James Watt, secretary of the Interior for Ronald Reagan is quoted as saying “After the last tree is felled, Christ will come back,” as a reason for not worrying about the environment. Watt never said this, it was simply attributed to him by an author in Grist magazine, and later retracted. Still, many believe that conservatives and capitalists think that its okay to rape and destroy the planet in the name of riches and God. In reality, capitalism is one of the best hopes for our environment.The oil age did arguably save whales from extinction after all.

Looking around the world, you can find a direct correlation between poverty and ecological disaster. Where people are poorest, the pollution and economic destruction are far worse than in more wealthy areas. Places where many poor people live in close quarters such as Calcutta, Beijing, and Mexico City are even worse.