American Heat: Ethical Problems With the United States Response to Global Warming
By
Donald A. Brown
Published by Roman and Littlefield
ISBN 0742512959
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the Book!
(Note that Don is graciously donating all royalties to
CitNet!)
Book Summary
A vast scientific and economic literature on global warming has emerged in the last two decades. Surprisingly, however, there has been little written on the ethical dimensions of human-induced climate change despite the numerous, obvious, and profoundly important ethical questions raised by human activities that are now clearly threatening human health, the environment, and many things humans value greatly. A new book entitled "American Heat: Ethical Problems With The United States Responses to Global Warming," argues that reflection on the ethical issues raised by global warming is needed to reach an urgently needed international consensus on how to attack climate change's immense threat. In American Heat, Donald Brown critically analyzes the U.S. response to global warming in light of the U.S. express justifications for not reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.
American Heat invites readers to examine the implicit morality of the U.S position while arguing that if Americans understand the ethical dimensions of this problem they will support strong programs to reduce U.S. greenhouse emissions. In other words, American Heat argues that there are many practical reasons for identifying and expressly examining the ethical dimensions of global warming. American Heat also argues that an ethical reflection on global warming is also needed to help lead the world toward an equitable sharing of the burdens and benefits of protecting the global environment. In short, Brown argues that an ethical focus on global environmental matters is the key to achieving a globally acceptable solution and to harness political support for action.
The book begins with an extensive historical analysis of the U.S. response
to global warming. This historical analysis identifies reasons consistently
given by the United States for failing to take action to make meaningful
reductions in U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. This analysis reveals that
the United States has for almost fifteen years argued that it need not
commit to reduce its emissions because of scientific uncertainty about
global warming, costs to the U.S. economy if the U.S. adopted global
warming programs, and failure of the developing nations to commit to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Separate chapters examine these excuses
through an ethical prism and conclude that these excuses are deeply
ethically problematic. Other chapters examine additional ethical issues
that all nations must face to develop a global solution to climate change.
American Heat argues that such issues as what is an appropriate atmospheric
target for stabilizing
greenhouse gases and what is each nation's share of a global greenhouse
emissions cap should be understood to raise ethical as well as scientific
and economic questions and issues.
American Heat also claims that many obvious ethical issues posed by global warming have up until now been hidden in scientific and economic discourses which is one of the reasons why there has been little expressly ethically focused discussions of global warming policy in the United States. American Heat argues that there is an urgent need to identify the ethical issues often hidden in scientific and economic analyses in global warming policy discussions.
The foreword to the book has been written by Tim Wieskel, director of the Harvard University Seminar on Ethics and the Environment.
Ordering the Book
This book can be ordered through Amazon or through the publisher, Roman and Littlefield, at the links below. (Note that all author royalties are being donated directly to support CitNet!)
Cloth Hardcover or Paperback (Roman & Littlefield):
http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com/ISBN/0742512959
Cloth Hardcover (Amazon):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0742512959/planet3k-20/
Paperback (Amazon):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0742512967/planet3k-20/
Reviews and Accolades:
"Drawing on his own deeply American conscience, Don Brown has put America's indifference to the climate crisis into its most essential context--human ethics. As American Heat illustrates, our response to global warming is corroding our most cherished values. With so much of the debate focused on science and economics, Brown forces us to confront what we are doing to our poor neighbors around the world, to our species at home and, ultimately, to our own children."—Ross Gelbspan, 1984 Pulitzer Prize Winner and author, The Heat Is On.
"Donald Brown is uniquely placed to make and defend the arguments in American Heat, the first book of its kind to clearly and convincingly connect the questions surrounding climate change with their ethical consequences."—Laura Westra, University of Windsor
"In American Heat, Donald Brown shines a harsh light on one of the tawdriest chapters in recent American policy: our unwillingness to own up to our obvious obligation to help in the process of repairing the climate we have done so much to damage. If our leaders are capable of shame, this book should do the trick."—Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature
"A convincing case, made by a gutsy insider, that the history of the U.S. response to global warming is ethically intolerable. American Heat is informative, provocative, and passionately argued. It deserves widespread public attention and discussion."—William Aiken, Chatham College
"I found American Heat an excellent read. Don Brown examines ethical issues embedded in policymaking and science as they relate to the failure of the United States to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Readers of American Heat will understand how, when it comes to the issue of global warming, ethics is often a silent but potent driver of political and scientific voices."—Edward Wells, Environmental Studies Department, Wilson College"The criticisms in American Heat flow from the intellectual tour de force of Brown's analysis and his deep belief that Americans will help lead the world to combating global warming fairly and justly once they understand how ethically troubling our current stance actually is. This book is a must read."—John Lemons, University of New England
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