> They're worthless if the rest of the world is not on board with you.

Not really. The EU is one of the biggest contributors to climate change. Our change will help. And the rest will have to follow eventually because they are also affected. And they will be in a bigger hurry and it will cost more.

> If you're the only one on board, all you're doing is making your domestic industry uncompetitive and your working class citizens poorer via high energy prices, while the largest polluting nations are destroying the planet further while also getting richer thanks to not giving a crap about the environment and eating away your share of world GDP.

Also, it's not a race we have to win. Life is not about becoming the richest.

>Also, it's not a race we have to win. Life is not about becoming the richest.

It is, if you want to maintain the generous welfare and high standard of living the EU is used to. Where do you think that money comes from, the sky? It comes from having a world dominant economy. Without that, there's no more money for good wages, pensions and welfare and the people won't be happy with that.

Otherwise, the EU citizens will either have to be contempt to being poorer, OR, more likely, they'll vote another Austrian painter to power to upset the apple cart.