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@gbj_tester
Once we get past the "anthropogenic climate change will change the way we live for the worse" step, which is a huge hurdle but let's take it as read for a moment, the reaction is dominated by people whose response is to destroy the present economy (by autocratic action, since that's the kind which makes politicians feel big) in the hope that doing so will arrest the climate change. This is usually economically illiterate, since it is paying now for a putative benefit in several decades' time, and the politicians making this prescription usually fail to apply appropriate discounts. Also, it's not even clear what the benefit is; it seems to be that a changed climate will only support an economy of say 50% of current size, but if we cut the size of the economy by 50% we can prevent the climate change. Either way, we end up with a smaller economy, but under their prescription we get it now rather than later.
If your boss came to you and said
"Today, I'm paying you £10/h, but if I keep doing that, in 10 years' time I'll only be able to afford to pay you £10/h. However, if I cut your pay now to £5/h, in ten years' time I'll be able to give you a raise to £10/h"
you'd tell him to fuck off.