Global warming took center stage as the topic of the United States’ largest-ever teach-in, held on Jan. 31. Over 1,500 universities, colleges, community colleges and even some high schools organized events under the umbrella of the group Focus the Nation. Professors also incorporated the issue of climate change into their regular lectures.
The goal was to reach out beyond the current environmental movement and draw wider attention to the issue,
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The events did succeed in drawing attention and engaging young people. Organizers estimate over a million students were involved. At least 75 senators, U.S. representatives and governors spoke at various forums. The media provided extensive coverage of the teach-ins.
However, the question remains: What was the message on which the “nation” was “focused?”
A visit to the Focusthenation.org website is informative. Rapidly blinking ads promote Focus the Nation’s corporate sponsors including Nike, Clif Bar and Stonyfield Yogurt. Scrolling down, one finds the names and photos of numerous imperialist politicians, proudly displayed as supporters of the effort.
Following a link labeled “Choose your future: Vote,” one can select priorities for action. Site visitors will collectively identify five priorities, then groups of students will lobby elected officials to turn the action plans into legislation and ultimately government programs.
The better ideas include job creation through energy-saving programs, such as retrofitting buildings and installing solar water heaters, and rapid implementation of simple mitigation measures in new and existing homes and businesses.
But false solutions are also included, such as cap-and-trade systems. Those market-based plans allocate “emissions credits” that companies can buy or sell. Those who pollute less can sell their unused credits to others who pollute more, negating the benefit of their reduced emissions. Cap-and-trade also neglects the impact of emissions on communities.
Biofuels are encouraged, even though scientific research continues to show that using food for fuel may actually increase global warming. The site also fails to address the displacement of food crops by growing biofuel demand, which has led to dramatic increase in food prices.
Another major weakness of the Focus the Nation menu of actions is the complete omission of public transportation as an option. One of the choices for action is “Cleaner Cars, California style,” calling for widespread adoption of California’s emissions standards, which require a 23 percent reduction in carbon emissions from new cars sold by 2012, and a 30 percent reduction by 2016.
This is not a bad idea. However, it ignores the underlying problem of millions of single-occupant cars on the road every day. A massive public transit program using hybrid buses would create jobs and could easily be implemented as fast as the buses can be purchased and drivers hired and trained.
Focus the Nation is yet another example of the market-oriented environmental movement. Such efforts gloss over the true cause of global warming: untrammeled capitalist industrial development. They divert attention away from the only long-term solution to climate change and environmental destruction: socialist economic planning.
La Riva/Puryear: capitalism to blame
The La Riva/Puryear PSL presidential campaign issued a statement that was distributed at some of the Focus the Nation teach-ins. Campaign volunteers used the statement to engage students in discussions of the real issues of global warming. Many young people agreed with the main ideas of the statement and were impressed with how well the campaign understood the problem of global warming and its solutions. In part, the statement reads:
“Capitalism is the greatest threat to our environment. Capitalist corporations are allowed to continue polluting to cut costs and make more profit. As long as we live in a society where profits are prioritized over people’s needs, our planet will continue to be destroyed.
“The La Riva/Puryear presidential campaign fights for the interests of working-class people. We demand immediate action to stop global warming. We call for mandatory emissions controls on big corporate polluters. Comprehensive public transportation programs must be created and fully funded to create jobs and take millions of cars off the road. There must be a rapid transition to using safe renewable energy sources. Energy conservation measures must be implemented now. Energy use in the United States could easily be reduced by 28 percent using low-cost measures and existing technologies to make buildings more energy efficient.
“The La Riva/Puryear campaign believes that the only lasting solution for our environment is the socialist reorganization of society. Socialism is a system based on national and international, ecologically sustainable planning where the profit motive has been removed from the picture. Eliminating the tyranny of private corporate profit as the dominant feature controlling economic development opens the door to true working-class democracy. That is what we mean by ‘people over profits.’ Rational social and economic planning, rather than production for the ‘market,’ is the only method for the implementation of scientifically supported solutions to global warming.”
