--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even leaving aside government policy…" description: "\"Even leaving aside government policy, whole industries are already making expensive changes around the perceived need to 'go green.' Al Gore and countl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/bradley-a-smith-29245_al_even-leaving-aside-government-policy-who_1328795.jpg" --- # Even leaving aside government policy, whole industries are… ![“Even leaving aside government policy, whole industries are already making expensive changes around the perceived need to 'go green.' Al Gore and countless other prophets of global catastrophe are making megamillions pushing these expensive solutions. Schoolchildren around the globe are being…” quote by Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/bradley-a-smith-29245_al_even-leaving-aside-government-policy-who_1328795.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/bradley-a-smith-29245_al_even-leaving-aside-government-policy-who_1328795.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/bradley-a-smith-29245_al_even-leaving-aside-government-policy-who_1328795.jpg) > “Even leaving aside government policy, whole industries are already making expensive changes around the perceived need to 'go green.' Al Gore and countless other prophets of global catastrophe are making megamillions pushing these expensive solutions. Schoolchildren around the globe are being frightened by tales of impending calamity.” [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author argues that market forces and profit motives drive costly “green” initiatives, suggesting that fear-driven narratives may be influencing policy and education. **In simple terms:** Green initiatives are costly and driven by profit and fear. Key Takeaway Question the motives behind expensive environmental solutions. Themes environment economics politics media influence Mood skeptical critical Type opinion analytical When to use this quote - policy debates - corporate sustainability - education curricula Key Concepts greenwashing profit motives public fear Questions to Reflect On - Are costly green solutions always profit‑driven? - How can we balance environmental urgency with economic reality? A Different Perspective Critics may claim the view downplays genuine climate risks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Al](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/al/) [Al gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/al-gore/) [Around](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/around/) [Aside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aside/) [Being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being/) [Calamity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calamity/) [Catastrophe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catastrophe/) [Catastrophe Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catastrophe-making-2432062/) [Changes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/changes/) [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Countless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/countless/) [Even](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/even/) [Expensive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expensive/) [Expensive Solutions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expensive-solutions-4451850/) [Frightened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frightened/) [Global](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global/) [Global Catastrophe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global-catastrophe-4451849/) [Globe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/globe/) [Go](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/go/) [Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gore/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/green/) [Industries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industries/) [Leaving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leaving/) [Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making/) [Making Expensive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-expensive-908647/) [Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need/) [Need Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need-green-3275213/) [Other](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/other/) [Perceived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perceived/) [Policy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/policy/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Prophets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prophets/) [Pushing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pushing/) [Solutions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solutions/) [Tales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tales/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) ## Related quotes > [Humanity is sitting on a time bomb. If the vast majority of the world's scientists are right, we have just ten years to avert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/humanity-is-sitting-on-a-time-bomb-if-the-vast-majority-of-the-world/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [You could argue that Barack Obama faced in '08 a situation as bad as any president since the Great Depression. What Obama inherited from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-kushner/you-could-argue-that-barack-obama-faced-in-08-a-situation-as-bad-as/) [Tony Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-kushner/) > [“We urgently need to do - and I mean actually do - something radical to avert a global catastrophe. But I don't think we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-emmott/we-urgently-need-to-do-and-i-mean-actually-do-something-radical-to/) [Stephen Emmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-emmott/) > [Our planetary system is affected by a magnitude of force as powerful as any naturally occurring global catastrophe, but one caused solely by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-burtynsky/our-planetary-system-is-affected-by-a-magnitude-of-force-as-powerful/) [Edward Burtynsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-burtynsky/) > [Unless we free ourselves from a dependence on these fossil fuels... we are condemning future generations to global catastrophe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/unless-we-free-ourselves-from-a-dependence-on-these-fossil-fuels-we/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I'm really tired of making these huge, over-$100 million movies where they literally mean life and death for a studio. It's really rough making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-zemeckis/i-m-really-tired-of-making-these-huge-over-100-million-movies-where/) [Robert Zemeckis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-zemeckis/) > [Film making is an expensive, as well as a serious business. We should be able to entertain our audiences, who are fully aware of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohit-shetty/film-making-is-an-expensive-as-well-as-a-serious-business-we-should/) [Rohit Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohit-shetty/) > [You don't make houses cheaper by making them more expensive to build.