as much as we would need.

mrhappyunhappy 7y ago
Japan is not tearing down any nuclear plants, we are building more. Nobody wants to increase carbon emissions here, it’s just that we have growing demand that cannot be met without importing. A huge chunk of energy in Japan is imported but we are slowly adding renewables and more nuclear. It’s silly to think that a country WANTS to depend on imports for a majority of its energy needs. The energy department has a forecast to 2030 somewhere out there (a pdf) and the goal is to reduce imports while putting more into renewables.
- graeme 7y ago
  You're right, I was somewhat incorrect. Japan temporarily shutdown its reactors after fukushima, with plans to reactivate. However, according to wikipedia only 5 out of ~50 are reactivated now. This may be outdated. The article also mentioned some 80% of the japanese population is opposed to nuclear. There are obviously valid concerns, but....my point is the public fears one and takes little heed of CO2.

by graeme 7y ago

mrhappyunhappy 7y ago

Japan is not tearing down any nuclear plants, we are building more. Nobody wants to increase carbon emissions here, it’s just that we have growing demand that cannot be met without importing. A huge chunk of energy in Japan is imported but we are slowly adding renewables and more nuclear. It’s silly to think that a country WANTS to depend on imports for a majority of its energy needs. The energy department has a forecast to 2030 somewhere out there (a pdf) and the goal is to reduce imports while putting more into renewables.

graeme 7y ago
You're right, I was somewhat incorrect. Japan temporarily shutdown its reactors after fukushima, with plans to reactivate. However, according to wikipedia only 5 out of ~50 are reactivated now. This may be outdated. The article also mentioned some 80% of the japanese population is opposed to nuclear. There are obviously valid concerns, but....my point is the public fears one and takes little heed of CO2.