Re: Re: oil and socialism

[Jim Devine <jdevine@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 10:53 AM 11/18/2000 -0500, you wrote:
> And I might add that dire warnings of the global warming, etc. are not
> likely to bring about the emergence of a collective of political agents
> capable of abolishing capitalism; they tend to depoliticize
> folks.  Discussion of the environment has to be rooted in analysis of
> political agency & power.  No political subject, no transition to socialism.

maybe we can avoid being "dire," but global warming sure seems to be
happening. I'm told that it's now possible to sail from the Atlantic to the
Pacific Oceans by going north of Canada (the famous "Northwest passage").
Or is this urban myth?

BTW, Paul mentioned that the US spends more on cooling places like Dallas
and Los Angeles than the Canadians spend on warming Edmonton, etc. Much as
I'd like to see L.A. abandoned, this perhaps suggests a politically
feasible solution. Remember that air conditioning units, like
refrigerators, are merely heat pumps, which shift the hot air out of the
box and out into the environment. Well, why can't we put all that hot air
into long _superinsulated_ pipes and ship it to Canada? It might take about
4 months to get there, so it would be just in time. The Republican and
Democrat politicians -- and all the NC economists could contribute a
veritable gale of hot air all year 'round. Maybe the revenues from this
enterprise could allow the US to balance its current account!

Jim Devine jdevine@xxxxxxx & http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~JDevine
"Is it peace or is it Prozac?" -- Cheryl Wheeler.