Carbon Democracy: Political Power in the Age of Oil

by Timothy Mitchell

Overview

How oil undermines democracy, and our ability to address the environmental crisis

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781804292495
Publisher:	Verso Books
Publication date:	10/03/2023
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.24(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Timothy Mitchell teaches at Columbia University. His books include Colonising Egypt, Rule of Experts, and Carbon Democracy.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgement ix

Introduction 1

1 Machines of Democracy 12

2 The Prize from Fairyland 43

3 Consent of the Governed 66

4 Mechanisms of Goodwill 86

5 Fuel Economy 109

6 Sabotage 144

7 The Crisis That Never Happened 173

8 McJihad 200

Conclusion: No More Counting On Oil 231

Afterword to the Paperback Edition 255

Bibliography 269

Index 285

Editorial Reviews

Timothy Mitchell’s Carbon Democracy examines the simultaneous rise of fossil-fueled capitalism and mass democracy and asks very intelligent questions about the fate of democracy when oil production declines.”
—Benjamin Kunkel, New Statesman

“Carbon Democracy is a sweeping overview of the relationship between fossil fuels and political institutions from the industrial revolution to the Arab Spring, which adds layers of depth and complexity to the accounts of how resource wealth and economic development are linked.”
—Financial Times

“A challenging, sophisticated, and important book.”
—Marc Lynch, Foreign Policy

“A brilliant, revisionist argument that places oil companies at the heart of 20th century history—and of the political and environmental crises we now face … If we’re ever to curb such behaviour, and to regain some comprehension of our planet’s preciousness, we need first to understand how it came about. Not a book for the season of indulgence, this one. But one that demands to be widely shared.”
—Susanna Rustin, Guardian

“This study of the basis of modern democracy over the past century connects oil-producing states of the Middle East with industrial democracies of the West. Mitchell argues that carbon democracy in the West has been based on the assumption that unlimited oil will produce endless economic growth, and he concludes that this model cannot survive the exhaustion of these fuels and associated climate change. Tim Mitchell has written a remarkable book that deserves a wide audience.”
—Mahmood Mamdani, author of Good Muslim, Bad Muslim

“It’s a book that tackles a really big subject, in a sweeping but readable fashion, and after reading it, it’s hard to imagine thinking about political power the same way again ... This book utterly blew me away.”
—Matt Stoller, Naked Capitalism

“A remarkable account of the politics of oil and nation building in the Middle East.”
—The Herald

From the Publisher

It’s a book that tackles a really big subject, in a sweeping but readable fashion, and after reading it, it’s hard to imagine thinking about political power the same way again ... This book utterly blew me away.

Matt Stoller - Naked Capitalism

A remarkable book that deserves a wide audience.

Mahmood Mamdani

A challenging, sophisticated, and important book.

Foreign Policy

Carbon Democracy is a sweeping overview of the relationship between fossil fuels and political institutions from the industrial revolution to the Arab Spring, which adds layers of depth and complexity to the accounts of how resource wealth and economic development are linked.

Financial Times

It’s a book that tackles a really big subject, in a sweeping but readable fashion, and after reading it, it’s hard to imagine thinking about political power the same way again ... This book utterly blew me away.

Naked Capitalism - Matt Stoller

It’s a book that tackles a really big subject, in a sweeping but readable fashion, and after reading it, it’s hard to imagine thinking about political power the same way again ... This book utterly blew me away.— Matt Stoller

Naked Capitalism