Global economy must stop pandering to ‘frivolous desires of ultra-rich’, says UN expert (www.theguardian.com)
from HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works to world@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 07:00
https://sh.itjust.works/post/56252388

The global economy must be reordered to ensure it serves ordinary people around the world rather than the “frivolous and destructive demands of the ultra-rich”, according to a leading UN figure.

Olivier De Schutter, the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, says politicians must stop prioritising “socially and ecologically destructive growth” that only increases the profits – and serves the consumption demands – of the world’s richest individuals and corporations.

Instead, to tackle the interwoven crises of rising inequality, ecological collapse and resurgent far-right politics, a new economic agenda is needed.

“The scarce resources we have should be used to prioritise the basic needs of people in poverty and to create what is of societal value rather than serve the frivolous desires of the ultra-rich.”

#world

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Jimbel@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 07:53 next collapse

This sound like a dream. Too good to be true. :(

doben@lemmy.wtf on 04 Mar 15:58 collapse

Organize! This does not need to be a dream or a utopia. Systems fall, changes are always possible. Only, the ultra rich with their frivolous desires won‘t give up their privileges and power because we ask nicely.

Jimbel@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 19:40 next collapse

True. We all should join a political party

cecilkorik@piefed.ca on 04 Mar 20:43 collapse

Systems are actually falling right now. It’s going to be chaotic and difficult, but there is also opportunity. Destruction is an opportunity for creation. We need to work together and focus on how we can create something better.

NaibofTabr@infosec.pub on 04 Mar 08:05 next collapse

OK, you’re right, in a purely ethical world.

But why would the economy change its behavior on a broad scale? What practical incentives would you use to adjust it?

HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works on 04 Mar 08:20 next collapse

The French used a convincing method back in the day.

Ceruleum@lemmy.wtf on 04 Mar 10:50 next collapse

Sjop, sjop!

MonkeMischief@lemmy.today on 04 Mar 16:20 collapse
TheDemonBuer@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 12:18 collapse

The practical incentives are there already, but far too many people are too greedy and shortsighted to recognize them. There are long term negative consequences to prioritizing short term individual gains over long term, sustainable prosperity for all. And achieving that sustainable prosperity does not require people to replace self interest with altruism, it requires that people to adopt a more enlightened, forward looking self interest. It’s getting people to understand that overindulgence and a zero sum mentality today, without thought for the consequences tomorrow is not self interest, it’s self destruction.

If that can’t work then civilization is fucked.

wuffah@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 08:26 next collapse

It is already too late. You could kill every billionaire and their families today, and it would take 100 years to approach normal CO2 concentration. In less than 50 years, the atmosphere will have too much CO2 in it to support respiration at the level necessary to prevent low level asphyxiation.

If you want to save humanity, begin executing anyone with more than a billion dollars net worth in the next few years, or we all die. Period.

I can tell you right now, it’s going to be the other way around.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7229519/

Eheran@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 08:32 collapse

Perhaps I should first ask why you spread such absurd nonsense and where you got it from?

wuffah@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 08:51 collapse

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7229519/

<img alt="" src="https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/a5938871-716c-4054-8130-d49497624fac.png">

Human activities are elevating atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to levels unprecedented in human history. The majority of anticipated impacts of anthropogenic CO2 emissions are mediated by climate warming. Recent experimental studies in the fields of indoor air quality and cognitive psychology and neuroscience, however, have revealed significant direct effects of indoor CO2 levels on cognitive function. Here, we shed light on this connection and estimate the impact of continued fossil fuel emissions on human cognition. We conclude that indoor CO2 levels may indeed reach levels harmful to cognition by the end of this century, and the best way to prevent this hidden consequence of climate change is to reduce fossil fuel emissions.

The full end‐to‐end model thus predicts indoor cognitive performance (for the particular studied cognitive processes) as a function of outdoor CO2 concentration. Under these assumptions, the model predictions are quite arresting (Figure 3). On the unmitigated CO2 emission pathway (RCP8.5), we may be in for a ~25% reduction in our indoor basic decision‐making ability and a ~50% reduction in more complex strategic thinking, by the year 2100 relative to today.

This is just one study of many that are beginning to document the effects of the exponential rise of atmospheric CO2 on human cognition. As this effect increases, it continuously gets worse. Even if we begin to reduce CO2 emissions, cognitive effects remain until atmospheric CO2 falls below acceptable levels over decades at best. All eight billion of us will literally become retarded by carbon dioxide in the next 50 years if we’re lucky.

A disproportionate amount of CO2 emissions come from billionaires. Even eliminating them may not save us. But if you want a good place to start, execute every billionaire and their families first. Sorry, but the ultra-rich need to die tomorrow and they aren’t going to. :(

The predictions about the ubiquity of billionaires are my own however. Take them with a grain of salt I suppose. Without extreme and significant change, I predict this will be the last 100 years of humanity we know it.

Enjoy your life and spend time with your loved ones while you can.

gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works on 04 Mar 13:14 collapse

Children of Kali when?

tristan@tarte.nuage-libre.fr on 04 Mar 09:56 next collapse

Maybe if our system didn’t allow mere individuals to collect a net worth equivalent to small countries…? Hate the game, not the players. Billionaires should not even exist in the first place.

Zombie@feddit.uk on 04 Mar 10:50 collapse

I can, and will, hate both the game and the players.

The players at the top know exactly what they’re doing.

If me, a fucking nobody who reads while taking a shit, in between working all the time to pay the bills can understand what’s going on. There’s no way the richest in society, with the most leisure time and access to the world’s greatest educators etc, don’t.

electric_nan@lemmy.ml on 04 Mar 12:51 next collapse

Yeah, we can’t. The ultra rich make all the rules. They aren’t going to reform themselves.

sturmblast@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 13:27 next collapse

Yes, we can.

AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space on 04 Mar 15:24 collapse

We can have a revolution, and move to an economy that caters to the frivolous desires of the Party nomenklatura.

wonderingwanderer@sopuli.xyz on 04 Mar 13:09 next collapse

They’re finally starting to get it…

eleijeep@piefed.social on 04 Mar 15:18 next collapse

Get money out of politics and hold politicians to a higher standard.

fishy@lemmy.today on 04 Mar 20:40 collapse

Treat acquiring massive wealth as the mental disorder it is. 5150 all of them.

Gates9@sh.itjust.works on 04 Mar 15:51 next collapse

They will destroy the entire planet before they allow their aristocracy to be toppled

deadymouse@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 20:20 collapse

It seems to me that one planet will not be enough for them.

Sabata11792@ani.social on 04 Mar 16:17 next collapse

What if we sacrificed all the rich people to appease the god of CO2?

captainlezbian@lemmy.world on 04 Mar 20:25 collapse

Yeah shit like that is why the ultra rich have committed to destroying international organizations like the UN