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According to eco-socialists, the expansion of the capitalist system is the primary driver of social problems and environmental damage.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists identify the expansion of the capitalist system, including its globalizing and imperialist tendencies, as the principal driver behind social problems and environmental degradation.
Eco-socialists believe that capitalism can be reformed to achieve ecological and social sustainability.
Answer: False
Explanation: Eco-socialists assert that capitalism cannot be reformed to achieve ecological and social sustainability, as its fundamental logic is incompatible with these goals.
Derek Wall notes that free-market capitalism in the Global South often supports subsistence farming over export crops.
Answer: False
Explanation: Derek Wall observes that free-market capitalism in the Global South often prioritizes export crops, frequently at the expense of subsistence farming and forests, exacerbating hunger and poverty.
Eco-socialists believe capitalism requires indefinite growth, which is fundamentally unsustainable on a finite planet.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists contend that capitalism's inherent requirement for indefinite growth is fundamentally unsustainable on a finite planet, leading to inevitable ecological and social crises.
Eco-socialists argue that capitalism prioritizes exchange-value (profit) over use-value (meeting needs), leading to ecological harm.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists argue that capitalism prioritizes exchange-value (profit) over use-value (meeting human needs), resulting in the production of unnecessary goods, consumerism, and significant ecological and social harm.
Eco-socialists reject technological fixes because they believe new technologies under capitalism often create new environmental problems.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists reject technological fixes as primary solutions because they argue that capitalism's inherent drive for profit often leads to new environmental problems, even with cleaner technologies, emphasizing societal organization over mere technological advancement.
Eco-socialists believe that capitalism inherently spurs conflict and war, particularly through the pursuit of energy resources like oil.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists posit that capitalism inherently spurs conflict and war, particularly through 'oil imperialism,' driven by the pursuit of energy resources essential for its continuous growth.
Eco-socialists view the state and transnational organizations as inherently neutral actors in global economic systems.
Answer: False
Explanation: Eco-socialists view the state and transnational organizations within capitalism not as neutral actors, but as often subservient to capitalist interests, subordinating peripheral nations and repressing dissent.
What is the fundamental critique eco-socialists have of the current capitalist system?
Answer: It is inherently incompatible with ecological and social sustainability.
Explanation: Eco-socialists fundamentally critique capitalism for its inherent incompatibility with ecological and social sustainability, arguing that its core mechanisms prioritize profit over human needs and planetary limits.
According to eco-socialists, what is the root cause of issues like poverty, war, and environmental degradation?
Answer: The expansion of the capitalist system and its associated globalization/imperialism.
Explanation: Eco-socialists identify the expansion of the capitalist system, including its globalizing and imperialist tendencies overseen by states and transnational structures, as the principal cause of poverty, war, and environmental degradation.
Derek Wall observes that in the Global South, free-market capitalism often prioritizes:
Answer: Export crops at the expense of subsistence farms and forests.
Explanation: Derek Wall observes that free-market capitalism in the Global South often prioritizes export crops, frequently at the expense of subsistence farming and forests, exacerbating hunger and poverty.
What is the eco-socialist view on the necessity of indefinite growth for capitalism?
Answer: Capitalism requires indefinite growth, which is impossible on a finite planet.
Explanation: Eco-socialists contend that capitalism requires indefinite growth to survive, a necessity that is fundamentally impossible on a finite planet, leading to inevitable ecological and social crises.
What is the eco-socialist critique of the contradiction between use-value and exchange-value under capitalism?
Answer: Capitalism prioritizes exchange-value (profit) over use-value (meeting needs), causing harm.
Explanation: The eco-socialist critique highlights that capitalism prioritizes exchange-value (profit) over use-value (meeting needs), leading to the production of unnecessary goods, consumerism, and significant ecological and social harm.
Why do eco-socialists tend to reject technological fixes as the primary solution to ecological problems?
Answer: They argue that capitalism's drive for profit often creates new problems even with cleaner technologies.
Explanation: Eco-socialists tend to reject technological fixes as primary solutions because they argue that capitalism's inherent drive for profit often leads to new environmental problems, even with cleaner technologies, emphasizing societal organization over mere technological advancement.
