Climate extremists

Notes on the diagram. I’d really much rather not have to do drawings like this one. It really would be easier to stick to daft goings-on and pictures of bicycles (both of which I also continue to cover, for avoidance of doubt).

I drew this picture as a reaction to media and public figures who label those who care about the climate, and by extension care about the wellbeing of people everywhere, now and in the future, as ‘extremists’, ‘eco-zealots’, or similar. It’s my view that those governments and corporations who are pressing ahead with policies that threaten our very existence are the real ‘extremists’.

I know people will hold differing views on forms of protest, such as the one I’ve depicted. Is blocking a road and disrupting the public the best way to achieve your aim? How important is it to get people on your side if you want to achieve actual change? Or is the crucial thing to get people talking about it and so make sure the topic isn’t ignored? Is the best thing to do if you don’t agree with a form of protest to think of a better one? I don’t have straightforward answers for these questions, and this drawing isn’t attempting to address them. (As an aside: Not every drawing I do addresses every question, which I know most people understand, but quite a few people online seem not to have grasped…)

My main point: if you’re going to go after ‘climate extremists’, make sure it’s the ones who don’t care about your children’s future, not the ones trying to do something about it.

Thank you to the members of my Diagram Club for funding this drawing and enabling me to do this kind of work.

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Image download link for Diagram Club members:

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