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The resounding success of Net-Zero energy policies in Spain prompted me to imagine how splendid it would be if the entire world pursued these same initiatives. I played it out in my mind, and developed a possible scenario for attainment of the ultimate goal: a truly 100% Net-Zero world.
[Keep in mind that the following story is pure speculative fiction.] In this version of the future, Net-Zero energy policies are pushed to the limit worldwide. The result, over time, is a massive die-off. Despite the numerous woke progressives among the deceased, the news is spun positively in the New York Times, which emphasizes the crucial benefit of drastically reduced carbon emissions. Eventually, the Times can no longer engage in the act of emphasizing; it ceases to exist when its last staff member, the Science and Technology editor, freezes to death in her Chelsea loft. Two young humans, Madison and Liam, are chosen by Fate to survive the apocalypse. These two beneficiaries of white privilege became acquainted with each other while camping, in neighboring tents, at a Hamas peaceful protest at Columbia University. Through a series of fortuitous circumstances and events, they escape the utter ruin of civilization, and embark upon a grueling odyssey that terminates in being marooned on a desert island. Madison and Liam are the last of their species, as Net-Zero has been implemented down to the last human producers of carbon. Life on the desert island is simple and carefree, with fish and tropical fruit available in abundance, and warm weather year-round. The two survivors agree to mark a boundary down the middle of the island, with an ironclad promise to enter the other’s territory only with permission. This ensures the inviolability of safe spaces. Madison and Liam both, but especially the young lady, spend hours each day attempting to revive their iPhones, which sadly have no hope of ever again being functional. Madison complains that her social-media friends never respond to texts or posts. Two years go by with no change in living conditions, and no contact with the outside world (which effectively has ceased to exist). One day, while Liam is surveying his domain from atop an outcrop of rocks, he sees Madison, a stone’s throw distant, bathing nude in a natural pool under a waterfall. She normally does this after nightfall, so as to remain invisible, but just this once forgets her own protocol. The young man is shaken to the depths of his soul. Feelings of intense desire are quickly supplanted by shame, as he struggles with his thoughtcrime. There is no question, he reckons, that this remnant of toxic masculinity must be purged from his system. Over the course of the next few days, however, desire makes a comeback, and returns to the forefront of Liam’s consciousness. What to do? He cannot cross the territorial boundary; that would be considered by Madison to be an unforgivable transgression. Liam hatches a cunning plan: he will convince his female counterpart, by means of reasoning and subtle persuasion, to engage in physical contact with him. The next morning, he walks to the spot along the border where they usually go to converse with each other. “Good morning, Madison. Nice day, isn’t it?” Madison displays her typical frown, but nods grudgingly. Liam pays no attention to this negativity, instead focusing on her physique, which is appealing to him in the extreme. “What did you want to talk to me about?” Liam takes a step toward the object of his attraction but then halts abruptly upon his realization that the sacrosanct boundary lies between them. He gathers his courage and clears his throat. “You know, Madison, I was thinking, like, you know, kinda….well maybe we could take a walk along the beach on my territory, it’s really pretty over there.” Madison frowns again, and then stretches her slim body upward with a big yawn. “No thanks. I’m okay with my own beach. Anything else?” Liam, anticipating this response, switches to his backup strategy. “Yeah, I’ve been thinking….we might be the last two people on the planet, just you and me. Kinda sad, that everyone else had to die, but in a way it’s totally awesome, right?” “They had to die, to save the planet. But what’s so awesome about us being alive? We’re still using up resources and contributing to climate change.” “True, true,” says Liam, again suppressing his desire. “But we could be like Adam and Eve. You know, starting the whole human race all over again.” “What?!” shrieks the young woman. “Adam and Eve? That story the Nazis cooked up to justify the patriarchy?” She looks at him with scorn, shaking her head in disbelief. “You never said anything like that at Columbia. What are you, some kind of Republican?” She storms away in a huff, and is soon out of view. That evening, Madison captures one of the poisonous spiders that inhabit a cave on her side of the island, and places it in a bamboo box that she had made. In the middle of the night, she crosses the boundary into Liam’s territory, sneaks up to his hut, approaches his bed, and releases the spider. The creature fulfills his mission and bites the hapless victim. Liam goes into convulsions, and expires a few seconds later. Madison uses her last remaining lipstick to draw a swastika on his chest, along with the words, “literally Hitler.” Life is good again for the young lady. She can now bathe in her pool at any time of day or night, and no longer has to worry about anyone stepping over the boundary onto her territory. More importantly, the world has been rid of one more MAGA fanatic. But regret soon takes hold; Madison feels terrible guilt from her complicity in the survival of a white male Republican fascist, who consumed precious resources and delayed the moment of complete Net-Zero. In fact, she reasons, her own survival is not much better. Okay, she’s not a Trump supporter, but still, it’s one more mouth for eating and a set of lungs for breathing, postponing the glorious day of Gaia’s deliverance. Overcome with remorse, Madison feeds herself to the sharks, hoping that her sacrifice will help humanity atone for its sins against the planet. Net-Zero is finally achieved.
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Over at the Had Enough Therapy? blog, Stuart Schneiderman has composed a concise and incisive exposition on feminism; one of the best short commentaries I have seen on this profound societal malaise. He opens the piece with this gem: “If you reject reality you will never run out of things to complain about.” While you’re there, check out Schneiderman’s other fascinating and enlightening articles.
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Dystopian literatureWelcome to the blog! While you're here, check out the six dystopian novels by Gary Wolf. His latest is The Cubist Supremacy. 
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