Podcast – Cory Doctorow's craphound.com Comrade Trump
29 snips
May 3, 2026 A contrarian take on how Trump-era policies unexpectedly accelerated global solar and clean-tech adoption. Tales of tariffs redirecting Chinese panels to Pakistan and Australia’s solar glut. Energy shortages and geopolitics pushing rapid shifts to EVs, induction cooking, and new battery chemistries. A look at how tech decoupling and political realignments are reshaping power and policy.
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Tariffs Sent Cheap Solar To Pakistan First
- Trump inadvertently accelerated clean energy adoption by shutting Chinese solar out of the US market.
- Cheap panels flooded Pakistan, letting households adopt solar en masse so grid demand collapsed and bridal dowries include panels, inverting the usual rich-to-poor tech flow.
Rationing Forces Permanent Energy Behavior Change
- Prolonged energy shortages create permanent demand shifts because rationing forces large, visible investments.
- Examples: Indian restaurateurs switching to induction and widespread EV and charger purchases after sustained scarcity change habits permanently.
Ukraine War Pushed UK Balcony Solar Approval
- Europe and the UK shifted policy after Russia's 2022 Ukraine invasion accelerated clean-tech moves and approvals.
- Even the UK began greenlighting balcony solar, despite long-standing planning and aesthetic objections in British politics.
