This afternoon, the most incompetent president in U.S. history will reverse course on climate change, the most important threat to security in the history of civilization.
Trump, every day, demonstrates the bleak mismatch of solution to need. Yesterday, there was irony in the win by shareholders of ExxonMobil, the world's biggest fossil fuel producer, requiring highly paid executives to pay attention. By 60%, shareholders voted for disclosure of climate change threats to ExxonMobil's businesses. (In a repetitive pattern, network television did not even feature this important news.)
The ExxonMobil resolution was similar to one my wife and I proposed to NextEra Energy in 2016, which garnered 35% of shareholder votes.
NextEra, the parent company of Florida Power and Light, is one of the largest electric utilities in the nation. It is extraordinarily powerful as well. NextEra has a huge portfolio of wind and solar, but FPL is often at cross-purposes to the public interest: Turkey Point's failed cooling canal system for its nuclear reactors is a prime example. Tactics of delay, of false narratives delivered with calm assurance, are the company's stock-in-trade. It hires the best lobbyists and lawyers and uses its influence to promote a favorable public image in spite of its immensely destructive practices in legislatures and with other community decision makers. Just like ExxonMobil.
Shareholder resolutions are the only available tools to reach management behind high, smooth walls. Resolutions are non-binding to executive management, but the careers are at risk if they ignore them entirely.
Corporate America -- except for energy producers and their political hacks -- is slowly turning toward what common sense ought to dictate: that in the face of climate change, business as usual is an unacceptable risk.
The bright fact is that our politics are reacting too slowly or, in the case of Trump and the Republicans, moving in hard reverse. History is not kind to fools, but the closer climate change comes to imposing real sacrifice, the more fools seem to be elected to high office.
The reason: power wants first and foremost to protect itself. Judeo Christian values turn out to be straw for the animals to lie on. Tragic but there's hope when younger generations of voters realize the United States is being left behind in the rush to higher ground; literally and morally.
Trump, every day, demonstrates the bleak mismatch of solution to need. Yesterday, there was irony in the win by shareholders of ExxonMobil, the world's biggest fossil fuel producer, requiring highly paid executives to pay attention. By 60%, shareholders voted for disclosure of climate change threats to ExxonMobil's businesses. (In a repetitive pattern, network television did not even feature this important news.)
The ExxonMobil resolution was similar to one my wife and I proposed to NextEra Energy in 2016, which garnered 35% of shareholder votes.
NextEra, the parent company of Florida Power and Light, is one of the largest electric utilities in the nation. It is extraordinarily powerful as well. NextEra has a huge portfolio of wind and solar, but FPL is often at cross-purposes to the public interest: Turkey Point's failed cooling canal system for its nuclear reactors is a prime example. Tactics of delay, of false narratives delivered with calm assurance, are the company's stock-in-trade. It hires the best lobbyists and lawyers and uses its influence to promote a favorable public image in spite of its immensely destructive practices in legislatures and with other community decision makers. Just like ExxonMobil.
Shareholder resolutions are the only available tools to reach management behind high, smooth walls. Resolutions are non-binding to executive management, but the careers are at risk if they ignore them entirely.
Corporate America -- except for energy producers and their political hacks -- is slowly turning toward what common sense ought to dictate: that in the face of climate change, business as usual is an unacceptable risk.
The bright fact is that our politics are reacting too slowly or, in the case of Trump and the Republicans, moving in hard reverse. History is not kind to fools, but the closer climate change comes to imposing real sacrifice, the more fools seem to be elected to high office.
The reason: power wants first and foremost to protect itself. Judeo Christian values turn out to be straw for the animals to lie on. Tragic but there's hope when younger generations of voters realize the United States is being left behind in the rush to higher ground; literally and morally.
3 comments:
Putin and Trump are thumbing their noses at America, our values, our system of government, and the rule of law. Putin in on point, Trump is mentally ill.
Paris Climate Accords, it's almost like Obama was never here, except for the spying on Americans.
Obama is gone, his work on behalf of the nation as President is over and permanently etched in the record books. Five hundred years from now when they look are the records, his body of work will speak for itself. Each presidential record independently stands alone. . . .
Post a Comment