@xianc78 @mewmew Undeniable proof that more freedom leads to increased environmental damage.

@xianc78 @Galena @mewmew what does the y axis even mean? is a bigger number good or bad? this is a bad chart.

@sylveon @xianc78 @mewmew It means more environment. And the X axis is more freedoms.
What either of those terms mean and how either is measured is anyone's guess, but it has a graph so it must be true.

@sylveon @Galena @mewmew Y-axis is environmental performance. Bigger number is good. It basically shows that the countries with the freer markets are the most eco-friendly.

@xianc78 @Galena @mewmew and why is that? correlation does not mean causation. and how are we measuring the vauge concept of being good to the environment?

@sylveon @xianc78 @Galena because countries with free markets tend to be developed nations like USA or Europe, while more authoritarian places like India, China, Africa are developing and therefore using more fossil fuels.

They use a lot of fossil fuels to make shit for us though, if we actually made our stuff this chart would be very different.

@sylveon @Galena @mewmew There are a lot of factors. Minimizing pollution increases land value, renewable energy/resources can be cheaper in many cases, less restrictions on researching and developing alternative energy sources, being eco-friendly is a good PR move, among other things.

Really, many of our environmental problems come from the state enforces laws and taxes that override property rights, and governments subsidizing businesses that cause the most environmental damage which makes it hard for alternatives to gain a foothold in the market.