Hot, Flat, and Crowded – and really angry

I attended an International Growth Conference hosted by ACG Chicago last week.  The keynote speaker was Tom Friedman, the Pulitzer Prize winning author and New York Times columnist.  His speach was focused on his latest book  ”Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution”.  The bulk of the speech he gave to ACG is available on his website.  The choice of Tom Friedman was a fairly daring one given the very pro-business crowd, and I’m not sure that ACG wasn’t actually hoping for the “World Is Flat” Tom vs. the “Hot, Flat and Crowded” Tom.

Tom Friedman’s current message is not an easy one to swallow:  global warming, the stunning rise of the middle class around the world, and rapid population growth is converging in a way that makes our planet dangerously unstable.  He likes to tell audiences that Al Gore should apologize because he has underestimated the impact of climate change on our planet.  Friedman believes in dramatic changes including carbon taxes, cap-and-trade systems, and/or a renewable energy mandate to level the playing field with fossil fuels.  He points out that a real green revolution means that somebody will get hurt and feel pain – that’s what a “real revolution” looks like.  It’s a thought provoking book, and if you are serious about understanding today’s global climate issues, it’s worth the read.

What is interesting to me is that so many Americans are not only unconvinced, but angry, about the threats Friedman speaks about and the changes proposed.  Many attendees during Friedman’s speech shook their head in disagreement – and in some cases, frustration and disgust.  I had a discussion with someone after the speech that said that liberals were forcing through energy legislation to hurt business and to further socialist causes.  Late last week, an ultra-conservative Wall Street Journal columnist wrote yet another piece saying scientific skepticism on global warming is growing “everywhere”.  The on-line version garnered almost 400 of the nastiest comments that I have seen from WSJ readers.

Look, disagreements and the ability to debate the issues is a part of what makes our country great.  I can’t help but wonder, however, if 50 years from now the global warming naysayers will look like the ancient scientists who thought the world really was flat; or doctors that said cigarette smoking was safe; or maybe the people who still believe our manned trips to the moon were staged events.  I strongly doubt that they will look vindicated.