How about we try to force out states to go “cold turkey” and only purchase clean energy? Clean energy activists might try to put propositions on state ballots requiring the state to only purchase clean electricity, generated from renewable sources and without fossil fuels.
If Apple computers has the leverage to do this, then why not our state governments? Of course Apple suppliers can try to pass on the costs to Apple, and Apple can pass those costs to its consumers. So “cold turkey” initiatives would include some hardships today. It is worth asking:
How much hardship would be involved in refusing to purchase electricity that was generated from fossil fuels? Who has the leverage to make a difference?
A homeowner like me cannot easily eliminate fossil fuel use because I am “on the grid” with no control of where the electricity comes from. As a homeowner, I have little leverage. However, my state government does have leverage, and all those monopolies we consume from (Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook) have leverage. So there are ways consumers can prefer companies that are helping the environmental policy or avoid ones that are not.
We may already be in a slow-burn catastrophe; so taking on some of the costs and pains now rather than later would be a way to soften the overall catastrophe and spread the pain over multiple generations. Don't expect me to stop using electricity. But I would pay more for electricity if I had to. It’s something I could do for my grandchildren.