RE: FDR's policies on agriculture, government should stay out of the farming business. Examples are Stalin's policies in the 30s vis-a-vis Ukraine and Mugabe's policies vis-a-vis Zimbabwe when he kicked all the productive white farmers out. Land reform never works. A thousand-acre farm is far more productive than 100 10-acre farms. Stalin did the same in Ukraine when he waged war on the kulaks (wealthy, productive landowners).
You wrote: “When the Olympics were in Beijing in 2008, the government of China solved the city's air pollution problem overnight, by closing all the factories and banning all cars for the duration of the games.”
During the 2008 Olympics, Beijing’s air pollution was not “solved,” but it was greatly improved during that 16-day period. There was still a yellow haze in the air that still exceeded World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations and was categorized as unhealthy, with many athletes reporting respiratory issues despite some favorable weather conditions during the games.
The shut down was tolerated by the population, because it was temporary and not a “solution.”
Very interesting concept, and it gives me a bit to think about. But I do agree with this line: "The scheme won't ever work." Trying to undo something that has been in the making for generations and is against self-interest (consumerism) does not seem like something a democracy is set up to handle. At least, not quickly.
"We could solve the carbon problem today...But that would create other problems that might turn out to be greater." Agreed. I think the speed at which the environmental issues reverse is proportional to the pain felt by the people. Perhaps only innovation can skew that association (a culture change can as well, but those are slow, inherently tied to generations).
Great post. Interesting idea. Trying to incentivize solutions to this problem deserves some outside-the-box thinking.
[Edit: Broader political opinion...I think neither Republicans nor Democrats are suited to address this issue. Both parties champion large interests that significantly perpetuate the problem. I do, however, think RFK could potentially make a lot of progress advancing a solution in a way that would not otherwise naturally happen within our current political dynamic. However, drawing from a previous post "Where's TJ when we need him?", RFK has been reduced to a single issue, so everything else has been thrown out...Current day reductionism. (Setting aside the hurdles of running as an independent)]
RE: FDR's policies on agriculture, government should stay out of the farming business. Examples are Stalin's policies in the 30s vis-a-vis Ukraine and Mugabe's policies vis-a-vis Zimbabwe when he kicked all the productive white farmers out. Land reform never works. A thousand-acre farm is far more productive than 100 10-acre farms. Stalin did the same in Ukraine when he waged war on the kulaks (wealthy, productive landowners).
You wrote: “When the Olympics were in Beijing in 2008, the government of China solved the city's air pollution problem overnight, by closing all the factories and banning all cars for the duration of the games.”
During the 2008 Olympics, Beijing’s air pollution was not “solved,” but it was greatly improved during that 16-day period. There was still a yellow haze in the air that still exceeded World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations and was categorized as unhealthy, with many athletes reporting respiratory issues despite some favorable weather conditions during the games.
The shut down was tolerated by the population, because it was temporary and not a “solution.”
Very interesting concept, and it gives me a bit to think about. But I do agree with this line: "The scheme won't ever work." Trying to undo something that has been in the making for generations and is against self-interest (consumerism) does not seem like something a democracy is set up to handle. At least, not quickly.
"We could solve the carbon problem today...But that would create other problems that might turn out to be greater." Agreed. I think the speed at which the environmental issues reverse is proportional to the pain felt by the people. Perhaps only innovation can skew that association (a culture change can as well, but those are slow, inherently tied to generations).
Great post. Interesting idea. Trying to incentivize solutions to this problem deserves some outside-the-box thinking.
[Edit: Broader political opinion...I think neither Republicans nor Democrats are suited to address this issue. Both parties champion large interests that significantly perpetuate the problem. I do, however, think RFK could potentially make a lot of progress advancing a solution in a way that would not otherwise naturally happen within our current political dynamic. However, drawing from a previous post "Where's TJ when we need him?", RFK has been reduced to a single issue, so everything else has been thrown out...Current day reductionism. (Setting aside the hurdles of running as an independent)]