The illusion of global negotiations

What we are currently experiencing in every hemisphere of our beautiful planet is what is known as a global trend of acute political impunity. In many countries, starting with France, the ruling strata continuously test the limits of constitutional power and realize that anything is permissible since nothing is punished. Lies, corruption, conflicts of interest, slush funds, manipulation or suppression of votes—the list of white-collar crimes continues to grow, along with the ever-declining list of responsibilities. This audacious disrespect and brutality towards the people and the living world are now being shared worldwide, with each observing the others, learning every day that no legal or constitutional system can withstand the modern tactics of class domination.

The pollution paradox #

In the secular struggle between money and democracy, money now overwhelmingly prevails. Those who spend the most win, or as George Monbiot aptly wrote in his article "The Pollution Paradox" (1): "Dirty industries spend more on politics, keeping us in the fossil age." Traduction: The more destructive a business enterprise is, the more money it has to spend on politics to ensure it stays unregulated. Consequently, politics becomes dominated by the most harmful commercial enterprises, keeping us stuck in the fossil era.
Those who spend the most win. This concept can be summarized as a Reward for Vice. The past decades of ecological inaction now provide undeniable proof of this unfortunate reality.

While this situation is not new, it is becoming increasingly evident that the dominance of finance in the political sphere is strengthening as climate change becomes more apparent in the collective consciousness. The future! turned into The Future?, from an exclamation point to a question mark, accompanied by the growing risk of emerging socio-economic models that penalize great wealth and the interests of the old world. Everything then leans towards corruption and stagnation, using a newspeak reminiscent of George Orwell’s famous “1984”.
The fear of a popular uprising increasingly permeates the bourgeois classes, signifying the undesired end of a regime of privileges, no matter how ecocidal it may be.

The more destructive a business enterprise is, the more money it has to spend on politics to ensure it stays unregulated.

Communication is power #

The power of persuasion in modern communications, embodied by the digital realm, is the great novelty of the past thirty years when identifying the driving forces behind political evolution during this period. It enables winning elections even when candidates offer nothing to the people. This practice, more than any other factor, has changed the nature of politics and turned the very idea of democracy into a mockery. Hence, it is not surprising to see billionaires subjugating the vast majority of the media and turning their class interests into editorial lines.

The people's trust and hope collapse, paving the way for patriotic and identity-driven exaltation, supposedly anti-system, outside of mainstream politics, neither left nor right—words that still synonymize fascism. Fascism is, of course, highly political and funded by the very interests that cause the political disorder it claims to remedy, as we have witnessed in our recent article "Fascism 2.0: A modern day totalitarianism." It feeds on despair and a sense of loss, using violence and injustice to suppress differences, all in service of a handful of monsters. It is entirely compatible with the stakes of capitalism, adept at defending the interests of the status quo. Why do we speak of fascism? Because when the fabric of consumer desire is broken or severely damaged and the world drifts away, what remains to maintain the authority of a group pillaging our Earth's resources for their own benefit?

Where we are now #

If we refocus on our main subject, considering what we have just gone through, it becomes evident that global negotiations surrounding climate change and the protection of life are a masquerade, a sad illusion. No government intends to take the necessary measures to address the climate crisis or remedy the sixth mass extinction, pay the money promised to nations impacted by our polluting activities, or do anything other than what corporate lobbyists demand. It is easy to imagine the end of Earth's habitability or a planetary neofascism rather than contradicting the interests of a handful of powerful sponsors.
In many countries, this struggle against social and ecological progress has even been supported by traditional "left" parties, reacting with despairing complicity and virulent animosity towards social and eco-feminist movements. Preserving power within the existing system remains and will continue to be the essential line, the consensus of the elites, rather than building the foundations of, for example, a social, feminist and ecological communalism empowered by direct democracy. The traditional left is fighting a losing battle, as demonstrated perfectly by the old guard of the French Socialist Party during the 2022 presidential election in our country. Ignoring their political adversaries represented by Macron, the entire conservative right and the far right, they incessantly attacked the NUPES, which at that time brought together most if not all of the progressive forces within the left. Their own camp.

Therefore, nothing should be expected from these annual international meetings on climate change or from the current governments in terms of social and solidarity-based ecology. Nothing should be expected from these individuals and institutions. They have never served the freedom and autonomy of individuals. We are still at the stage of bargaining with reality, hoping that the defense of life will be carried out by a group mobilized by the interests of a tiny minority.

What's next #

Le triste constat de notre situation écologique et sociale n’est fort heureusement pas la fin de cette conversation. C’est en fait son début. Nous pouvons rester positifs : les stratégies d’actions ne manquent pas, et surtout, d’autres mondes sont déjà là. Nous irons à leur rencontre dans le prochain article : Les imaginaires régénérateurs.

See you soon!