The West Mimics Mao, Takes a Green Leap Forward

The green movement’s rush to transform the energy economy while ignoring the laws of nature and economics is reminiscent of China’s ruinous Great Leap Forward. until 1957, Mao Zedong had grown impatient with the slow pace of industrial development in his country compared to the West. He sought to rapidly transform China from an agricultural society into an industrial powerhouse through forced industrialization and agricultural collectivization.

Steel production was a priority of the Great Leap Forward. Mao wanted China to surpass Britain in steel production within 15 years. Across the country, including in the village where my father lived, people tried to contribute to this goal by building small backyard stoves. Each village had a production target to meet, so everyone pitched in, including children and the elderly. Using whatever they could find to keep the stoves burning, the villagers melted down farm tools and cooking pots. These efforts yielded only pig iron, which had to be decarburized to produce steel. That was a process that a backyard oven could not handle. The effort and resources were wasted.