this post was submitted on 17 Sep 2023
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Because it's like pissing into the ocean and saying we've increased the water level. I mean technically yeah, but not really.
The overwhelming issue is tankers, concrete, industrial plastics, methane from cattle and "natural" gas. Individual contribution from people barely shows up at all compared to these.
The decisions of people absolutely influence what companies are doing. While the plastic straw each individual drops onto the floor or the burger they eat may not be the major driver of climate change, it is the way people chose to live (in the western world) that is responsible for climate change.
Releasing people from that responsibility will lead to them just slumb back into their comfort zone and doing nothing.
People, on a large scale, will never do that. That's not in human nature, and thinking everyone will willingly stop driving and buying meat is just the least productive kind of dreaming.
Those in charge will never change either, unless forced.
No amount of individual responsibility will overcome corporate intentions without regulation or real competition. Neither of which seem to be on deck.
Those companies aren't polluting for fun, are they? If nobody buys their products, no pollution is done.
Of course, a valid counterargument is that buying alternatives is too expensive (or non-existent, which most likely also has to do with price). And then the valid recourse is politics, subsidising alternatives, or in my opinion the better choice: making polluting products more expensive (by means of carbon tax or cap and trade).
I avoid buying concrete whenever I can...
As for stuff shipped overseas I buy US stuff as much as possible. I'd love to buy a US built and sourced computer and phone but I just don't think that's possible.
We avoid beef almost 100%, it's hard to get goat but it's my favorite when it's available. My wife and I aren't vegetarians but we're pretty close.
I'm not discounting what an individual can do but no amount of individual choice will change the system enough without pressure from the top. Either regulation or real competition, neither of which are on deck it seems.