5.3 vs. 2.3

We went to a fancy Indian restaurant last night as part of a Meet Up event. There were 18 people there, allowing us to use those social skills that are at risk of atrophying if we don't get out occasionally.

I spoke to a woman who--like many women here--enjoy going to America to shop. No one does mega malls like America. It got me thinking about my climate change class, where I learned the number of tons of carbon emitted per capita in the U.S. is 5.3 vs 2.3 for Europe. Those malls must be part of the reason--lots of heating and air conditioning. And the cavernous casinos in Las Vegas--imagine air conditioning them. And SUVs and long commutes and the size of houses and mowing acres of lawn, and so on.

The worst thing about that high per capita level is it lets other countries off the hook. China is the largest emitter of fossil fuel pollution, however its per capita emissions are less than ONE QUARTER of the U.S. level (aggregate emissions are higher because China has one billion more people). It's kind of hard for the U.S. to demand that other countries cut emissions when Americans burn through fossil fuels like they are going out of style (which they are!).
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