47
stop, or reverse the flow of more CO 2 into the atmosphere, proponents of the growth
of a carbon-based economy passionately argue that the graph itself is untrue. Critics
of the graphs say there are serious problems with the underlying science and methods used to construct them and that there are records that actually show opposing
(cooling) trends. Some say that maybe the graph is accurate but that atmospheric
climate change is actually good for human beings for a host of either physical reasons or economic reasons. As criticisms are regularly addressed and more reconstructions corroborate the original findings (Masson-Delmotte et al. 2018), new
ones spring up.
More important than what specific arguments are presented in the ongoing debate
is to recognize the causal relationship between debate and inaction. A small amount
of doubt introduced by a vocal minority makes reaching a consensus in clearly
defining any problem to start with making it impossible to then move to address it.
Doubt promotes a “paralysis through analysis” by extending the conversation indefinitely and delaying any large-scale action that would change the way we currently
produce and consume. It creates the perfect excuse to not change anything until we
know more; the thinking goes, “Until we are 100 percent sure, we should do nothing.” (More on the denialist’s views and tactics for sowing doubt for maximum
effect in Chap. 6.)
3.4 China
As the global greenhouse gasses debate continues, the ill effects of business as usual
are especially pronounced in rapidly industrializing countries. The Chinese government has acknowledged a growing problem. Its citizens are getting sick. The suffering caused by toxic smog is rising. As many as 3.7 million premature deaths in
China were attributed to air pollution in 2012 up from 1.3 million deaths in 2008
(Mokoena et al. 2019).
Greenhouse gasses are not the only type of air pollution. The same industrial
sources of carbon dioxide also produce levels of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and
ground-level ozone as well as other compounds in the form of fine dust that can collect in the lungs of anyone who breathes (Fig. 3.5). These unwanted ingredients in
the air can trigger a host of maladies, according to Bai Chunxue, the head of respiratory medicine at Shanghai’s Zhongshan Hospital. Diseases including lung cancer,
chronic pulmonary obstructive disease (COPD), asthma, chronic bronchitis, and
emphysema as well as cardiovascular disease are becoming more common in China
(Demick 2013).
The same industries responsible for driving Chinese prosperity for the last three
decades are causing one of the largest public health crises in the history of humankind. The government has pledged to improve the air quality in Chinese cities and
major industrial centers but has not been able to make much progress. Even after
technological advances developed to improve industrial emissions have been
employed, the largest, centralized, government-run economy in the world cannot
3.4 China
stop, or reverse the flow of more CO 2 into the atmosphere, proponents of the growth
of a carbon-based economy passionately argue that the graph itself is untrue. Critics
of the graphs say there are serious problems with the underlying science and methods used to construct them and that there are records that actually show opposing
(cooling) trends. Some say that maybe the graph is accurate but that atmospheric
climate change is actually good for human beings for a host of either physical reasons or economic reasons. As criticisms are regularly addressed and more reconstructions corroborate the original findings (Masson-Delmotte et al. 2018), new
ones spring up.
More important than what specific arguments are presented in the ongoing debate
is to recognize the causal relationship between debate and inaction. A small amount
of doubt introduced by a vocal minority makes reaching a consensus in clearly
defining any problem to start with making it impossible to then move to address it.
Doubt promotes a “paralysis through analysis” by extending the conversation indefinitely and delaying any large-scale action that would change the way we currently
produce and consume. It creates the perfect excuse to not change anything until we
know more; the thinking goes, “Until we are 100 percent sure, we should do nothing.” (More on the denialist’s views and tactics for sowing doubt for maximum
effect in Chap. 6.)
3.4 China
As the global greenhouse gasses debate continues, the ill effects of business as usual
are especially pronounced in rapidly industrializing countries. The Chinese government has acknowledged a growing problem. Its citizens are getting sick. The suffering caused by toxic smog is rising. As many as 3.7 million premature deaths in
China were attributed to air pollution in 2012 up from 1.3 million deaths in 2008
(Mokoena et al. 2019).
Greenhouse gasses are not the only type of air pollution. The same industrial
sources of carbon dioxide also produce levels of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and
ground-level ozone as well as other compounds in the form of fine dust that can collect in the lungs of anyone who breathes (Fig. 3.5). These unwanted ingredients in
the air can trigger a host of maladies, according to Bai Chunxue, the head of respiratory medicine at Shanghai’s Zhongshan Hospital. Diseases including lung cancer,
chronic pulmonary obstructive disease (COPD), asthma, chronic bronchitis, and
emphysema as well as cardiovascular disease are becoming more common in China
(Demick 2013).
The same industries responsible for driving Chinese prosperity for the last three
decades are causing one of the largest public health crises in the history of humankind. The government has pledged to improve the air quality in Chinese cities and
major industrial centers but has not been able to make much progress. Even after
technological advances developed to improve industrial emissions have been
employed, the largest, centralized, government-run economy in the world cannot
3.4 China