The basic ideology of "the market" and "consumer power" holds that the choices we make as individuals hold the power to change the world. It is an ideology that that is particularly serviceable to the business interests who run the country, because it downplays the basic reality that in order for ordinary people to change a world in which power is very highly concentrated, the need to work TOGETHER.

Businessmen understand that collective action on the part of the people CAN challenge their power. My point: the business pages of  almost any newspaper reflect this understanding, and the 95% of us who DON'T play a significant part in influencing national politics should read them with care.

To cite a specific case: the NY Times on Friday had a story about a report issued by a consulting firm that contained powerful suggestions to reduce US carbon emissions - without new technology, and without "cutting back" on our standard of living. Below is an excerpt:

The United States could shave as much as 28 percent off the amount of greenhouse gases it emits at fairly modest cost and with only small technology innovations,

A large share of the reductions could come from steps that would more than pay for themselves in lower energy bills for industries and individual consumers, the report said, adding that people should take those steps out of good sense regardless of how worried they might be about climate change. But that is unlikely to happen under present circumstances, said the authors, who are energy experts at McKinsey & Company, the consulting firm.

The task might also require emissions limits and other government mandates, as well as incentives like tax breaks to promote efficient buildings, cars and appliances, the study said. The McKinsey report said “lifestyle changes” by Americans could play a role in improved efficiency, even though they were not a major factor in the potential gains the report cited.

In other words, what is MOST important in reducing carbon emissions are the regulatory decisions of the federal government - which is crushed under the lobbying power of big business. If we as citizens wanted to reduce carbon emissions, our individual choices might have a small impact, but the main effort should be to join together in order fight (and, unltimately, vanquish) the corporatocracy that runs the government.

There's a reason why this didn't make it onto the front page...