The American left has a new goal: degrowth!

We should “buy less stuff,” forgive debts, grow our own food, etc.

They say this will “build a more just and sustainable society” and “save the planet” from “climate chaos.”

This idea is popular with capitalism-haters.

One at a ChangeNow “eco conference” says, “A smaller, slower economy could also be a sweeter economy.”

A sweeter economy? What nonsense.

We already unintentionally experimented with “degrowth.”

During the pandemic, frightened politicians closed businesses and ordered people to stay home.

Growth stopped.

“Did that save us?” asks Swedish author Johan Norberg in my new video at JohnStossel.com. “No. It was a terrible tragedy. Sixty million people were thrown into extreme poverty.”

Yet some “degrowth” activists call the pandemic a good thing. “Did a lot of environmental good,” says one on Al Jazeera. “Pollution has been radically cut, emissions have plummeted,” says another.

It’s true. The........

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