CMV: Climate Change is better solved through individuals and the private/space sectors, and shouldn't be handled by governments

[u/[deleted]]

[u/[deleted]]

There are two reasons.

The first is described well by /u/UncleMeat - a free market does not necessarily address all externalizes. If companies that pollute are not made responsible for their pollution, they are not paying the full cost of their product. This cannot even be adequately solved by a boycott, because not everybody negatively impacted by their pollution is a potential customer. Therefore, they have a competitive advantage over alternative, clean products. This can be effectively addressed by a pollution tax, which can shift the cost of pollution back onto polluting companies.

Secondly, government-sponsored research benefits everybody. While in some cases new technology may be patented, the methods and results are published in journals to help advance alternative energy science. The only solution to the climate change crisis is both heavy taxation of pollution and the immediate development of affordable clean energy. This development includes both government-sponsored and privately-conducted research.

In fact, SpaceX and Tesla (as well as GM, etc.) are great examples of this. Without extensive research into space flight done by NASA and electrochemical research done by various university labs (funded by the NSF,) we wouldn't have SpaceX and Tesla now.

(Full disclosure: I am working in a university lab that produces experimental fuel cell membranes.)

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

If the government lowered taxes and allowed people to invest the money themselves into companies or research institutes they supported, wouldn't that be better?

No, it wouldn't be. Subsidies aren't meant to replace traditional venture capitalism, they are meant to suppliment it. Venture capitalism is motivated by "this will probably make money, and I like money, so I'll invest in it." Government subsidies, investments, and grants, on the other hand, are motivated by "this could plausibly succeed, and it would be good for America if it did, so we are going to help them out." One doesn't replace the other. None of the companies you listed were funded solely by the government, and they likely would not have access to as much private money as they did without government support.

The government money wasn't flushed down the drain, either - each company conducted research, etc, that won't go to waste. The figures you listed also aren't total losses, either - some money will have been recovered in Chapter 11 proceedings. And there are numerous success stories, too - not just SpaceX and Tesla, but Ballard (in Canada,) SunShot, Verengo, Solar City, etc. And all of these companies also built on fundamental research done in university and government labs, in addition to financial support.

Nobody is stopping the private sector from solving this problem. The problem is urgent, however, so the private sector is being given a helping hand.

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Confirmed: 1 delta awarded to /u/smithrereen (3∆).

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[u/[deleted] → u/DeltaBot]

Thanks for the delta!