ECOCIDE – KILL THE CORPORATION BEFORE IT KILLS US

David Whyte 2020

A review: unique and urgently important weapon-book for climate activists

I read this book over a couple of days after it was given to me, in June this year. Realising how important it was for climate campaigners stuck in zoom ghettos since 2019 I bashed out review notes but circumstances got in the way of finishing these and they are now lost due to an IT fail, so here is a very short summary of why this book is important, and some notes of criticism.

1. Accurate identification of the enemy – and being prepared to call it an enemy
2. Evidenced explanation of specific role of capitalist corporations in colonialism and environmental destruction
3. Breaks away from the “idealism” which has successfully neutralised climate activists for decades
4. Some critical notes*

*It’s 3 months since I read the book so I am happy to be corrected if I have missed important elements towards the end. I am lending it on so can’t review right now.

1. Accurate identification of the enemy – and being prepared to call it an enemy

There are dozens of excellent books by intelligent and incredibly thorough and determined writers which describe the mechanisms of human-made climate change and promote remedial actions and solutions. These include works by George Monbiot, Naomi Klein, Kate Raworth and others who I read and learn from. But even where they identify capitalism – or if less brave – growth-led competitive economies as the problem, the solutions proposed are based on governments being prepared to act against this, and having the powers to do so.

Whyte also hows how most of the reporting and literature on climate action avoids talking about the role of capitalism and corporations completely, focusing on government and individuals.

Revolutionary socialist writers have gone further than this but don’t have the readership or environmental credentials to get to the bigger audience. David Whyte goes further than the others, and does so candidly from the very title of the book. He focuses on the capitalist corporation because it’s the main form of capitalism today, as well as its specific qualities (see below) and says we have to kill it before it kills us.

2. Evidenced explanation of specific role of capitalist corporations in colonialism and environmental destruction

The evidence is piled up, and DW explains how the anonymity of the corporation, with its dedicated objective (backed up in law) to maximise shareholder returns at all costs, allowed and encouraged corporations to lead and execute a horror catalogue of atrocities building empires, and to follow through to the present day with cold-blooded and shameless environmental destruction. Not only do they not care, they are actively planning to profit from and “survive” global warming of 3-5 degrees. And it’s no good us environmentalists shake our heads and say that’s not possible/ they won’t have a planet, because they’ll carry on through it all regardless – and we need to understand that. We need to understand the forces that make them carry on and carry politicians with them, and then we need to apply our own forces against them.

3. Breaks away from “idealism” which has successfully neutralised climate activists for decades

Generations of climate activists have learned what’s going down and shouted it from the rooftops. The implication being that governments are stupid, or short-sighted. At best, that a “good” government could come along, be brave, and carry the population/s with them on a journey to mitigate global warming and bio-destruction, to allow human survival with social justice and with a view to a long term stabilisation or even mending. And that journey would involve “controlling” capitalist corporations and steering society to a greener way of life, with either “green growth” or less growth.

This is immensely damaging as a theoretical approach. It fails to describe the reality, which means we are defeated, duped or marginalised, and it demoralises and headfucks generation after generation of activists. Even since 2019 it has kept thousands of us in zoom ghettos talking to each other about how bad the tories are or how many pv cells can fit on the head of a pin.

In contrast David Whyte explains that capitalist corporations are driven to destroy, that governments exist to support them and where governments try to moderate capitalism they are brought to heel by any means necessary.

4. Some critical notes*

For all the courage and determination required to write this book it falls short of specific actions that could measure up to the power of capitalist corporations, and there is a suggestion of turning to legislation after all, despite having shown how powerfully subversive corporations are.

The specific actions as I see it can be divided into two main types, these being in addtion to all the other campaigning being done by environmentalists –

• strikes and takeovers – direct attack on profits and corporations by those of us who make them/possible – in other words strikes which at least stem the flow of profit and force the corporations to make concessions, building to physical takeover of assets and infrastructure by the workers in those industries (including “white collar” workers eg telecoms or universities, as well as energy or rail workers etc) to manage them differently/ in different directions (new Lucas plans)
• grassroots political campaigning – making it impossible for elected politicians to claim legitimacy for their support of capitalism, by building a movement that won’t be destroyed in the way that Corbynism was. This latter can only happen if the answers offered seem realistic – we need to be as radical as the reality we face – and holistic, ie deal with people’s other real problems. The realism means being honest about what we can’t have. The holism means being tenacious and militant to protect the lives and wellbeing of the poorer half of the population, which means being brutally honest about the need for the richer half to give up things too.

I don’t know whether the omission of a plan of action which is up to the task David Whyte describes was deliberate. It’s a book written by a university academic and already goes farther than most others of this kind, and it may be that despite showing the ruthlessness of corporations DW feels he has to pull back from urging the stake through the heart.

Either way I think the book is essential reading and I stand by my suggested takeaways, while welcoming all comments – and notices of any actions you have planned.

For my part I’m involved in the “climate jobs – building a workforce for the climate emergency” campaign, which seeks to build support in the trade unions for militant action in support of climate jobs eg more railway builders/workers, insulators, land protectors, renewable energy providers. Join us at our emergency conferences coming September 17th and 18th and October 8th. Where we aim to leave with real actions planned.