I love AOC part 2

[bennyboy]

Wealth is the greatest correlating factor with carbon footprint. The wealthier you are, the bigger your carbon footprint. If free markets decreased global pollution, then your paper that argues the case for that wouldn't have been full of junk.

How? The wealthier you are, more likely you are to buy solar panels and use an electric or a hybrid car (and the hybrid car, rather than electric car, is probably the best type of car both environmentally and economically).

First of all, a new car costs way more carbon than continuing to drive a very old one.  So if you have to buy a car, then an electric car is great.  Otherwise. . . keeping that old beater a couple more years is better.

Second, wealthy people consume more.  They also consume more expensive foods, which are expensive because they are imported from abroad.  They also travel more.

Yeah, solar panels are great.  But that's about 0.01% of what richer people spend their money on.

And also keep in mind that while countries like China and India pollute a lot, it's very much manufacturing, and so America and other rich countries own a lot of that damage as well, even though it's more indirect.

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Of course free market decreases global pollution. Free market encourages innovation, and innovation generally decreases pollution. If the price of gasoline drastically increases, which it will, there is more incentive to research the alternative sources of energy. Even people in less free countries can then benefit from those innovations that were invented elsewhere.

You are making stuff up, and it's not good stuff. Innovation means an increase in productivity, and productivity is fueled by. . . fuel.