Slow Down: The Degrowth Manifesto

Two fascinating books smooshed together, neither what I was expecting, both earnest enough. First, a very readable light explanation that "green growth" and any ecological turn that leaves capitalism in place will be insufficient to avoid extractive exploitation beyond ecological limits we're facing. Second, a niche academic journey through Marx' years after Capital Vol 1 arguing from thin circumstance that he too realized some of the ecological necessities of degrowth rather than unerring progress. If that's what you needed to hear to slow down, well ok!

Good on assessing/criticizing 'green growth', left-accelerationism, SDGs, and the like. Also good on discussing Japanese thinkers and whether Japan's lost decade(s) count as degrowth. Gets a bit bogged down in analyzing whether Marx was leaning away from productivism in his later years, based on reading his unpublished notebooks. Sketches out a pretty plausible model for what degrowth communism could look like, but then gets a bit wrapped up in Chenoweth's 3.5% as all we need to achieve our ends :(