In their first debate, Barack Obama and Mitt Romney discussed domestic issues. They concentrated almost exclusively on what we call “economy”. Obama blamed the Bush administration for breaking the economy; Romney blamed the Obama administration for not fixing it. Unfortunately, they both continue with the questionable assumption that it is possible or desirable to continue indefinitely to grow the economy.
The big crash that happened at the end of the Bush administration resulted from overvalued assets. Assets are overvalued precisely because economists and investors fail to question the assumption of perpetual growth. In fact, there are limits to growth. The natural resource base we depend on is largely finite. Yes, there are renewable resources, but the expansion of these industries will also bring social and ecological problems. Meanwhile, we are heavily dependent on technologies that undermine our future prosperity.
As we burn our finite reserves of fossil fuels we spin off many tangential challenges. One of the most daunting is climate change. The two years of drought we’ve seen in North America will raise food prices globally. Other goods and services will follow suit.
It’s a pity that Jill Stein wasn’t invited to the debate!
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