That’s the basis of the documentary Planet of the Humans, backed and promoted by filmmaker Michael Moore - a critic of capitalism and darling of the political left.
Moore at first favoured renewable energy - wind power, solar, biofuel and electric cars - but asked why things weren’t getting better on the climate change front.
His movie puts the boot into the whole ‘renewables’ industry - “the false promises of the environmental movement,” he scoffs.
“We all want to feel good about the electric car, but in the back of your head somewhere you’ve thought, ‘Yeah but where is the electricity coming from?’,” said Moore.
The take home message for NZ? Energy-dense fossil fuels from Taranaki will be needed for a while yet.