I am now back from Green Party Conference. But: Why am I a Green? Why do I have very little hope for any of the 'main three' Parties delivering the needful changes, at this fateful point in history?
The key reason why is that the 'Conservatives', the LibDems and New Labour are all thoroughgoingly committed to neo-liberal economics. This points in the OPPOSITE direction to the changes that are needed. As fast as their manifestos become 'environmentalistic', so their belief in 'making things easier for business', in building roads and airports and coal-fired and nuclear power stations etc. undermines any progress they make elsewhere.
What we need is not environmentalism attached to an agenda which in other respects involves business as usual. What we need is ecologism (See e.g. Andrew Dobson's book, 'Green political thought'. http://www.andrewdobson.com/?page_id=14
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2465/is_4_30/ai_63699792 ) And, as I bring out in the posts and comments below, we need moreover ecologism across large tranches of the world. 'Ecologism in one country' is pretty hopeless. But that of course doesn't mean (and here I am taking up an issue in the debate around Transition Towns that I have spawned -- see below) that we shouldn't try to make Britain one huge demonstration project -- we _should_.
I am also given hope by the increasingly global nature of the anti-globalisation movement -- and of the Green Party, the closest thing we now have to a truly European and to some extent global political Party...
The key reason why is that the 'Conservatives', the LibDems and New Labour are all thoroughgoingly committed to neo-liberal economics. This points in the OPPOSITE direction to the changes that are needed. As fast as their manifestos become 'environmentalistic', so their belief in 'making things easier for business', in building roads and airports and coal-fired and nuclear power stations etc. undermines any progress they make elsewhere.
What we need is not environmentalism attached to an agenda which in other respects involves business as usual. What we need is ecologism (See e.g. Andrew Dobson's book, 'Green political thought'. http://www.andrewdobson.com/?page_id=14
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2465/is_4_30/ai_63699792 ) And, as I bring out in the posts and comments below, we need moreover ecologism across large tranches of the world. 'Ecologism in one country' is pretty hopeless. But that of course doesn't mean (and here I am taking up an issue in the debate around Transition Towns that I have spawned -- see below) that we shouldn't try to make Britain one huge demonstration project -- we _should_.
I am also given hope by the increasingly global nature of the anti-globalisation movement -- and of the Green Party, the closest thing we now have to a truly European and to some extent global political Party...
Comments
The sort that fought tooth and nail against the Liberal’s laissez faire policies in days of old, and of whom there are still plenty about.