PRINCETON – Many people who advocate draconian measures to counteract climate change base their argument on the so-called “precautionary principle,” which holds that when a possible future disaster would be unacceptably severe, action to prevent it is imperative. Cost-benefit analysis – balancing the cost of remedial action against the benefit of avoiding disaster – is no longer permissible.
发自普林斯顿——许多鼓吹采取严厉措施抵御气候变化的人都将他们的观点建立在所谓“预防性原则”的基础上，即当未来可能发生无比严重的灾难时，采取行动阻止是首位的。而关于成本和收益的分析——如何平衡补救措施所耗费的成本同避免灾害所获得的收益——却变得无关紧要。必须采取措施来抵御灾难，不惜一切代价。