Why do old white men hate Greta Thunberg so much?

[MotherOfDragonite]

My 65 year old uncle and friends of a similar age (and also white, though not necessarily all British -- others are American, German and Australian) seem to talk about her an awful lot with great vitriol and hatred.

They seem to have shared views about climate change, but I still can't understand why they hate Greta so much. Not only do they comment on her, but they post unpleasant memes about her. While I understand that they fundamentally disagree with the concept of climate change, I don't really understand why a 16 year old girl with Aspergers, who does not live in the UK and who clearly has good intentions even if they disagree with them, is the focus of so much of their ire.

What is it about Greta that older men find so very "triggering"?

But a whole lot more on to it.

You are not being objective, there was a movement, Greta has changed it, it is different and has new elements to it.

She has made a huge difference, denying that is ridiculous.

Yes, it now has the “new elements” of some rather privileged, slightly hysterical, almost entirely middle-class people who have been inspired to have the odd day off school - or if they’re old enough a couple of weeks off work - before heading off for a weekend of mooching around Primark, staring at screens and enjoying the unprecedented luxuries of 21st century life that could only have been achieved through human ingenuity and fossil fuels.

ah right so accurate criticism, reheated from every time the young get behind something. Same things said time and time again.

Doesn't detract from the fact that she has made a difference and that her points are correct.

malylis
Doesn't detract from the fact that she has made a difference and that her points are correct.

As you are redefining the word "fact", you should also be able to say what "difference" she has made and what her "facts" are.

Please do so "objectively" or are you going to redefine that as well?

ah right so accurate criticism, reheated from every time the young get behind something.

Would it help if I levelled exactly the same criticism at the ridiculous old farts who were also having a nice dance in Trafalgar Square and gluing themselves to (electric) trains in an attempt to stop ordinary people getting to work so that they could get paid?

There was a climate change movement, Greta had inspired it further and brought it to a greater audience, engaging more people. The fzct that there was something before doesn't mean she hasn't inspired a whole new movement now. What difference has she made ? Was climate change even as big news two years ago? Were world leaders talking about it as much? Were as many people engaged and making it part of the political agenda? In 2017 did the leaders debate climate change specifically before the election?

What would you like me to redefine?

Oh and the criticism aimed at young people protesting is exactly the same format as every time young people protest anything from the 60s till now.

Oh and my initial comment was that she has inspired a whole movement, not that it was new.

Are you claiming that she hasn't inspired the climate change movement further? Not made a difference?

I have been obsessively recycling and all the rest of it since I was 13, back in the days when I had to take all my family's recycling down to a supermarket carpark, because we didn't have doorstep recycling.

In all that time, it is only in the last year that other people have seemed to be widely getting on board with the concept of not being wasteful little shites. I think that'll be down to Greta.

Perhaps time is better spent planning what can be done in terms of revising infrastructure and lifestyle rather than having some weird-ass fashion bitchfest?

I think a low carbon world would be much more pleasant for the majority. Shorter commutes, flexible working weeks for instance.

Take business parks. Many are build a long way from people's homes and are often are not on a public transport route. One large business park near where I live lacks bike racks and places to shower and no child care provider - not really well integrated into people's lives.

I have yet to see any evidence that long commutes do anything other than destroy your health and the planet.

malylis

Objectively, prove that she has made a difference.

Look at the climate change protests and the fact that it is front page news and on the political agenda. Four years ago and two years ago we had a GE where climate change was not even part of the general debate, this year there was an entire leaders debate dedicated to it.

What is the difference ? What has driven this huge spike in interest and focus on how to make things better? What has focused the media attention on it ?

Maly,

IPCC 1.5 degrees, published October 2018.

malylis

Climate change has been on the agenda for years.
Can you honestly say that greta was behind ER and the london protests?The airport protests?

The truth is that greta may be front page news but various industries, governments and protesters have been going on and creating change for years.

She may be a new fresh face but she has turned as many away from the environment as she has "inspired".

I'm not an old white male and I can't bear her. Nor can DH- he's a white man but not old.

The youth protests that had well over a million people involved you can say she was directly inspirational to. This has created a momentum which has pushed climate change to the front of the agenda where despite other campaigners attempts it wasn't in the past.

Everybody sane hates her - she is an idiotic child who should go back to school.

At least she as an AS person can see how most people percieve her. The human world is pretty much a double-bind if you have AS - damned if you do, damned if you don't.
At least doing the right thing with the best evidence you make progress. Might not make many friends but those who listen, do. She has no doubt seen the hand of friendship become a fist many a time already.

This thread lifts some of the mystery as to why I struggled to find employment despite having a highly desirable skill set - and yes I can dress for interviews fine thankyou.

Why is everybody assuming she's considered irritating because of her AS, rather than just being annoying and preachy?

Climate change protests and headlines are no proof that she has accomplished anything other than climate change protests and headlines.

Maybe she’s inspired people and maybe she hasn’t, but who cares? Greta is almost completely irrelevant and the kind of people she inspires almost certainly aren’t the ones who are actually going to be able to solve environmental problems. Technology and innovation will continue to improve all our lives at a faster and faster rate, and Greta with her anti-humanist, anti-technology “world is ending” nonsense won’t be able to stop that, thank God, because normal people can see right through it.

There are so many positive changes in the last 20 years that you NEVER hear about: We consume less per capita now than we did in 2000, we are getting better at using less land to produce better quality food, we have one device (a phone) to replace 20 (camera, torch, compass, watch, etc etc), buildings and lightbulbs are more efficient... the list goes on and on. This will continue with a healthy thriving economy, whatever Greta has to say about it.

Except the protests and building awareness are the things that have pushed climate change to the forefront of the agenda. Making this an important issue means its more likely that those who are in a position to do something about it now, rather than 20 years down the line, will do something.

The people protesting ARE exactly who in future will be making a difference, but they are too young now.

She is certainly not irrelevant, but those who seek to dismiss the impact of what has been done are.

Making this an important issue means its more likely that those who are in a position to do something about it now, rather than 20 years d did own the line, will do something.

People have been “doing something” for decades. How do you think the innovations I mention above happened?

And I’d argue that making kids panic about the end of the world is absolutely NOT the way to create a new generation of problem-solvers. It is damaging and harmful. Innovation requires optimism and a sense of possibility. Not exactly something Greta’s peddling, is it?

Have you missed the fact that over the last two years this has grown massively in importance. Particularly awareness of how what we have done so far is not enough!

You think its just making kids panic ? How pathetic.

Its motivating young people to make a difference.

Its motivating young people to make a difference

By panicking them