David Webb: Environmental capitalism versus climate strike

Writing about this topic is almost like writing about religion. Immediate reactions for many will be you’re either a supporter or a denier. The problem is that’s the discussion. 

You could almost feel the electricity in the air that began on Sept. 20 with the global climate strike. Well, it actually began a little over a year ago when 16-year-old climate phenom Greta Thunberg walked out of school and sat outside the Swedish Parliament.

{mosads}Since then, she has sailed across the ocean, addressed the faithful in New York City’s Central Park, spoken at the United Nations youth climate summit in New York City and the U.N. climate action summit. Hey, that’s pretty impressive for 16. Old images of American cities underwater as the sea rises have been revived. There have been promises that this would happen since the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s. And this time we only have 12 years according to some.

Climate change religion is the reformation of the global warming cult. It’s the newest religion of the left. Tapping in to the youth is key. They’re easy to frighten. Just tell them their world is ending. It’s a big new “green deal” that isn’t the “real deal,” and America the prosperous is the climate Satan. Every religion needs a Satan.

Do all these climate strikers know what they’re protesting for? Seems the discussion is more often centered around CO2 rather than the environment.

We should talk about the environment as a whole not just limited to CO2, fossil fuel or other buzzwords. Our environment is everything around us, including and importantly the economic environment. For the climate change alarmists, fossil fuels are an easy target. How come they never talk about nuclear, which is clean energy? Energy that is generated and then redistributed powers the world.

How often do you hear about American coal plants destroying the world? American industry developed various methods of carbon recapture. Another example, the United States has regrown 33,000,000 acres of forests since the 1970s. Other nations are losing forests. If the numbers don’t make sense, ask yourself why go after America?

What if I told you that there is a clean capitalist approach to help our environment founded on conservative economic principles, developing and deploying new solutions.

For the climate change alarmists it’s important that we stay in the argument. For those who want to redistribute $80 billion or so, the argument is about the money. Ask Al Gore. Actions that are taken by organizations like EarthX, founded by Trammell S. Crow in Dallas, have spent the past nine years solving problems. The EarthX Conference drew some 175,000 participants in April.

More than 60 countries have participated in the largest earth day, a multi-day event not just a concert or a march. They have produced many conservative, capitalist and realistic solutions to address issues including water, energy, sustainable farming and technology. There are many more issues. These are just a few examples.

There are many experts and interested parties using the free-market approach to solve issues around the globe related to the climate but more importantly to our environment. If we continue to limit ourselves to climate, then we limit ourselves to the argument over something which is like a gas. When you hear the words climate change, it cannot be proven or denied.

April 2020 will be the 50th anniversary of earth day and the 10th anniversary of the EarthX Conference. Rather than march for another 50 years, imagine what could be accomplished if organizations like EarthX and the Clean Capitalist Coalition continue to work on deploying solutions which are both profitable and effective.

Profitability is the result of success and then the choice can be made to share that success. This is vastly different from the socialist climate change approach of redistributing the wealth of one nation, America, to others.

Let the climate strikers and the hashtag climate change activists march and shout. On the realistic side of this global equation as with many other global issues, free markets, capitalism and innovation will solve many problems. Climate change cultists will either join in or fall to the wayside of history.

We can’t argue with ideologues, they just drag you down to their level and beat you with inaction.

Webb is host of “The David Webb Show” on SiriusXM Patriot 125, host of “Reality Check with David Webb” on Fox Nation, a Fox News contributor and a frequent television commentator. His column appears twice a month in The Hill.