3 ms·

This glosses over the fact that here in the US we’ve emitted, historically, more than any other country. [1] 1: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1007454/cum

• devmunchies 6y ago
  Obviously the biggest country to pioneer modernization will have the most historical emissions. You have to break a few eggs to make an omelette. More important are our current post-modernization emissions.
  • gdubs 6y ago
    I’m not hostile to this point of view — I understand it. But ultimately there will have to be some sort of middle ground. Carbon emissions stick around a very long time, and we can basically assign our name (speaking from the USA here) on the majority of them. They’re the emissions causing challenges today, and they disproportionately affect the poor developing nations, who — while they may benefit from our innovations — are going to have a hard time accepting that they can’t take the same easy route to success that we did.
• throwaway894345 6y ago
  It doesn't gloss over it at all; as previously mentioned, there's lots to criticize about the US and other countries. The US ought to do better, but its sins (especially those prior to our modern understanding of environment) don't vindicate Brazil's deforestation today. This line of argumentation--that we all need only be as good as the worst of our rivals (and by whatever standard suits us in a given moment, no less)--is just a race to the bottom and I reject it wholesale.