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-baillieu/you-don-t-make-houses-cheaper-by-making-them-more-expensive-to-build/) [Ted Baillieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-baillieu/) > [Most people who've had a big hit movie like 'Paranormal Activity,' the next thing they say is, 'I want to make a $100 million…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-blum/most-people-who-ve-had-a-big-hit-movie-like-paranormal-activity-the/) [Jason Blum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-blum/) > [They'd rather see me fail than succeed, That's why I'm alone on my own with no team. Don't need no green, though I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bishop-nehru/they-d-rather-see-me-fail-than-succeed-that-s-why-i-m-alone-on-my-own/) [Bishop Nehru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bishop-nehru/) > [“You never know when you're gonna need a green shirt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-wright/you-never-know-when-you-re-gonna-need-a-green-shirt/) [Dave Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-wright/) > [I just need green. I need to wake up and see grass and squirrels. I don't want to see skyscrapers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-leon-talley/i-just-need-green-i-need-to-wake-up-and-see-grass-and-squirrels-i-don/) [Andre Leon Talley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-leon-talley/) > [St. Louis and communities across the nation need the Green New Deal for Cities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cori-bush/st-louis-and-communities-across-the-nation-need-the-green-new-deal/) [Cori Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cori-bush/) > [We need a Green New Deal for Public Housing, as my colleague and friend Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez has proposed. We need a Green New Deal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaal-bowman/we-need-a-green-new-deal-for-public-housing-as-my-colleague-and/) [Jamaal Bowman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaal-bowman/) > [Whether we think of Disney's blonde beauty and her pumpkin carriage or Marissa Meyer's recent recasting of 'Cinderella' as a cyborg in the young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-rutkoski/whether-we-think-of-disney-s-blonde-beauty-and-her-pumpkin-carriage/) [Marie Rutkoski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-rutkoski/) ## More by Bradley A. Smith > [With super PACs, we've seen voter turnout go up; interest in elections rise; and the number of competitive races increase. The campaigns of 2010…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/with-super-pacs-we-ve-seen-voter-turnout-go-up-interest-in-elections/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [The next time you download a book on Kindle, buy a Michael Moore screed at Barnes & Noble, or order up a political movie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/the-next-time-you-download-a-book-on-kindle-buy-a-michael-moore/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Elections are a competition with only one winner. Giving more money to the opponent every time one speaks on behalf of a favored candidate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/elections-are-a-competition-with-only-one-winner-giving-more-money-to/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Few developments in campaigning have been as vilified and misunderstood as independent expenditure PACs, or, as they are colloquially known, super PACs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/few-developments-in-campaigning-have-been-as-vilified-and/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Tax rates should never be raised in some brackets without being raised in all brackets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/tax-rates-should-never-be-raised-in-some-brackets-without-being/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Americans may not always live up to the Bill of Rights, but Americans do not ban books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/americans-may-not-always-live-up-to-the-bill-of-rights-but-americans/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [By law, super PACs are required to disclose their donors. There are groups that have never had to disclose their donors, non-profits such as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/by-law-super-pacs-are-required-to-disclose-their-donors-there-are/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [The DISCLOSE Act is a testament to the wisdom of the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United. The First Amendment sought to place political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/the-disclose-act-is-a-testament-to-the-wisdom-of-the-supreme-court-s/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Unlike many in the conservative camp, I accept theories of global warming, and accept that man-made activity has played a part in global warming.