By Gunnar Schupelius
The Fridays for Future people are demanding 100 billion euros for climate protection. At the same time, they are fighting our economic system, which would have to provide this service. It doesn’t all go together, says Gunnar Schupelius.
On Friday, the “Fridays for Future” movement called for a major “climate strike” in several cities. Around 30,000 people, mostly young people, gathered in Berlin to demonstrate for more climate protection.
Two demands emerged from their ranks. First, they charge a lot of money.
“We are demanding a special fund of 100 billion euros from the federal government for more climate security, for example through free public transport, as well as reparation payments to those countries that are already suffering particularly from the climate crisis,” said Berlin Fridays spokeswoman Darya Sotoodeh.
“Climate protection is more important than rearmament,” shouted a demontrantine into the camera, alluding to the 100 billion euros promised to the Bundeswehr.
Second, the activists demanded that “capitalism” must be overcome, since corporate “profit maximization” is one of the main reasons why the fight against climate change is not progressing.
“Break the power of the banks!” the demonstrators shouted in chants. A young woman drew “Planet over profit” on a piece of cardboard that she held over her head. “We have to fundamentally change the economic system,” said spokeswoman Darya Sotoodeh.
How does this all come together? A “special fund” is nothing more than a mountain of debt like any other, except that borrowing is linked to certain expenses. The 100 billion euros that Fridays for Future demands would have to be raised on the capital market.
The money that the state borrows there is generated by the companies and made available by the banks, i.e. by the market economy, which is called “capitalism” according to the Marxist interpretation.
The German economy consists predominantly of medium-sized companies that create 60 percent of all jobs, including 2,700 world market leaders. They ensure that the state can finance social services and environmental protection in the first place. In the socialist planned economy this money would not be available at all.
So the Fridays fighters rely on a system that they actually want to abolish. You have caught yourself in a great contradiction. They present themselves as the saviors of the world and point the finger at everyone else who they think is doing nothing. They don’t even have a brilliant idea. You just hold out your hand.
Freshly blow-dried, well-dressed, well-fed and in a good mood, they take to the streets. They live well because there is still enough electricity and heat in this country, which is produced with coal, nuclear power and gas.
They don’t even know how an industrial nation is supposed to function with solar and wind power alone. They demand it anyway. They don’t even notice that this fall it’s getting down to business. You are so dangerously unworldly.
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