--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For those of us who worry more about…" description: "\"For those of us who worry more about working people than about windfall profits for oil companies, it may net out. A better question is: what does it d..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/bill-mckibben-1057_climate_for-those-of-us-who-worry-more-about-wor_3188117.jpg" --- # For those of us who worry more about working people than… ![“For those of us who worry more about working people than about windfall profits for oil companies, it may net out. A better question is: what does it do to our economy if we manage to overheat the earth? This summer's drought provides a small taste.” quote by Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/bill-mckibben-1057_climate_for-those-of-us-who-worry-more-about-wor_3188117.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/bill-mckibben-1057_climate_for-those-of-us-who-worry-more-about-wor_3188117.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f2/bill-mckibben-1057_climate_for-those-of-us-who-worry-more-about-wor_3188117.jpg) > “For those of us who worry more about working people than about windfall profits for oil companies, it may net out. A better question is: what does it do to our economy if we manage to overheat the earth? This summer's drought provides a small taste.” [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Economic health suffers when climate warming harms productivity and resources. **In simple terms:** Warming hurts economies. Key Takeaway Address climate change to protect economies. Themes environment economy climate change resource scarcity policy Mood urgent concerned analytical Type activist analytical When to use this quote - business planning - agricultural strategy - urban water management - energy policy Key Concepts Externalities sustainable development intergenerational equity Questions to Reflect On - What economic policies can align profit with climate health? - How does drought reveal hidden costs? A Different Perspective Short‑term profits often outweigh long‑term climate risks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Drought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drought/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Economy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economy/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Oil companies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oil-companies/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Profit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profit/) [Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer/) [Working people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-people/) [Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry/) ## Related quotes > [Even if gas prices fall, consumers will continue to be gouged at the pump the only thing that we can be sure rises faster…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/major-owens/even-if-gas-prices-fall-consumers-will-continue-to-be-gouged-at-the/) [Major Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/major-owens/) > [The one thing people seem to forget is the more oil we have, the lower the price and the lower the profits the oil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-pratt/the-one-thing-people-seem-to-forget-is-the-more-oil-we-have-the-lower/) [David Pratt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-pratt/) > [This morning, prompted by increasing concerns about terrorism, oil prices reached a record high as the cost of a barrel of crude is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/this-morning-prompted-by-increasing-concerns-about-terrorism-oil/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [“The evidence suggests that when people get a windfall—and this seems to be the way people think about their tax refund, despite it being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-h-thaler/the-evidence-suggests-that-when-people-get-a-windfall-and-this-seems/) [Richard H. Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-h-thaler/) > [If we do not learn to regard a war, and the separate campaigns of which it is composed, as a chain of linked engagements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/if-we-do-not-learn-to-regard-a-war-and-the-separate-campaigns-of/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [The fossil fuel industry will inevitably have to experience major cutbacks and, over the longer term, near-total demise. There is simply no choice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pollin/the-fossil-fuel-industry-will-inevitably-have-to-experience-major/) [Robert Pollin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pollin/) > [Arab leaders worry more about making money from the profits they get from oil and gas that they turn the other way when Lebanon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abu-bakar-bashir/arab-leaders-worry-more-about-making-money-from-the-profits-they-get/) [Abu Bakar Bashir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abu-bakar-bashir/) > [The profits of oil, coal, and natural gas companies will have to yield to the imperative of sustaining life on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pollin/the-profits-of-oil-coal-and-natural-gas-companies-will-have-to-yield/) [Robert Pollin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-pollin/) > [Oil companies are radical because they're willing to alter the chemical composition of the atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/oil-companies-are-radical-because-they-re-willing-to-alter-the/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [You think OWS is radical? You think 350.org was radical for helping organize mass civil disobedience in D.C. in August against the Keystone Pipeline?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/you-think-ows-is-radical-you-think-350-org-was-radical-for-helping/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by ending the subsidies for oil companies, and doubling down on clean energy that generates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-need-to-reduce-our-dependence-on-foreign-oil-by-ending-the/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The oil companies regard nuclear power as their rival, who will reduce their profits, so they put out a lot of disinformation about nuclear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lovelock/the-oil-companies-regard-nuclear-power-as-their-rival-who-will-reduce/) [James Lovelock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lovelock/) > [There are growing concerns that oil companies are making too much in profits at the expense of consumers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-domenici/there-are-growing-concerns-that-oil-companies-are-making-too-much-in/) [Pete Domenici](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-domenici/) > [Some years ago one oil company bought a fertilizer company, and every other major oil company practically ran out and bought a fertilizer company.