“How much longer will obvious remedies be denied?!”
I identified with the indignation contained in the phrase when thinking about the repeated frustrations in the fight against , evidenced in , in the persistence of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, in the diversionary maneuvers practiced by oil-producing countries at climate conferences (COP) , in the continuation of subsidies for the extraction and consumption of oil and gas and, mainly, in the resistance to the adoption of what is, in my opinion, the “obvious remedy” for the climate issue: the establishment of a global price for emissions of GHG, which for simplicity we call “carbon”.
But that wasn’t what it was about. The above sentence was pronounced by the English Parliament on May 25, 1938, more than a year before Germany’s invasion of Poland and almost five years after the first of his repeated warnings regarding the escalation of rearmament and the warlike disposition of Germany. Germany.
The story is well known. What surprised me was the ability of the four chapters of the documentary “Churchill at War” (Netflix) to hold our attention, while telling us a story we already know.
The art of narrative, I believe, is in drawing a human profile of a man who thought he was — and sometimes seemed — superhuman, and in placing him in his specific circumstances.
We are introduced to a character whose fearlessness borders on madness. There is an episode (narrated in his book “Minha Mocidade”) in which, in a teenage game, he finds himself cornered by a brother and a cousin, on a cliff above a gorge. Instead of surrendering, he threw himself onto a pine tree whose top was at the height of the bridge and, unable to hold on to the tree, he fell from a great height and was unconscious for three days.
Through the series we learn that, as an adult, this young man, who had become an important politician, decides to return to the Army as a combatant, after suffering a resounding defeat during the First World War, in the position of main commander of the British Navy; His companions in arms are impressed by the courage of this major who takes part in 37 incursions into the dangerous space between trenches known as “no man’s land”. Even more impressive was the explanation he gave for, in these situations, never taking cover when under enemy fire: “When you hear the crack of the shot passing by you, it’s already gone, so there’s no point in throwing yourself to the ground.”
We follow Churchill through the different phases of the Second World War: the inspiring leader at a time when the British found themselves bombed and alone in the war against Germany; the daring warrior, who never stopped launching air attacks on Berlin, even though he was clearly militarily inferior; the seductive politician and diplomat, striving to obtain military equipment and lure Roosevelt’s USA into war; the head of state seeking to preserve his negotiating position, even in the face of stronger allies such as the USA and Stalin’s USSR and, finally, the politician victorious militarily, but defeated in his attempt to be re-elected as prime minister, shortly after the end of the war.
At the end of the fourth episode, when Churchill regains the position of prime minister, in 1951, at the age of 76, it is impossible not to feel — in addition to natural admiration — affection and even gratitude for this heroic and yet so human figure.
I believe that the fascination exercised by the history of is due not only to the clear Manichaean situation of opposition of good against evil and the projection of leaders admired to this day — such as Churchill, Roosevelt and DeGaulle — but also and mainly to the fact that it is an example clear history of articulation capacity of most of the industrialized world, to face a major threat.
Before we get excited about this encouraging precedent, now that humanity faces the challenge of global warming, it is worth remembering the decisive role that chance played in the Second World War having this favorable outcome.
The first stroke of luck came at the end of May and beginning of June 1940, when calm seas and overcast skies over the English Channel allowed the evacuation of more than 330,000 British soldiers who were trapped in Dunkirk, between German army and the sea. Had it not been for the weather conditions that prevented the action of the German Air Force, the British soldiers would have been captured and “the fighting would have ceased due to lack of fighters”.
The second important factor did not depend on luck, but on the enemy’s incompetence. In June 1941, when he enjoyed enormous superiority on the continent and could even wait for a more suitable moment to fatally attack , Hitler decided to open a second war front, annulling the pact signed with the USSR.
This isolated fact gave impetus to English rearmament through negotiations with the USA and, later, after the battle of Stalingrad, it was decisive for the German defeat. Finally, the capital mistake of the axis countries was the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, attracting the USA into the war, which until then had been very reluctant to participate.
When drawing a parallel between World War II and the fight against global warming, it is prudent to remember that in this case we cannot count on luck. , with its behavior being predictable by science. To overcome the challenge of zero carbon emissions within a reasonable time horizon, a great capacity for global articulation combined with new technologies will be necessary.
The world today is very far from achieving this indispensable understanding. There is a clear belief among governments, politicians and businesspeople who neglect this need that only technology, like a Deus ex-machina, will come to save us from the hecatomb. Maintaining the parallel with the Second World War, this behavior is equivalent to the option of abandoning resistance to Hitler, betting all the chips on the invention of the atomic bomb.
I am happy that our predecessors were responsible in their decision and I am fully aware that the same duty lies with us, in relation to our descendants.
Hence the feeling of indignation. How long will obvious remedies be denied?!
