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In reply to the discussion: Do you enjoy beef? You're directly contributing to climate change. Beef is the new SUV. [View all]GliderGuider
(21,088 posts)51. Most individuals are trapped.
Historian Ronald Wright has called it a "progress trap":
Progress trap
A progress trap is the condition human societies experience when, in pursuing progress through human ingenuity, they inadvertently introduce problems they do not have the resources or political will to solve, for fear of short-term losses in status, stability or quality of life. This prevents further progress and sometimes leads to collapse.
The term gained attention following the historian and novelist Ronald Wright's 2004 book and Massey Lecture series A Short History of Progress, in which he sketches world history so far as a succession of progress traps.
According to him, the error is often to extrapolate from what appears to work well on a small scale to a larger scale, which depletes natural resources and causes environmental degradation. Large-scale implementation also tends to be subject to diminishing returns. As overpopulation, erosion, greenhouse gas emissions or other consequences become apparent, society is destabilized.
In a progress trap, those in positions of authority are unwilling to make changes necessary for future survival. To do so they would need to sacrifice their current status and political power at the top of a hierarchy. They may also be unable to raise public support and the necessary economic resources, even if they try.
A progress trap is the condition human societies experience when, in pursuing progress through human ingenuity, they inadvertently introduce problems they do not have the resources or political will to solve, for fear of short-term losses in status, stability or quality of life. This prevents further progress and sometimes leads to collapse.
The term gained attention following the historian and novelist Ronald Wright's 2004 book and Massey Lecture series A Short History of Progress, in which he sketches world history so far as a succession of progress traps.
According to him, the error is often to extrapolate from what appears to work well on a small scale to a larger scale, which depletes natural resources and causes environmental degradation. Large-scale implementation also tends to be subject to diminishing returns. As overpopulation, erosion, greenhouse gas emissions or other consequences become apparent, society is destabilized.
In a progress trap, those in positions of authority are unwilling to make changes necessary for future survival. To do so they would need to sacrifice their current status and political power at the top of a hierarchy. They may also be unable to raise public support and the necessary economic resources, even if they try.
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Do you enjoy beef? You're directly contributing to climate change. Beef is the new SUV. [View all]
philosslayer
Oct 2015
OP
So we can't eat beef or milk or cheese. We can't eat fish because of overfishing.
mainer
Oct 2015
#3
If we killed all the people who think the planet is overcrowded, would it help?
NightWatcher
Oct 2015
#32
Oddly, most of the people complaining about overcrowding are the same ones who oppose
Marr
Oct 2015
#42
There is no free lunch, no technological fix. We need to return to simplicity.
MindfulOne
Oct 2015
#103
See my post #11 -sheep and goats (really all animals emit greenhouse gases)
TexasProgresive
Oct 2015
#14
Good point, but it needs a snappy catchphrase like kids are the new coal burning power plant
Major Nikon
Oct 2015
#61
High horse? Did you miss the part where I said I had little will power and am part of the problem?
Shoulders of Giants
Oct 2015
#101
If people want details, here's an FAO report on the variations around the world
muriel_volestrangler
Oct 2015
#36
Asparagus and artichokes, grown within walking distance of the back door.
cherokeeprogressive
Oct 2015
#37
Yep, you gotta watch out for those buns. Damned things will give you a heart attack.
GliderGuider
Oct 2015
#97
Yu are using a very energy īntensive medium (the internet) to tell us this. ;-)
CentralMass
Oct 2015
#82