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| -rw-r--r-- | chapter1.md | 53 |
2 files changed, 53 insertions, 29 deletions
diff --git a/bibliography.bib b/bibliography.bib index 225c1d4..dc736c4 100644 --- a/bibliography.bib +++ b/bibliography.bib @@ -1,3 +1,32 @@ +@article{bbc-gilets-jaunes, + url={https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-sh/yellow_vests}, + urldate={2026-07-24}, + title={The gilets jaunes}, + author={Williamson, Lucy}, + publisher={BBC News}, + date={2018-12-14}, +} + +@report{parl-fuel-escalator, + url={https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN03015/SN03015.pdf}, + title={Taxation of road fuels}, + subtitle={the road fuel escalator (1993-2000)}, + date={2011-01-21}, + urldate={2026-07-24}, + author={Seely, Anthony}, + publisher={House of Commons Library}, + address={Westminster}, + note={Standard Note: SN3015}, +} + +@article{bbc-fuel-duty-cut, + url={http://news.bbc.co.uk/news/vote2001/hi/english/newsid_1323000/1323018.stm}, + urldate={2026-07-24}, + title={Q&A: the fuel tax cut}, + publisher={BBC News}, + date={2001-05-10}, +} + @report{energy-profits-jun-25, url={https://energy-profits.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Jun-25_Energy-Profits_Data-1.pdf}, urldate={2026-07-24}, diff --git a/chapter1.md b/chapter1.md index a5d45fd..cb07ef8 100644 --- a/chapter1.md +++ b/chapter1.md @@ -264,33 +264,32 @@ remained largely academic, with little impact on politics, and indeed a vague grasp on what de-growth policy would actually mean in practice or who you could possibly convince to make it happen. [@vansintjan-2019; @cosme-2017] -Another favourite of green rhetors is to propose smart market-based policies -like carbon taxes, aimed at tweaking the incentives for private capital to nudge -the market into financing economic transformation. \[EXAMPLE\] - -Admittedly, this is a little better than proposing austerity, and has made a -little political inroad. The US, EU, and UK have all implemented carbon markets -and carbon taxes, although the carbon markets have widely been recognised to be -distorting and counter-productive, and the carbon prices so far have been set -too low to have any noticeable impact. Making this approach work still has some -very tall obstacles to climb. As soon as carbon prices are set high enough to -bite, without state intervention to redistribute investment, the cost of carbon -pricing is likely to fall hardest on the poorest. This is not politically -sustainable. - -This was decisively demonstrated in 2018 \[ALSO GORDON BROWN'S FUEL PRICE -ESCALATOR?\], after French President Emmanuel Macron attempted to raise fuel -taxes, purportedly in an attempt to curb greenhouse gas emissions \[EVIDENCE\]. -This move triggered an enormous wave of protests across France, symbolised by -the protester's uniform, the _gilet jaune_. Despite Macron's strong political +Another favourite of green rhetors is to propose smart market-based policies, +mainly taxing carbon, aimed at tweaking the incentives for private capital to +nudge the market into financing economic transformation. It's hard to disagree +with eloquent experts like Sir Dieter Helm [@legacy] who argues that a +sustainable economy must observe what he calls the 'polluter-pays principle.' +However, too often, smart market tweaks are proposed which exacerbate market +injustice, effectively levying the cost of economic transformation on those +least able to pay. This is not politically sustainable. + +In March 1993, for example, Norman Lamont announced a fuel price 'escalator', +promising to gradually increase fuel duty, partly in order to reduce carbon +dioxide emissions. A tobacco escalator followed in November. However, amidst +criticism that the fuel duty was regressive and ineffective and protests from +lorry drivers, Gordon Brown was forced in March 2000 to rescind the escalator +and reduce fuel duty [@parl-fuel-escalator; @bbc-fuel-duty-cut]. In 2018, the +'gilets jaunes' protest movement brought France to a standstill, the protests +having been triggered by the annual implementation of a similar fuel price +escalator scheme bequeathed to Emmanuel Macron by the previous government, +similarly motivated by environmental concerns. Despite Macron's strong political position at the beginning of the protests, he was forced to roll back the tax -increases alongside other concessions to the protesters \[EVIDENCE\]. +increases alongside other concessions to the protesters [@bbc-gilets-jaune]. -So, while smart market fixes might work in theory, we're still waiting for a -credible vision for how they might be politically sustainable. Thus, here too, -green rhetoric has failed to demonstrate to their audience that the change they -advocate will be good for them, and thus their proposals are politically -impossible. +So, while smart market fixes might work in theory, they are too often divorced +from any politically sustainable programme. Thus, here too, green rhetoric has +failed to demonstrate to their audience that the change they advocate will be +good for them, and thus their proposals are politically impossible. Taking another approach, many green rhetors advocate for a simple programme: listen to the science, then act rationally. This call to action suggests that @@ -476,9 +475,6 @@ catastrophic language is counter-productive in this context. ## TODO - Find quotes and page numbers in @{back-to-nature} and @{heat} -- Find an example of a green rhetor promoting smart market-based fixes -- Evidence: gilet jaune sparked by Macron attempting to implement a smart market-based climate fix -- Evidence: Macron had to back down after the gilet jaune protests - Explore and evidence: the green movement is on the back foot - Evidence: environmental NGOs don't do mass mobilisation - Find examples of 'listen to the scientists' and 'science denial' discourses @@ -487,4 +483,3 @@ catastrophic language is counter-productive in this context. - Explore: magical green proposals - Explore: PMC people feel powerless because the actions they have taken aren't very effective - Explore: how does 'listen to the scientists' and 'science denial' discourse lead to action? -- Explore: Gordon Brown's fuel-price escalator |