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Any futile severance of anti-war agenda from the climate movement needs our criticism. (Photo: Diem25)
The Green New Deal Needs an Anti-war Message
Advocates of a Green New Deal must reckon with the fact that our very ability to implement these ambitious climate-saving programs requires the basis of peace
May 15, 2019
"I have taken the conservation of our natural resources as the first lesson that points to the necessity for seeking community freedom."
-Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1912
The Green New Deal can only succeed as an internationalist campaign--and that means listening to many other, non-ecological concerns expressed by populations most impacted by global warming.
Wars, financial crises, and transnational economic pressures weigh more heavily in the conversations of people from South of the Tropic of Cancer (including Central America and the Middle East) and those below the Tropic of Capricorn (such as Argentina, where global warming remains the last concern of a depressed, insolvent citizenry witnessing the creeping return of militarism.)
To successfully realize global Green reconstruction, and the employment it could generate, we must also pressure States to preserve peace.
Advocates of a Green New Deal must reckon with the fact that our very ability to implement these ambitious climate-saving programs requires the basis of peace.
We should be wary, then, of rhetoric that 'green-washes' war, as when Obama insisted that drone aircraft proved 'more ecological' than earlier bombers.
We should be wary, as well, of the Singaporean regime's pride in its solar-powered city-state, walled off from the conflict that surrounds it.
Green activists will be late to only now attack these inner contradictions, though they must. Any futile severance of anti-war agenda from the climate movement needs our criticism.
To successfully realize global Green reconstruction, and the employment it could generate, we must also pressure States to preserve peace: conflict zone with harsh sunlight may be perfect for the installation of solar panels, but their inhabitants are far too busy fighting for their survival.
So let's have a more internationalist Green New Deal. All our struggles remain related and interdependent.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Arturo Desimone
Arturo Desimone is an Aruban-Argentinean writer and visual artist, currently based between Argentina and the Netherlands. His articles on politics previously appeared in Open Democracy, CounterPunch, El Anden, and various literary journals. For more info see his blog www.arturoblogito.wordpress.com. He's also a member of the thematic DSC 'Military and foreign policy 1'
"I have taken the conservation of our natural resources as the first lesson that points to the necessity for seeking community freedom."
-Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1912
The Green New Deal can only succeed as an internationalist campaign--and that means listening to many other, non-ecological concerns expressed by populations most impacted by global warming.
Wars, financial crises, and transnational economic pressures weigh more heavily in the conversations of people from South of the Tropic of Cancer (including Central America and the Middle East) and those below the Tropic of Capricorn (such as Argentina, where global warming remains the last concern of a depressed, insolvent citizenry witnessing the creeping return of militarism.)
To successfully realize global Green reconstruction, and the employment it could generate, we must also pressure States to preserve peace.
Advocates of a Green New Deal must reckon with the fact that our very ability to implement these ambitious climate-saving programs requires the basis of peace.
We should be wary, then, of rhetoric that 'green-washes' war, as when Obama insisted that drone aircraft proved 'more ecological' than earlier bombers.
We should be wary, as well, of the Singaporean regime's pride in its solar-powered city-state, walled off from the conflict that surrounds it.
Green activists will be late to only now attack these inner contradictions, though they must. Any futile severance of anti-war agenda from the climate movement needs our criticism.
To successfully realize global Green reconstruction, and the employment it could generate, we must also pressure States to preserve peace: conflict zone with harsh sunlight may be perfect for the installation of solar panels, but their inhabitants are far too busy fighting for their survival.
So let's have a more internationalist Green New Deal. All our struggles remain related and interdependent.
Arturo Desimone
Arturo Desimone is an Aruban-Argentinean writer and visual artist, currently based between Argentina and the Netherlands. His articles on politics previously appeared in Open Democracy, CounterPunch, El Anden, and various literary journals. For more info see his blog www.arturoblogito.wordpress.com. He's also a member of the thematic DSC 'Military and foreign policy 1'
"I have taken the conservation of our natural resources as the first lesson that points to the necessity for seeking community freedom."
-Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1912
The Green New Deal can only succeed as an internationalist campaign--and that means listening to many other, non-ecological concerns expressed by populations most impacted by global warming.
Wars, financial crises, and transnational economic pressures weigh more heavily in the conversations of people from South of the Tropic of Cancer (including Central America and the Middle East) and those below the Tropic of Capricorn (such as Argentina, where global warming remains the last concern of a depressed, insolvent citizenry witnessing the creeping return of militarism.)
To successfully realize global Green reconstruction, and the employment it could generate, we must also pressure States to preserve peace.
Advocates of a Green New Deal must reckon with the fact that our very ability to implement these ambitious climate-saving programs requires the basis of peace.
We should be wary, then, of rhetoric that 'green-washes' war, as when Obama insisted that drone aircraft proved 'more ecological' than earlier bombers.
We should be wary, as well, of the Singaporean regime's pride in its solar-powered city-state, walled off from the conflict that surrounds it.
Green activists will be late to only now attack these inner contradictions, though they must. Any futile severance of anti-war agenda from the climate movement needs our criticism.
To successfully realize global Green reconstruction, and the employment it could generate, we must also pressure States to preserve peace: conflict zone with harsh sunlight may be perfect for the installation of solar panels, but their inhabitants are far too busy fighting for their survival.
So let's have a more internationalist Green New Deal. All our struggles remain related and interdependent.
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