Oh, the horror.
Say it isn't so!
Do you mean to tell me that states, cities, and the leaders of greedy corporations are taking it upon themselves to do what they think is right in order to make the world a better place?
And they're taking these actions in direct opposition of what the politicians in D.C. want to do?
Wow.
How...American of them.
The early pioneers and our nation's Founding Fathers would be proud.
(And I thought backbones had all been removed from our nation's populace.)
Let's say—for the sake of argument—that the Paris Agreement was the best agreement in the history of the world.
Let's say it was 100% accurate and effective.
Let's say without it, there is a 100% chance that the earth will warm, oceans will rise, and one billion people will die without the provisions of this agreement.
And now we see the people themselves—without the help of an all-powerful federal government—taking matters into their own hands.
Let's take a look at what could happen if just one corporation sees success in implementing these provisions voluntarily.
Imagine Coca-Cola decides to reduce its carbon emissions and increased its cost of operations to such a degree that it had to raise the price of a can of Coke a nickel.
Then they ran a marketing campaign that said
We love you and the earth so much that we have implemented the most aggressive and effective carbon-lowering processes in the world of soda pop creation, bottling, shipping, and recycling so you and your grandkids and the grandchildren of your grandchildren will be able to share a cool refreshing can of Coke on a clean and vibrant planet. Yes, your can of Coke will go up five pennies but isn't your child's health—and the health of Mother Nature—worth a few pennies?"
According to the Coca-Cola website, over 1.9 billion drinks of Coke are sold each day.
Here's how much the Coca-Cola Corporation can invest in technology per year to lower their carbon emissions if they raised the price of each drink of Coke by five cents:
$0.05 x 1,900,000,000 = $95,000,000 per day x 365 = $34,675,000,000 in reimbursements alone
(So a family of four who each drinks one Coke per day will pay 20 cents more per day, $6 more per month, and $72 more per year to consume the product of a caring corporation.)
Now let's say the majority of Americans and all citizens of the planet see this wonderful, loving, glorious message from Coke and put their money where their global-warming hearts are and buy 10% more Coke...
What do you think Pepsi will do?
What do you think McDonald's will do?
What do you think Walmart and GE and AT&T, and all of the other major corporations will do?
What corporation would not invest in new infrastructure and processes if they'd not only get that money back but actually see their sales grow?
Believe it or not, there was a time in this country—and even the world—when people didn't like being told what to do.
People actually risked the lives of their families and their own to cross into strange new lands in order to live life according to their own terms.
These same people did not want anything from any government official, and the only thing they expected from them was grief. (Our politicians can deliver that in spades, can't they?)
But Wes, we're in the post-Industrial age. There are so many more people. We're powerless as individuals. We need the government to save us!"
Really?
If one President or Prime Minister or Senator can have such an impact...why can't you?
Is Elon Musk changing the world?
Did Steve Jobs make a difference?
Are Bill Gates and Warren Buffett making a difference?
The "Gangnam Style" song has billions of views across all of its iterations!
If you're right and passionate and persistent, you can be the change and bring about the change you want in the world.
So be thankful that President Trump has decided to withdraw the United States of America from the Paris Agreement.
This gives you a chance to show you have the courage of your convictions...
You do, right?
Now go sell something.