If I ruled the world, the first thing I would do is tackle environmental issues. There is interest in exploring drilling opportunities in the Arctic which is, as far as I can see, completely unnecessary. An accident could ruin one of the last untouched areas in the world. I’m from Norway and so I feel very emotional about this. In fact, I would stop drilling for oil full stop. The whole idea of an oil-driven society is a bad one.
In addition, I would ban all cars and airplanes—there would be trains and bikes, and that’s it. Maybe some people would say we would be moving backwards, but that’s not necessarily the case: it would help us to stop climate change. When I’ve said things like this before, people have accused me of being reactionary—to which I say, “Yes, I am reactionary.” But my nostalgia doesn’t go back just to the 18th and 19th centuries; it goes back thousands of years. All these species are disappearing, the rainforest is being cut down, the human world is dominating even more, and I feel an instinctive sorrow about that.
Although I would do all this if I ruled the world, right now I take advantage of all the comforts of modernity. I really love driving my car. I drink milk, I buy cheap meat, travel all over the world. I do all those things even though I know that’s a problem. All we’re doing is making things more and more effortless, more and more painless. When I was a child we had to make the effort to read books. My children use computer screens to give them instant satisfaction. I’m not sure I can rule the world, when I can’t even rule my own family!