Is there no ‘Modest Proposal’ too far when it comes to Climate Change?

By Ellen Wald


In 1729, British satirist Jonathan Swift recommended that poor families sell their babies as food. It was not a serious suggestion, but rather an attack on the absurd theories of the day. In 2019, an activist satirically told Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that the only way to solve climate change was to “start eating babies.” What would have happened if that activist had stood up in this winter of 2021 with such a wild idea?

After a year of crazy and alarming news, there may be no policy proposal or warning from experts and government that shocks us anymore. It is possible that we are already acculturated to extreme ideas and behavior. For instance, is there any climate change proposal that would seem unrealistic right now?

Perhaps you missed the Massachusetts undersecretary for climate change, David Ismay, advocating for breaking the “will” of residents in an effort to protect the environment. Among other things, he wants Massachusetts residents like “the person on the street, the senior on fixed-income,” to cut back on heat. Yes, he said they should go cold in advance of environmental policies. That is a deadly plan, especially for seniors, in a region where winter temperatures regularly drop well below freezing

Does anyone believe that Ismay would have been able to say something like that a year ago? After reflection, even he acted surprised by his own words, claiming that he couldn’t, “even say that publicly.” Except in the age of virtual meetings and internet-based media, we have the evidence that he did.

If he had made such a remark a year ago, we would have had a good laugh. “Surely,” we would have all thought, “the government will not turn off heat to senior citizens for some vague environmentalist goal.”

Now, a year into the response to the coronavirus pandemic, the population is split between two responses. A good portion of people look at this statement and think, this is wrong and insane, but I wouldn’t put it past them to restrict heating our homes.

Another portion of the population is thinking, he’s the expert, and I care about the planet, and we all have to make sacrificed for the common good.

Over the last 11 months, we have seen more and more extreme ideas and proposals to combat climate change. Some of these thoughts come from serious and powerful people, like Bill Gates. Here are just a few examples:

In August, The Guardian reported on a study concluding that the virus lockdowns resulted in significant drops in carbon emissions but only a “negligible” impact on climate change. One professor from the University of Manchester who was not involved in the study even commented that the willingness of populations to accept lockdowns, “suggest there is a public willingness for behavioral changes to a more sustainable and low-carbon lifestyle…but structural changes and new policies are essential.” In other words, the people complied for a virus; they will comply for environmental policies too.

In September, several online sites published an opinion piece headlined, “We need to act boldly now if we are to avoid economy-wide lockdowns to halt climate change.” In it, University College London professor Mariana Mazzucato argues that “in order to prevent a public-health emergency from spinning out of control,” they will need to implement lockdowns to “tackle a climate emergency.” According to Prof. Mazzucato, governments would impose restrictions on the use of private vehicles and force populations to adhere to “extreme energy-saving measures.” This sounds very similar to Ismay’s ideas, although she adds a ban on red meat and oil and gas drilling.

Bill Gates is much more powerful than any professor, and to many he is scarier too. Gates, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft and self-styled global philanthropist, sees the coronavirus pandemic and government responses as a precursor for climate change action. In his personal blog, GatesNotes, he argues that climate-related deaths will far outpace our current problem with coronavirus. Therefore, he says, “even as the world works to stop the novel coronavirus and begin recovering from it, we also need to act now to avoid a climate disaster.” He proposes that we “treat the shutdown caused by COVID-19 as if it were a carbon-reduction strategy,” though he concludes that even that is insufficient to achieve climate change reduction gains. It seems he has further policy proposals that he is not willing to release yet, even in today’s accept-anything environment.

Now that “experts” and government officials have seen how compliant people have been with lockdowns, travel restrictions, curfews and business closures, calls for more draconian measures to combat climate change are a clear next step. But as you hear these new policies, remember that Ismay and Gates won’t be turning down their heat on a frigid day, just like the mayor of Tampa Bay attends games and celebrations maskless but threatened to send the police to “handle” maskless football watchers in her city. Government bureaucrats, billionaires and “experts” never go cold in today’s climate.


Ellen R. Wald, Ph.D. is a widely cited analyst of the global energy industry. She is the president of Transversal Consulting which provides guidance on energy and geopolitics. Dr. Wald is the author of Saudi, Inc., detailing the history and relevance of the Saudi oil industry and Aramco.

A non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center, Dr. Wald earned a Ph.D. in energy history from Boston University and a Bachelor’s degree with honors from Princeton University. Her past academic appointments include positions at Boston University, the University of Cambridge, The American Heritage Center at the University of Wyoming and the University of Georgia.

She frequently provides analysis for print, television and radio news. Her weekly roundup of timely energy market expectations can be found on Thursday mornings at Investing.com and you can follow her on twitter @EnergzdEconomy

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