Klein offers antidote for Trump-era politics
No Is Not Enough: Resisting the New Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need By Naomi Klein Knopf Canada 288 pp; $ 24.95
Naomi Klein (No Logo, The Shock Doctrine) returns with a timely reaction to the current Trump era in which she applies much of her previous work while offering some new suggestions — for progressives especially.
Here’s what we learned:
1 Shock and awe. According to Klein, “shock” politics refers to “the quite brutal tactic of systematically using the public’s disorientation following a collective shock — wars, coups, terrorist attacks, market crashes, or natural disasters — to push through radical pro-corporate measures.” Though the big fear is that things like the suspension of civil liberties or the seizure of enhanced powers will be made permanent, the more mundane but still nefarious problem is that politicians will often take advantage of emergency legislation following a catastrophe for their own pork-barrel politicking.
2 Coming home to roost. Klein wants us to recognize Trump not as an anomaly, but as the logical conclusion of neo-liberalism. He used shock to create his own brand, leveraging New York City’s bankruptcy to receive a monumental tax break for minimal investment. What’s next on his agenda? According to Klein: “the deconstruction of the welfare state and social services (rationalized in part through bellicose racial fearmongering and attacks on women for exercising their rights); the unleashing of a domestic fossil fuel frenzy (which requires the sweeping aside of climate science and the gagging of large parts of the government bureaucracy); and a civilization war against immigrants and ‘radical Islamic terrorism’ (with ever-expanding domestic and foreign theatres).”
3 Mea culpa. Superbrands exist across the political spectrum, and Klein is well-advised to note that many Obama supporters embraced his administration’s “carefully crafted symbols” while turning a blind eye as drone warfare escalated, surveillance continued to proliferate, Guantanamo remained open and 2.5 million illegal immigrants were deported. Subsequently, while Hillary Clinton criticized “Trumpedup trickle-down economics,” Klein describes HRC’s own philosophy as “trickle-down identity politics,” which promoted diversity at the top echelons but did not manifest wider equality. In the end, Klein notes, more eligible voters chose to abstain (40 per cent) than to vote for either Trump or Clinton.
4 Bermuda triangle. Klein draws direct lines between fossil fuels, climate change and war. “When oil prices go down, instability increases in oil-dependent countries such as Venezuela and Russia,” she writes. “Conversely, when conflict breaks out in countries with considerable oil assets — whether Nigeria or Kuwait — the price of oil shoots up as markets anticipate a contraction in supply.” Needless to say, climate chaos, whether it be in the form of natural disasters, heat waves, drought or rising sea levels, also contributes to instability. “In a very real sense, preventing war and averting climate chaos are one and the same fight,” Klein concludes. The change agent is our relationship with fossil fuels.
5 It’s easy being green. “When we talk about ‘green jobs,’ ” Klein writes, “we usually picture a guy in a hard hat putting up a solar array.” But “green” can simply mean low-carbon, and many jobs outside of the energy sector are just that. Teaching, day care and nursing are just a few examples she cites (and ones that are performed predominantly by women and are frequently in the crosshairs for funding). In short, you don’t have to roll out a budget Tesla to help your community and the environment.