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The Radical Plan to Save the Planet by Working Less: The degrowth movement wants to shrink the economy to address climate change, and create lives with less stuff, less work, and better well-being. (www.vice.com)
submitted 3 years ago by [M] to c/simpleliving@lemmy.ml
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[–] 28 points 3 years ago* (7 children)

In order to slow the economy down and not wreak havoc, he said, we have to reconfigure our ideas about the entire economic system.

This is how degrowthers envision the process: After a reduction in material and energy consumption, which will constrict the economy, there should also be a redistribution of existing wealth, and a transition from a materialistic society to one in which the values are based on simpler lifestyles and unpaid work and activities.

Sounds good to me. It is a fair point that the basic operation of our society depends on continual growth, but redistribution seems like it would be an effective way of mitigating those problems degrowth might cause. We have more than enough resources to keep everyone alive, we just have to use them.

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  • [–] 10 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    I'd rather just do the full communism now path, where once every man, woman and child has all their needs and many of their wants met, there isn't a desire to chase the next fashion craze, or buy the next iphone or "keep up with the jones'" as it were because the Jones' have the same stuff you do, but maybe they spend their ample leisure time exercising, you spend your time gardening.

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  • [–] 0 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    The only way that will work is if you have a violent dictatorship. Welcome Stalin back basically.

    I see more future in putting laws in place that severely limits what companies can do. Companies cannot grow beyond 1000 people. Tax any wealth thing heavily. Tax negatively for the poor, tax a little for those with a little and more for those that are better off. Taxes go up and up once you are richer and Once your income and or networth reaches a certain level, tax 100%.

    Institute 3-4 work day weeks

    Institute universal income

    Out extreme limits on advertising and marketing. Those two are the real evils of mankind.

    Require news outlets be paid for by the government and be required to be neutral and factual

    With changes like that we can remain a (serverely limited) capitalist system that pays for the very nice social system below that doesn't focus in money anymore

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  • [–] -5 points 3 years ago*

    Laws will be written with loopholes. Just nationalize industry run them for the public rather the for profit and fire the CEOs/Lobbyists and PMC's that keep Capitalism operating.

    Also I'll take a Stalin for the initial break from Capitalism. After 10ish years, we can go to a more democratic government.

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  • [–] -2 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Yeah, good luck with that. Won't happen. Do you really believe that the 1% will give up it's riches? Do you really believe that the politicians, you know, the guys with money, will decide on redistribution?

    Good luck.

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  • [–] 5 points 3 years ago

    the politicians, you know, the guys with money

    There is overlap, but ultimately it's not a monolith. Anyone can be a politician and politicians succeed or fail on people voting for them. What are the rich gonna do with ownership of all the land and all the companies and all the resources anyway? Effectively enslave everybody? Wait for us to starve so they can keep playing number-go-up in secure enclaves while the world burns around them?

    You mention universal income in another comment. If you do it right, that's redistribution. You give people the means to keep living, every other problem gets less intense. I think there's a good chance that when things get bad enough, even hardcore capitalists will go for it because it's a way for capitalism to continue existing in a form that isn't a dead useless husk. IMO a much better option than pulling for a civil war hoping the result will be a socialist utopia and not just evil warlords doing evil warlord stuff.

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