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/unlike-many-in-the-conservative-camp-i-accept-theories-of-global/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Incumbents don't like it, but political competition is a good thing. Incumbents usually outspend challengers by better than 3 to 1. Super PACs, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/incumbents-don-t-like-it-but-political-competition-is-a-good-thing/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Ultimately, the court is heading to a doctrine of 'separation of campaign and state.' This doctrine, like separation of church and state or separation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/ultimately-the-court-is-heading-to-a-doctrine-of-separation-of/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [If candidates spend money on ads and other political speech and their opponents are rewarded with government handouts to attack them, that chills speech…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/if-candidates-spend-money-on-ads-and-other-political-speech-and-their/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [The reality is that asking the public to fund political campaigns accomplishes nothing. Candidates continue to seek interest-group support through other channels, both financial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/the-reality-is-that-asking-the-public-to-fund-political-campaigns/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [The usual test under the Federal Election Campaign Act for whether something counts as a campaign expenditure is whether the obligation would have existed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/the-usual-test-under-the-federal-election-campaign-act-for-whether/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [Every major federal campaign-finance-reform effort since 1943 has attempted to treat corporations and unions equally. If a limit applied to corporations, it applied to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/every-major-federal-campaign-finance-reform-effort-since-1943-has/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) [Explore all 18 Bradley A. Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) ## More Al quotes > [I like 'The Usual Suspects'. Great film. I also like 'Scarface', films like that. Lots of gangster films. I really like watching all kinds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barkhad-abdi/i-like-the-usual-suspects-great-film-i-also-like-scarface-films-like/) [Barkhad Abdi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barkhad-abdi/) > [Al Jazeera is a representation of, you know, diversity in the Arab world. In our newsroom, we have every single nationality, we have every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadah-khanfar/al-jazeera-is-a-representation-of-you-know-diversity-in-the-arab/) [Wadah Khanfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadah-khanfar/) > [If the practice is torture for the al Qaeda operative who masterminded the killing of three thousand Americans, why weren't there court-martials in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-a-rodriguez-jr/if-the-practice-is-torture-for-the-al-qaeda-operative-who/) [Jose A. Rodriguez, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-a-rodriguez-jr/) > [Searches of al Qaeda sites in Afghanistan, undertaken since American-backed forces took control there, are not known to have turned up a significant cache…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/searches-of-al-qaeda-sites-in-afghanistan-undertaken-since-american/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) > [Nobody had race savvy like Al Unser in his prime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/nobody-had-race-savvy-like-al-unser-in-his-prime/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [There are many causes of violent deaths in America - murders and traffic accidents - that we do not approach with the same 'no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-c-blair/there-are-many-causes-of-violent-deaths-in-america-murders-and/) [Dennis C. Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-c-blair/) > [If you want to join the Republican party, they have to let you in. There's nothing they can do about it. I mean, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/if-you-want-to-join-the-republican-party-they-have-to-let-you-in/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Brian came back in on the road and Al stayed, but Al's the original member of the group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-johnston/brian-came-back-in-on-the-road-and-al-stayed-but-al-s-the-original/) [Bruce Johnston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-johnston/) > [News is the backbone of our network; the main commodity and the main successes of Al Jazeera came out of our involvement in covering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadah-khanfar/news-is-the-backbone-of-our-network-the-main-commodity-and-the-main/) [Wadah Khanfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadah-khanfar/) > [And beyond that, the next issue is how do we guarantee one of these weapons, not necessarily this missile, but nuclear weapons ends up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-eagleburger/and-beyond-that-the-next-issue-is-how-do-we-guarantee-one-of-these/) [Lawrence Eagleburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-eagleburger/) > [I started, actually, as an analyst on African affairs, mainly on Al Jazeera. I remember the first few series were about Saudi students, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadah-khanfar/i-started-actually-as-an-analyst-on-african-affairs-mainly-on-al/) [Wadah Khanfar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadah-khanfar/) > [That is because the conflict with al Qaeda is not governed by the Geneva Conventions, which applies only to international conflicts between states that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/that-is-because-the-conflict-with-al-qaeda-is-not-governed-by-the/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [Bin Laden is dead, and most of his friends are dead. But did it need to cost a trillion dollars and two land wars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/bin-laden-is-dead-and-most-of-his-friends-are-dead-but-did-it-need-to/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [Mistreatment of al Qaeda members and their friends and hangers-on is something I number among my moral concerns. But it's number 1,000,000,001.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/mistreatment-of-al-qaeda-members-and-their-friends-and-hangers-on-is/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Success means eliminating Al Qaeda's ability to launch terrorist attacks against the United States and our allies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-greitens/success-means-eliminating-al-qaeda-s-ability-to-launch-terrorist/) [Eric Greitens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-greitens/) [Browse all 218 Al quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/al/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even leaving aside government policy, whole industries are already making expensive changes around the perceived need to 'go green.' Al Gore and countless other prophets of global catastrophe are making megamillions pushing these expensive solutions. 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