Eco-socialists view the relationship between capitalism, conflict, and war as:
Answer: Inherently linked, particularly through the pursuit of resources like oil ('oil imperialism').
Explanation: Eco-socialists view the relationship between capitalism, conflict, and war as inherently linked, particularly through 'oil imperialism,' driven by the pursuit of energy resources essential for capitalism's continuous growth.
What is the eco-socialist view on the role of the state and transnational organizations within capitalism?
Answer: They are often subservient to capitalist interests, subordinating peripheral nations.
Explanation: Eco-socialists view the state and transnational organizations within capitalism not as neutral actors, but as often subservient to capitalist interests, subordinating peripheral nations and repressing dissent.
Eco-socialists criticize bureaucratic forms of socialism like Stalinism for being environmentally destructive and contrary to emancipatory goals.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists criticize bureaucratic and elite forms of socialism, such as Stalinism, viewing them as environmentally destructive and fundamentally at odds with the emancipatory ideals of early socialist thought.
Eco-socialists interpret Karl Marx's work as being fundamentally opposed to ecological concerns.
Answer: False
Explanation: Eco-socialists interpret Karl Marx's work as foundational to ecological thought, citing his analysis of the 'metabolic rift' between humanity and nature as evidence of his ecological perspective.
William Morris, a 19th-century designer, is considered a precursor to eco-socialist thought.
Answer: True
Explanation: William Morris, a prominent 19th-century designer and socialist, is recognized as a significant precursor to eco-socialist thought due to his critiques of industrial capitalism and his vision of a harmonious society.
Early Soviet attempts to integrate ecological consciousness into Bolshevism were consistently supported by leaders like Joseph Stalin.
Answer: False
Explanation: Early Soviet attempts to integrate ecological consciousness were actively suppressed by leaders like Joseph Stalin, who promoted pseudo-scientific ideas and environmentally damaging practices, hindering ecological thought within the party.
Murray Bookchin's social ecology posits that ecological crises stem from hierarchical social structures and human domination.
Answer: True
Explanation: Murray Bookchin's theory of social ecology asserts that ecological crises originate from hierarchical social structures and the domination of human over human, which then extends to the domination of nature.
Barry Commoner argued in the 1970s that population growth, not capitalist technology, was the main cause of environmental problems.
Answer: False
Explanation: In the 1970s, Barry Commoner hypothesized that capitalist technologies, rather than population growth, were the primary drivers of environmental degradation, offering a left-wing perspective on ecological issues.
Joel Kovel and Michael Löwy argued in their manifesto that capitalist expansion inherently causes ecological crises.
Answer: True
Explanation: In 'An Ecosocialist Manifesto,' Joel Kovel and Michael Löwy argued that capitalist expansion inherently leads to ecological crises through rampant industrialization, pollution, and resource depletion, driven by the imperative for capital accumulation.
Kovel suggests the Bolsheviks' adoption of "war communism" suppressed nascent environmentalism within the party.
Answer: True
Explanation: Joel Kovel suggests that the Bolsheviks' adoption of 'war communism' and authoritarian measures suppressed nascent environmentalism within the party, setting a precedent for productivism over ecological concerns.
Bookchin's "Communalism" seeks to organize society through a network of directly democratic citizens' assemblies.
Answer: True
Explanation: Murray Bookchin's political philosophy, 'Communalism,' seeks to organize society through a confederation of directly democratic citizens' assemblies.
The journal *Capitalism, Nature, Socialism* was founded by Murray Bookchin.
Answer: False
Explanation: The journal *Capitalism, Nature, Socialism* (CNS) was founded by James O'Connor, not Murray Bookchin, although Bookchin was an influential figure in the fields it covered.
The concept of "metabolic rift," discussed by Marx, is seen by eco-socialists as evidence of his ecological worldview.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists view Marx's concept of the 'metabolic rift' as significant evidence of his ecological worldview, highlighting the disruption of the human-nature relationship under capitalism.
Which historical socialist ideologies do eco-socialists criticize for being incompatible with emancipatory goals and potentially environmentally destructive?
