This is not an exaggeration. They literally don't care about the world because "we're all going to heaven anyway." I have relatives that have said as much.
It’s time for the world community to start treating the United States as an environmental, economic, and military threat. We are not a partner. We don’t value the wellbeing of anyone, be they in other countries or our own for that matter.
It's up to the rest of the world now. We can't put climate action on hold for four years in hopes that a new administration will take over in 2029 that will lead the world in the transition away from fossil fuels.
The world has gotten very used to US leadership since the end of WWII, but that era is over. Maybe it should have ended a long time ago, but now it must. The US can't lead anymore, we lack the competency, efficacy, and morality to lead the world. Someone else is going to have to captain the ship.
I think it's important that America's replacement not be just the next most powerful nation. I think it's time for democracy to go global. We need the nations working together, instead of a single nation dominating the world through military might and economic control. The violent hegemonic orders of the past must be replaced with a global democratic order, based on inclusion, cooperation, and the consent of the governed.
Edit: I realized that I need to explain what I mean when I say that someone other than the US needs to take the leadership role in the transition away from fossil fuels. Climate action in an individual country is a very good thing, and very necessary, but climate change is a global problem. It's great that countries are taking steps to reduce their own GHG emissions, but unless such action is taken everywhere it's not going to be sufficient. GHG emissions have to reach net zero everywhere, not just in a few, relatively wealthy European countries. That will require cooperation and collaboration between nations, and I think that will require leadership. The US cannot be relied upon to lead that effort, so someone else is going to have to.
Trump repealed 112 environmental regulations in his first term, during a pandemic, without preparation, rolling us back to the Bush Administration in multiple categories.
I think we’re going to go backwards again, most likely at a faster rate than his last term.
It's up to the rest of the world now. We can't put climate action on hold for four years
Incredibly ignorant US-centric thought. What the actual fuck do you think we've been doing the last decade while you're driving about in your tiny-penis truck?!? 😂
I'm very aware that other countries have been taking climate action, much more than the US, in many cases. I didn't say the rest of the world needed to start doing anything related to climate, as if they had been up until now doing nothing, I said they needed to take LEADERSHIP. And if you're going to claim that the world hasn't been looking to the US for leadership on climate action, you're either an idiot or a liar.
True, although most countries also didn't improve as much as they should.
We're in an economical prisoner dilemma here...
And when a country says, "fuck it, we're going for short term profits", the upcoming cost due to climate change will get distributed to pretty much every country.
Just like the bailout shit. Profits for cooperations, costs for the public.
Same shit again, just on a larger/worldwide scale
My concern is for the planet. The US is by far the largest contributor to climate change if you account for the additional emissions from US manufacturing in China. We can’t afford this move backwards.
Meh. The U.S. probably are also going to be one of the most affected and if Trump enacts all his economic ideas, the U.S. Economy will tank HARD, meaning the contribution to climate change will shrink regardless.
Hey c'mon - it's either save the world for our descendants or make sure a handful of corporate executives, stockholders and bankers are able to afford more houses and bigger yachts. The choice is obvious, right?
Providing he doesn't become a dictator, which is certainly probable, his impacts on the environment will be bad, but not catastrophic.
Historically, when the incumbent is out, the president flips to the other party. Businesses plan strategy out for 5-10-20 years. Trump dismantling regulation won't force them to reconsider their strategy entirely. They'll use the 4 years as breathing room knowing it's probable a democratic executive will return in 2029. They'll slow walk progress, but they aren't going to abandon everything and start ramping up emissions. They still have to sell products in CA and the 16 states that follow CA emissions rules. We already saw that in 2016, auto makers stayed the course. They enjoyed the extra time to get their fleet MPGs up, but they knew time would eventually out and they'd need to be competitive when that happened.
Trumps "drill baby drill" plan sounds good to idiots, but oil is still subject to supply and demand. They already lease more land than they could ever use. They'll use trump to buy up leases that would otherwise go to renewables, but they aren't going to start pumping oil past demand and driving their profits down. Especially considering retaliation tariffs could cut into exports as well.
The IRA benefits red states more than blue and they are already begging GOP leaders to leave it alone. Trump might be able to cut individual tax credits for the middle class. Slow some solar and EV purchases, buy that'll cut into Elon's business as well, so maybe he won't even get that done.
Of course, if he goes full dictator, we're fucked anyway. But if he stays within the confines of our flawed democracy, and money prefers he do so they can continue to buy laws forever, then there's a chance his damage will be confined as well.