Traffic and climate: dream dancers on the facts highway

Making the world how we like it only works to a limited extent. And it is certainly not one of the privileges of politicians.

With their revelations on Netflix, Harry and Meghan trigger strong sympathy with the author Photo: Peter Dejong/ap

Denial is enormously relieving. For yourself. For the rest of the world it’s often just annoying. But that doesn’t change the fact that we all deny our lives nicely and regularly. For example, I actually believe right now that I’ve never needed a lot of sleep and just sleep “efficiently.” Five hours of coma and I’ll be like new. Or that I will definitely travel the world again with my friends and write books once our children are a little older. What gets you through the day.

Good deniers like to go into politics. Saying what is (e.g.: we are at war with Russia, the climate catastrophe is inevitable if we don’t finally get our soft Western butts off) doesn’t go down that well. But if your own illusions are congruent enough with those of other dream dancers, you can even terrorize a government as a party that you thought was half dead just a few years ago.

Like this week: “The highway expansion has nothing to do with the climate goals.” So lied by the FDP parliamentary group Vice Lukas Köhler on Deutschlandfunk. A study by the Federal Environment Agency also showed this week that a speed limit produces two and a half times more CO₂ would save than expected. If a limit of 120 km/h were not only implemented on motorways, but also one of 80 km/h on country roads, a sixth of the necessary CO₂-Savings for the 1.5 degree limit can be achieved.

Well, you will think now, one could also drive more slowly on the newly developed motorways, provided the FDP allowed it. But for the idea that more roads are the right turn in the traffic turnaround, you need just as much goodwill. But hey, no offense FDP. My brain also downplays many facts in favor of my worldview and can only withstand a limited amount of contradictions. Like the fact that people who have my full solidarity don’t necessarily have to be particularly nice – so to speak, in return.

Of course, the whole thing works better the more people want to believe the nonsense. Yes, the greater the number of believers, the better. This was easy to observe – also this week – when remembering the liberation of Auschwitz 78 years ago. The prelude, so to speak, to one of the favorite illusions in this country, namely that soon afterwards we Germans were also freed from this tick of National Socialism by the Allies – as if it hadn’t had a very grateful host.

On the other hand, when it comes to private matters, denial is usually only semi-successful. With horror (because of my age, which was also successfully denied!) I also had to remember the Lewinsky affair this week. It’s been 25 years since Bill Clinton thought denial was a great idea. And yes: His is one of the very few political lies that I find sympathetic. Because: what do I and millions of other sex lives have to do with me – even if it’s the US President?

At the same time, of course, this lie was politically stupid – precisely because it wasn’t about any world view – no matter how crude – for which supporters could probably be found. It’s just about Clinton and his little private mishap. But that’s where the judgement’s most beautiful and sharpest. Did he cheat on his wife? bastard! That kid just eats cookies all day? From white flour? I’ll call the youth welfare office!

That’s the comical twist: people are always critical where they feel morally right. I as well. So this week I had strong feelings (for Meghan and Harry!) after I finally managed to finish watching the Netflix documentary. Late revenge for Diana and stuff. I was probably just a victim of skillful illusion, who knows. For the coming week I wish you and me more facts than fiction.