Do people value that which is free?

A propagandist is not concerned with what you think
He is not concerned with what other people think
He is concerned with what people think other people think

Free only has meaning when there is ownership and wealth. Do we suppose that a hunter-gatherer returned to the tribal camp and said "here is some wood I found for the fire. It was free."

It's capitalism that wants us to think that most other people do not respect that which is free.

Air is extremely valuable. People treasure it. Those who are able, fight to stop its pollution.

But the capitalist system is busy trying to find ways to own it and charge for it.

The answer is yes, people value that which is free: human compassion, air, etc. Don't fall for the propaganda.

UN solution for CO2 -- better cars

Zero-emission automobiles, of course, do not and cannot ever exist. 

All automobiles require fuel, and even solar panels, wind turbines, hydro-electric dams, and nuclear power plants produce GHG emissions in their construction and maintenance. The emissions, in these minor examples as well as in the coal and natural gas plants that are the major sources of “EV” power, merely occur at locations other than a tailpipe. But occur they most certainly still do, despite automakers’ labels suggesting otherwise. Shame on the United Nations for missing and obscuring this crucial fact.

https://www.deathbycar.info/gaps-indeed/ 

Global CO2 emissions growth accelerating, not declining

Global energy-related CO2 emissions grew 1.7% in 2018 to reach a historic high of 33.1 Gt CO2. It was the highest rate of growth since 2013, and 70% higher than the average increase since 2010. Last year's growth of 560 Mt was equivalent to the total emissions from international aviation.

https://www.iea.org/reports/global-energy-and-co2-status-report-2019/emissions? 

Sumatra -- 6.5M acres of peat and wildlife in danger. #methane

Alternet : "The Leuser Ecosystem (pronounced low-sir) is a vast tropical landscape on the island of Sumatra. Spanning over 6.5 million acres of lowland jungle, montane rainforests and teeming peat swamps, Leuser’s forests are among the most ancient on earth. This is a realm where volcanic eruptions, fluctuating sea levels and species migrations over uninterrupted millennia have enabled one of the most biodiverse landscapes ever documented to evolve.

... But today, Leuser’s forests are under constant and escalating threat. Despite being protected by Indonesian law, the Leuser Ecosystem is under siege for short-term profits. Corporate interests such as industrial pulp and palm oil plantations, mining and logging operations, energy projects, and all the roads and infrastructure that are built to support them, are eating away at every corner of the Ecosystem."

Cause of current mass extinction? Roads

Mother Nature Network: "The No. 1 cause of modern wildlife declines is habitat loss and fragmentation, representing the primary threat for 85 percent of all species on the IUCN Red List. That includes deforestation for farming, logging and settlement, but also the less obvious threat of fragmentation by roads and other infrastructure."

Environmental Ponzi Scheme

A Ponzi scheme pays investors "dividends" from the capital of new investors. Eventually it collapses. The autosprawl system pays "dividends" in the form of profits for fossil-fuel, auto, and related companies. These are not real profits, they are stolen from our environmental capital. This scheme must be stopped. The quickest way is a mass movement for free public transportation.

Externalities - costs not counted.... yet

The automobile and sprawl generate profits for the carbon-auto industry. But there are costs that are not being counted. These costs are "externalized" from the profit calculation, passed on to taxpayers and the future.

Some people ask "who will pay for free public transit?"... they should ask who will pay for the floods, whirlwinds, and drought to come from the free carbon dumping?

The ice is melting, yes, in winter. -- from the CalgaryHerald:

...Giant fractures have been cracking open the ice in the Beaufort Sea in recent weeks, creating extraordinary stretches of open water and giving researchers from around the world a first-hand look at the Arctic meltdown. "It's shocking to see," says David Barber, a climate specialist at the University of Manitoba...

see also FreePublicTransit.org - Externalities