Answer: Bureaucratic and elite theories like Stalinism and Maoism.
Explanation: Eco-socialists criticize bureaucratic and elite theories of socialism, such as Stalinism and Maoism, viewing them as incompatible with emancipatory goals and potentially environmentally destructive.
How do eco-socialists interpret Karl Marx's concept of the "metabolic rift"?
Answer: As a key element of his ecological worldview, highlighting human-nature disconnection.
Explanation: Eco-socialists interpret Marx's concept of the 'metabolic rift' as a key element of his ecological worldview, highlighting the disruption of the human-nature relationship under capitalism.
Who is credited with developing early principles of eco-socialism in the late 19th century?
Answer: William Morris
Explanation: William Morris, a 19th-century designer and socialist, is credited with developing core principles of eco-socialism, advocating for a harmonious society free from industrial exploitation.
What negative impact did Joseph Stalin and Trofim Lysenko have on ecological thought in the Soviet Union?
Answer: They suppressed ecological science and promoted environmentally damaging practices.
Explanation: Joseph Stalin and Trofim Lysenko suppressed ecological science and promoted environmentally damaging practices in the Soviet Union, hindering ecological consciousness and research.
According to Murray Bookchin's social ecology, what is the origin of the ecological crisis?
Answer: Human social problems and hierarchical structures.
Explanation: Murray Bookchin's social ecology posits that the origin of the ecological crisis lies in human social problems and hierarchical structures, arguing that the domination of human over human leads to the domination of nature.
Barry Commoner's hypothesis in the 1970s suggested that the primary drivers of environmental degradation were:
Answer: Capitalist technologies.
Explanation: Barry Commoner's hypothesis in the 1970s suggested that capitalist technologies, rather than population growth, were the primary drivers of environmental degradation.
In "An Ecosocialist Manifesto," Kovel and Löwy argued that capitalist expansion leads to ecological crises primarily through:
Answer: Rampant industrialization, pollution, and resource depletion.
Explanation: In 'An Ecosocialist Manifesto,' Kovel and Löwy argued that capitalist expansion leads to ecological crises primarily through rampant industrialization, pollution, and resource depletion, driven by the imperative for capital accumulation.
Market-based solutions, such as carbon trading, are viewed by eco-socialists as effective means to resolve ecological crises.
Answer: False
Explanation: Eco-socialists reject market-based solutions like carbon trading, viewing them as insufficient to address the root structural failures of capitalism and potentially creating new profit opportunities from environmental damage.
Eco-socialists are generally uncritical of other green political movements, seeing them as aligned with their goals.
Answer: False
Explanation: Eco-socialists are often critical of other green political movements, finding that many are not overtly anti-capitalist, may rely on technological fixes, or work within existing statist systems rather than advocating for fundamental transformation.
"Prefigurative projects" are initiatives that embody the values of the desired future society in the present.
Answer: True
Explanation: Prefigurative projects are initiatives undertaken by eco-socialists that actively embody the values and structures of the desired future society within the present, serving as practical demonstrations of alternative ways of living and organizing.
Andreas Malm argues in *How to Blow Up a Pipeline* that non-violence must always be upheld as a sacred principle in activism.
Answer: False
Explanation: Andreas Malm argues in *How to Blow Up a Pipeline* that non-violence should be treated as a tactic, not a sacred principle, and may need to be abandoned when it ceases to be effective in addressing the climate crisis.
Paul Hampton criticizes eco-socialism for focusing too much on the working class as the primary agent of change.
Answer: False
Explanation: Paul Hampton criticizes eco-socialism for allegedly being a 'classless ecology' that has 'given up on the working class' as the primary agent of change, arguing it misses core Marxist political tenets.
Critics like Boucher and Caplan argue that eco-socialists sometimes exhibit "catastrophism" and overlook positive trends.
Answer: True
Explanation: Critics such as Boucher and Caplan argue that some eco-socialists exhibit 'catastrophism' and overlook positive developments, including the achievements of the labor movement and countervailing tendencies within capitalism.
Conservative critics sometimes conflate eco-socialism with "eco-paganism" to dismiss environmentalist arguments.
