Are older generations solely responsible for environmental degradation?
Are the older generations solely responsible for environmental degradation? Analysis of the shared responsibilities and contradictions of the new generations.
Recently, I had the opportunity to discuss this issue with a former Cinquestelle MP who seemed to indiscriminately blame climate change on previous generations. This populist approach, which generalizes without real understanding of the subject, is quite common. The former parliamentarian commented, in an equally extremist way, on a post by journalist Enrico Mentana. Both seem to prefer the slogan and the easy target to attack, even if they often don't correspond to reality. This populist method is well known and abused, but despite more than 15 years of presence in the institutions, it does not seem to have changed the opinion of the supporters of the 5 Star Movement.
Here is the text of the post: #EmiliaRomagna Today we have Mentana, the leader of those who have the face like the ass to expect young people to have to remedy the endless trouble caused by the greedy previous generations, who not even now take their asses off the sofa to make something environmentalist, but they chatter and pontificate without any use. Bravo, Mentana, well done!
How is the curve of harmful emissions going in Italy and in Europe?
As per my habit, I went to look at some data to determine if the reason belongs to one of the two, lies in the middle or lies elsewhere.
Even if I consider Mentana's post as an excessive and unfounded externalization, this does not mean that a simple invective is sufficient to provide correct information. Mentana is known for his arrogance and lack of expertise in many areas ( see the Capitol Hill gaffe ), but stooping to his level is not the ideal solution.
The fundamental question is whether young people are really solving the problems caused by previous generations. First of all, let's analyze the real data regarding the problems created by past generations. According to the Easy Explained Economy book , in just 18 years Italy has reduced CO2 emissions by 50% compared to the peaks reached after the Second World War, i.e. in the last 80 years.
Graph extracted from the book of economics explained easy
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These data demonstrate that, in the last 18 years, emissions have decreased by almost half compared to the peak reached in the early 2000s. However, this decline is not exclusively attributable to today's young people, but is the result of a process of change within the production system. In fact, today's young entrepreneurs, if they are lucky enough to be part of the production system, usually do so after the age of 30.
If we look at the spike in CO2 emissions that occurred between WWII and the mid-2000s, it's clear that past generations were responsible for a large part of these emissions, along with some of today's generations.
But is it true that the reduction of emissions is the result of the sacrifices that young people are making to protect themselves?
The habits of the new generations
Although some young people are committed to defending the environment (as has happened for all generations from the '70s to today), there is also a part of young people who oppose ecologists by adopting consumption habits that are harmful to the environment.
We can easily debunk the propaganda that portrays the new generations as victims of the older generations rather than victims of their own contradictions, using some striking examples.
Below is some information extracted from ECONOMIGRAM 21/22 ; the black box, i.e. a vast archive of sources that contradicts the official journalistic narrative in various subjects: politics, society, environment, economy, etc. ( check it out ).
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Who is the biggest consumer of fast fashion?
Fast fashion, which includes low-cost products with a strong environmental impact, is used for a short time and then ends up in landfills in poorer countries. We discussed this phenomenon while commenting on a recent article published by artisanal fashion brand, Spirit of St. Louis ( read ).
The use of the internet for unnecessary activities
The Internet is a major form of energy consumption. Can cyberbullying and pornography on TikTok and other platforms be attributed to the older generation? What can we say about the responsible use of new technologies, which require human sacrifices and use immense resources with a significant environmental impact?
The idols of the new generations
Not just private jets; even Bezos with his space rocket that pollutes alone like millions of poor people profits from consumption mainly of the new generations, accustomed to buying goods from all over the world on the internet.
Soil consumption
Soil consumption has skyrocketed in recent years.
Concrete actions such as reuse and recycling
To find out more sources, check out ECONOMIGRAM
Explanation on the environmental impact of older generations
The environmental impact from 1945 to 2015 is undeniable, but we must try to understand the causes and effects on the West. From 1945 to 1990, Italian production was mainly national, although it gradually decreased over time. The importation of cheap goods for mass consumption has extended from toys to many other products.
The pollution produced during the first half of the growth phase was mainly caused by lack of technology, not by the vices of generations.
With this lack of technology, previous generations created the businesses, factories, culture, schools, roads and infrastructure that we all use today. These services and infrastructures, which today we call ugly and harmful public debt, are what prevent us all from ending up working in the mines like many African and Asian kids who, unfortunately, an increasing number of poor young people exploit to spend whole days on the Internet , on PlayStation and viewing inappropriate content on YouPorn and TikTok. This is just to answer generalizations with other generalizations.
In the 1950s, the percentage of cargo ships crossed (and sunk) was insignificant compared to today and, above all, they did not carry cheap goods produced by exploited workers in Thailand, but carried raw materials necessary for the reconstruction of Italy and its development, so much so that by the end of the 1980s Italy had become the fourth largest manufacturing power in the world.
Maybe everyone was polluting in their own home and young people didn't have the culture or the financial resources to buy low-cost products manufactured at 20,000 km.
In the meantime, the new generations of exploited to support our well-being, starting with the superfluous, just like the older generations of exploited, look at us all without making any distinction.
Unfortunately today's young people will realize this when they have turned into older generations in turn, because they will be blamed by future new generations for having done nothing to create a better world for them.
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The article Are older generations solely responsible for environmental degradation? comes from Economic Scenarios .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/sono-le-vecchie-generazioni-le-sole-responsabili-del-degrado-ambientale/ on Wed, 24 May 2023 08:29:33 +0000.