In A Ruthless World of Raw Power, 'Net Zero' Is A Luxury Canada Cannot Afford

By Spencer Fernando, Exclusive to the National Citizens Coalition

It would be nice if we lived in a time like the late 1990s, a time when history seemed to have ended, a time when a powerful military was seen as unnecessary, a time when we could depend on our allies, and a time when a glide path to prosperity seemed inevitable.

But we don’t live in a time like that.

Instead, we live in a time where unfettered raw power is increasingly what will decide which nations thrive, and which nations suffer; which nations survive at all, and which are subsumed by more powerful entities.

No matter how much we may wish this isn’t the case, no amount of wishing will change the harsh reality we find ourselves confronting.

And so, we must adapt, and we must adapt NOW.

A key part of that adaptation must include recognizing which of our beliefs and goals are an unaffordable luxury, a relic of a time when unseriousness was merely frowned upon rather than representing the cultivation of potentially nation-ending vulnerability.

And chief among those unaffordable luxury beliefs is ‘Net Zero’.

In theory, the idea behind ‘net zero’ - that humanity would one day reach the point in which technological advancement makes it possible to achieve abundance without any net increase in greenhouse gas emissions – is understandable.

It may one day be possible, and there’s nothing wrong with having a bright vision for the future.

However, the problem is when bright visions are prioritized over reality.

Attempting to force ‘net zero’ into existence long before it’s practical has been disastrous.

And it’s been disastrous because it runs up against a fundamental truth:

Affordable energy is the foundation of civilization, and it is impossible to build prosperity without it.

Thus, any policy that makes energy more expensive will have a negative impact on our standard of living.

And that’s not all.

In a world where countries must compete in the energy market, countries that fail to develop their own resources – or fail to build the infrastructure to get those resources to those who want to buy them – will simply lose out financially, while global energy consumption will remain largely unchanged.

This is what has happened to Canada over the past decade.

Our standard of living has been declining for years, and we have deprived ourselves of hundreds of billions of dollars in energy sector investment. We have also left ourselves almost wholly reliant upon the United States, a reliance that is now proving itself to be a liability.

The prioritization of net zero has left Canada dangerously vulnerable.

This is a world of raw power now. While soft power still matters, and while the pendulum will inevitably swing somewhat back towards the importance of soft power at some point, the world is going through an era of ruthlessness.

Thus, raw wealth and raw military strength are what matter most.

Can you put advanced weapons in the hands of your troops?

Can you produce guns, artillery shells, drones, tanks – and do so domestically?

Can you extract and refine your resources?

Can you put boots on the ground in large numbers to defend your territory and defend your resources?

If a country can’t answer yes to all of those questions, their future could very well be at risk.

Canada has neglected raw power for years.

We bet that trade deals, treaties, rhetoric, and pieces of paper would protect us.

And while it would have been nice if that bet paid off, that doesn’t appear to be the case.

This means Canada finds itself needing to catch up and rapidly develop raw power.

We face competition on all fronts.

We face a competition for our resources.

We face a competition for our territory.

We face a competition for our people.

If we want to win those competitions, we need to use our resources to generate wealth, and we need to use that to build up our national power.

And that means there is no room for any ‘net zero’ schemes. 

At this point, ‘net zero’ would mean zero Canada.

Continuing to pursue ‘net zero’ at a time like this would be like walking into the boxing ring with both arms tied behind your back. Not only would you have no chance of winning the fight, but you would also be guaranteed to lose.

We must understand that we are in a fight.

Potentially, a fight for our ongoing existence as a free and independent nation.

To win that fight we must make the most of our natural resources.

Not years from now.

But now.

Immediately.

And this cannot just be a short-term response to a crisis.

It must be a real change in how this country views our energy reserves. Utilizing our energy, and seeing it as a blessing rather than a burden, is essential to our survival.

That’s why politicians who have embraced ‘net zero’ need to publicly acknowledge their error and commit to building up our energy sector rather than tearing it down.

We cannot repeat the mistakes of the past.

We have a chance – perhaps our last chance – to make full use of the incredible blessings of our beautiful nation.

Let’s make the most of it. Let’s ensure future generations look back at us as the people who made our country stronger and more powerful than ever before, rather than as the people who lost Canada.

Spencer Fernando is one of the most popular and prolific political voices in Canada. He is a writer and campaign fellow for the National Citizens Coalition. Join the mailing list to receive his exclusive weekly columns in your inbox.

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