Michael Hoexter: Naomi Klein's "Hard-Money" Ideas Undermine Her Laudable Climate Action Goals

From Yves Smith, there is a repost of Michael Hoexter: Naomi Klein’s “Hard-Money” Ideas Undermine Her Laudable Climate Action Goals which is a review of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate (TCE).

Hoexter derides Klein's attempt to use the profits from the Carbon-extraction industries (Coal, Oil, Gas, etc):

Of course, this is well-meaning economic freestyling on a number of different levels made to serve Klein’s, all-too-typical Left and liberal, preference to reduce economics to a simple morality play of victimizers and victims. For one, even within the terms of Klein’s stated policy preferences, Klein skims over that what she is proposing is akin to a complicated carbon tax, though Klein seems to think that this will be simply a matter of “taking” the fossil fuel industries’ ill-gotten gains as punishment. Klein seems to believe that fossil fuel companies will still continue to exist and function to a degree, generating profit and revenues, to in turn supply the money for climate action. In reality, not only would there be legal complexities in terms of corporate accounting and governance associated with such government actions but also the economic behavior of these companies and the fossil fuel sector overall after such fining or taxing is not explained in TCE.

Hoexter is correct in saying that a correct understanding of the role of money in the social-political system is essential for effective political action. This is why Marxist theory (which he also derides) is essential for the growing of the political consciousness of the working class.

This is not an issue to be left to our “betters”. We have to spend the time and effort really understand what Marx was writing about when he described the laws of motion for Capitalism.

My understanding of money is that it is a commodity just like any other. Its value derives from what be exchanged for it. This seems to be in contrast to the fiat currency view expressed by Hoexter.