December 12, 2014
A NYT article on a change in other countries’ attitudes towards the United States role in global warming negotiations seriously understated the basis for other countries’ anger toward the United States on this issue. It referred to reactions to President Obama’s inability to get Congress to pass a law to reduce greenhouse gas emissions:
“the United States went back to being viewed as the world’s largest economy and largest historic greenhouse gas polluter, refusing to change course.”
Actually, if the United States were just polluting in the same ratio to GDP as other wealthy countries that would be an enormous step forward. However, we have taken few of the steps that Europe has done over the last four decades to reduce energy consumption. In addition, because we have taken gains in productivity growth rather than leisure, we emit more than twice as much greenhouse gas (GHG) as people in western Europe, even though we have comparable living standards.
If it were just a question of the U.S. emitting a lot of GHG because we are the world’s largest economy, those concerned about global warming would be much more pleasantly disposed toward the United States.
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