Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair
The current reactionary politics of skyrocketing energy costs are following the classic pattern of Naomi Klein’s book “Shock Doctrine”.
Klein wrote to explain how disasters were used to enact radical rollback policies that are unthinkable and could never be supported in normal times.
Klein argued that neoliberal economic policies are implemented by exploiting crises like wars, natural disasters, and economic collapses, a strategy she calls “disaster capitalism”. Klein contends that political actors use the chaos of these “shocks” to push through unpopular policies like privatization and deregulation, which benefit corporations at the expense of the public, who are too distracted to resist
I saw this in action this week in Trenton and Albany. The climate rollbacks in both States promote the status quo and stoke even more corporate profits and mask rigged energy markets, see:
+ A Third Of Your Electric Bill Is Pure Corporate Profit
Yesterday, following the talking points of the corporate lobbyists, NJ legislators openly mocked renewable energy policies, as they rolled back clean air and environmental justice policies and proposed to reopen old gas power plants and build more fossil gas power plants to feed the energy demands of the “inevitable” AI data center beast, see:
+ NJ Democrats Are Turning Back The Clock On Climate, Clean Air, And Environmental Justice
The Committee went on to release a bill to promote new nuclear power plants, see:
+ Sherrill Nuclear Power Promotion Bill Up Tomorrow In Trenton
Last week, NJ Gov. Sherrill threw DEP’s climate driven coastal flood rules under the bus.
Corporate Democrats are using the “affordability” slogan to roll back climate and energy policies and reward corporate clients.
Gov. Sherrill was following NY Gov. Hochul’s lead. Just days before, Gov. Hochul gutted NY’s climate law.
Governor Hochul’s state budget rolled back several key provisions of New York’s landmark 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA).
The governor pushed for these changes primarily due to affordability and economic concerns, citing internal data that warned strict adherence to the original rules could cause consumer utility bills to spike.
The rollback consists of three major changes: (Google AI)
1. Eliminating the 2030 Emissions Target
+ The Original Law: Required New York to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 (based on 1990 levels).
+ The Change: The budget completely eliminated the 2030 mandate. It replaced it with a delayed, softer target: a 60% reduction by 2040, provided it is “feasible and cost-effective”.
2. Changing the Emissions Accounting Method
+ The Original Law: Used a stricter 20-year accounting window to measure the environmental impact of greenhouse gases. This window accurately captured the severe, short-term warming impacts of methane gas.
+ The Change: The budget shifted New York to a standard 100-year accounting window.
+ Exempting Out-of-State Extraction: The budget also stopped counting the pollution generated out of state when fossil fuels are extracted and piped into New York. Together, these statistical adjustments instantly lower New York’s recorded emissions on paper, putting the state closer to its goals without any actual reduction in active pollution.
3. Pushing Back Regulatory Deadlines
+ The Original Law: Directed the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to establish enforceable emissions regulations by January 2024. Climate justice groups successfully sued the administration for missing this deadline, and a court ordered the state to issue the regulations.
+ The Change: The budget extended the regulatory deadline to December 31, 2028. This effectively renders the ongoing lawsuit moot, giving the administration several more years to design its upcoming climate regulations (such as its proposed cap-and-invest program)
When will the media and environmental and climate groups start to connect these dots and expose the lies hiding behind the “affordability” slogan?