Answer: True
Explanation: Conservative critics sometimes conflate eco-socialism with terms like 'eco-paganism' to dismiss environmentalist arguments, particularly those advocating for restrictions on market-based solutions.
David M. Johns criticizes eco-socialism for focusing too much on long-term transformation and neglecting immediate conservation policies.
Answer: True
Explanation: David M. Johns criticizes eco-socialism for its perceived overemphasis on long-term societal transformation, arguing it neglects the development of immediate and practical conservation policies.
Eco-socialists believe that violence, especially ecological destruction, is contrary to their values and advocate for democratic processes to prevent post-revolutionary violence.
Answer: True
Explanation: Eco-socialists generally believe that violence, particularly ecological destruction, is contrary to their values and advocate for democratic processes within movements to prevent post-revolutionary violence.
Kovel criticizes voluntarism in local environmentalism, such as recycling projects, for potentially being co-opted by capitalism without fundamental change.
Answer: True
Explanation: Joel Kovel criticizes voluntarism in local environmentalism, like recycling projects, for potentially being co-opted by capitalism and becoming 'ecopolitics without struggle,' failing to achieve fundamental systemic change.
Eco-socialists generally support the idea of "state capitalism" as a transitional phase towards ecological sustainability.
Answer: False
Explanation: Eco-socialists generally do not support 'state capitalism' as a transitional phase, often criticizing such systems (like Stalinism) for being environmentally destructive and contrary to emancipatory goals.
How do eco-socialists view other green political movements?
Answer: They are criticized for often not being overtly anti-capitalist or relying on technological fixes.
Explanation: Eco-socialists often criticize other green political movements for not being overtly anti-capitalist, for relying on technological fixes, or for working within existing statist systems rather than pursuing fundamental transformation.
What is the eco-socialist concept of "prefigurative projects"?
Answer: Initiatives that embody the values of the desired future society in the present.
Explanation: Prefigurative projects are initiatives undertaken by eco-socialists that actively embody the values and structures of the desired future society within the present, serving as practical demonstrations of alternative ways of living and organizing.
Andreas Malm's argument in *How to Blow Up a Pipeline* suggests that non-violence:
Answer: Should be abandoned as a tactic when it ceases to be effective.
Explanation: Andreas Malm argues in *How to Blow Up a Pipeline* that non-violence should be treated as a tactic, not a sacred principle, and may need to be abandoned when it ceases to be effective in addressing the climate crisis.
Paul Hampton criticizes eco-socialism for allegedly:
Answer: Being a "classless ecology" that has "given up on the working class."
Explanation: Paul Hampton criticizes eco-socialism for allegedly being a 'classless ecology' that has 'given up on the working class' as the primary agent of change, arguing it misses core Marxist political tenets.
Critics like Boucher and Caplan argue that some eco-socialists exhibit "catastrophism" and overlook:
Answer: The achievements of the labor movement and countervailing tendencies within capitalism.
Explanation: Critics such as Boucher and Caplan argue that some eco-socialists exhibit 'catastrophism' and overlook positive developments, including the achievements of the labor movement and countervailing tendencies within capitalism.
Why do eco-socialists criticize "working within the system" approaches in the Green movement?
Answer: They argue such approaches are easily co-opted and lead to bureaucracies seeking incremental change rather than fundamental transformation.
Explanation: Eco-socialists criticize 'working within the system' approaches in the Green movement because they argue such methods are easily co-opted, leading to bureaucracies focused on incremental change rather than the fundamental transformation required.
What is the eco-socialist perspective on non-violence?
Answer: It is generally seen as contrary to eco-socialist values, especially ecological destruction.
Explanation: While many eco-socialists are involved in peace movements, the general perspective is that violence, particularly ecological destruction, is contrary to their values. They advocate for democratic processes to prevent post-revolutionary violence.
Kovel's criticism of voluntarism in local environmentalism, like recycling projects, is that it can become:
Answer: "Ecopolitics without struggle," potentially co-opted by capitalism.
Explanation: Joel Kovel criticizes voluntarism in local environmentalism, such as recycling projects, for potentially becoming 'ecopolitics without struggle,' which can be co-opted by capitalism without achieving fundamental systemic change.