Opinion

The three hard truths behind climate change complacency

Harrowing images of Australian bushfires and Californian wildfires should be blowing a hole in complacency around global warming. But the disasters also crystallise how hard it is for democracies to mobilise public action.

Edward LuceColumnist

Jan 6, 2020 – 8.53am

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Around my parents’ home on England’s south coast, global warming is proceeding so benignly that French champagne houses are buying up tracts of local hillsides. Trends like this have helped to temper the global north’s response to climate change over the past 30 years.

“Global warming is a terrible thing,” we tell ourselves. “But its main victims will tragically be in the poorer countries. Canadian mangoes anyone?”

Financial Times

Edward Luce is the Washington columnist and commentator for the Financial Times. He writes about American politics and the economy.