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/some-years-ago-one-oil-company-bought-a-fertilizer-company-and-every/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [the Republicans love to say that the Democratic Party is ruled by 'special interests.' But when pressed to name these 'special interests,' the usual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-ferraro/the-republicans-love-to-say-that-the-democratic-party-is-ruled-by/) [Geraldine Ferraro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-ferraro/) ## More by Bill McKibben > [I try not to be either optimistic or pessimistic. I try not to think about outcomes on that scale. My job, it seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-try-not-to-be-either-optimistic-or-pessimistic-i-try-not-to-think/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Oil companies are radical because they're willing to alter the chemical composition of the atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/oil-companies-are-radical-because-they-re-willing-to-alter-the/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Whenever anyone challenges anything, the powers that be try to paint them as extremists or radicals or whatever. And I think that's actually nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/whenever-anyone-challenges-anything-the-powers-that-be-try-to-paint/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [My guess is that liberating the fossil fuel industry to frack anywhere they want will drive down the rate at which we're converting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/my-guess-is-that-liberating-the-fossil-fuel-industry-to-frack/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [What makes us different? We're the creature that can decide not to do something that we are capable of doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/what-makes-us-different-we-re-the-creature-that-can-decide-not-to-do/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [“The snow was coming down so hard. It looked like the flakes were hurrying to get out of the sky so the next ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/the-snow-was-coming-down-so-hard-it-looked-like-the-flakes-were/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Most of the men and women who vote in Congress each year to continue subsidies have taken campaign donations from big energy companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/most-of-the-men-and-women-who-vote-in-congress-each-year-to-continue/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [“I’ve sat behind a microphone and listened for decades as Americans learned to stop talking with each other and start shouting instead. No discussions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-ve-sat-behind-a-microphone-and-listened-for-decades-as-americans/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [People in low-lying countries like Bangladesh with almost 140 million people who are managing to feed themselves, whose carbon emissions can't really be calculated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/people-in-low-lying-countries-like-bangladesh-with-almost-140-million/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We're putting more carbon into the atmosphere than the atmosphere can absorb. And everybody told us when we started, coz we knew nothing when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-re-putting-more-carbon-into-the-atmosphere-than-the-atmosphere-can/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Everything that the administration has done has been counterproductive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/everything-that-the-administration-has-done-has-been-counterproductive/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We use the web to help people organize in the flesh, and then we take the images of those events and put them back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-use-the-web-to-help-people-organize-in-the-flesh-and-then-we-take/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [everyone knows, at some level, that the sharp line between "good weather" and "bad weather" is a fiction, that we need rain as surely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/everyone-knows-at-some-level-that-the-sharp-line-between-good-weather/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [The thing about global warming is that you can address it on a great number of levels - in fact you have to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/the-thing-about-global-warming-is-that-you-can-address-it-on-a-great/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Where people aren't as deeply reliant on fossil fuel as in the United States, it's far easier for them to imagine change on this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/where-people-aren-t-as-deeply-reliant-on-fossil-fuel-as-in-the-united/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) [Explore all 299 Bill McKibben quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) ## More Climate quotes > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [Windmills and solar cells are carbon-free sources of electricity. But they are costly. If you've been investing in those, give it up. That game…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-fisher/windmills-and-solar-cells-are-carbon-free-sources-of-electricity-but/) [Kenneth Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-fisher/) > [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/) [Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/) > [There are many more traits that the climate deniers share with the creationists and Holocaust deniers and others who distort the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-r-prothero/there-are-many-more-traits-that-the-climate-deniers-share-with-the/) [Donald R. Prothero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-r-prothero/) > [Some would call me an environmentalist. I don't know why. I reuse the water that falls in my backyard in the winter. I reuse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-begley-jr/some-would-call-me-an-environmentalist-i-don-t-know-why-i-reuse-the/) [Ed Begley, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-begley-jr/) > [I talk to fashion designers and say I want some money to save the rainforest, and they say, 'Oh, I agree with you completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-westwood/i-talk-to-fashion-designers-and-say-i-want-some-money-to-save-the/) [Vivienne Westwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-westwood/) > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [Climate change poses clear, catastrophic threats. We may not agree on the extent, but we certainly can't afford the risk of inaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/climate-change-poses-clear-catastrophic-threats-we-may-not-agree-on/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [Fossil fuels, including oil, are running out and supplies are getting harder to find. If we do nothing, prices will continue to rise and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-powell/fossil-fuels-including-oil-are-running-out-and-supplies-are-getting/) [Lucy Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-powell/) > [Local and state governments have outrun the federal government. 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Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [We live in a state with a wonderful climate and plenty of natural beauty, from the shores of Cumberland Island to the Chattahoochee River…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-barnes/we-live-in-a-state-with-a-wonderful-climate-and-plenty-of-natural/) [Roy Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-barnes/) > [Right now, the government is spending billions of dollars supporting the problem-makers in the U.S. economy - the polluters, despoilers, incarcerators, and warmongers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/right-now-the-government-is-spending-billions-of-dollars-supporting/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) > [All of the barriers to innovation in the energy sector are arguments for a big commitment to public investment. Only the public sector can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nordhaus/all-of-the-barriers-to-innovation-in-the-energy-sector-are-arguments/) [Ted Nordhaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nordhaus/) [Browse all 8,549 Climate quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For those of us who worry more about working people than about windfall profits for oil companies, it may net out. A better question is: what does it do to our economy if we manage to overheat the earth? 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