A critical, prevalent political discourse on climate change adaptation possibilities revolves around "techno-optimism," the notion that technological innovation can solve the climate conundrum without paying much attention to existing social relations/conditions (Dentzman, Gunderson, and Jussaume 2016). Such a perspective (which has had profound transnational implications) seems to be the outgrowth of the technocratic paradigm formalized by, among others, agents like Adam Weinberg and the more general Cold War technopolitical perspective, i.e., utilizing technology to achieve political goals (Johnston 2018; O'Neill 2020). While promoted with great confidence by industry officials, political candidates, and policymakers, technological fixes operate more like band-aids, smoothing over surface problems rather than attending to underlying political-economic issues (Harvey 2003; O'Neill and Boyer 2020). Perhaps there is no greater example of this than the recent surge of interest in wind energy. United States (U.S.) President Joe Biden, for instance, touted on September 14, 2021, that "investment and innovation" will propel America into an energy transition.

Similarly, in North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper has strongly supported new wind energy projects, framed wind development as a matter of urgency, and suggested that wind energy is an opportunity to create economic opportunities for "underserved communities" (Talton 2022). Although this may be a step in the right direction, many scholars and activists point to the importance of viewing such statements as falling within a larger socio-historical context. Despite the excitement around a "Green New Deal," we must recognize the many "business as usual" elements of these proposals (O'Neill and Schneider 2021a & 2021b).

Because wind energy has become a primary symbol in "branding" the Green New Deal, it deserves close analytical scrutiny. Writing specifically about the surge of interest in wind energy in the American Northeast, environmental sociologist Shaun A. Golding writes, "as symbols of environmentalism, wind turbines are part of the same green branding that many people associate with the mountains" – they have become "seductively conspicuous" (46, emphasis added). Indeed, it has become conspicuous in the U.S. and globally. Golding's Electric Mountains has contributed to the critical environmental and social science literature on this topic and should have implications for various scholars working across socio-environmental issues.

2022    O’Neill, Brian F. and Matthew Jerome Schneider. “Electric Mountains: Climate, Power, and Justice in an Energy Transition.” Sociation. Volume 21, Issue 2: online, open access. https://sociation.ncsociologyassoc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/bookreview_oneill_schneider_proof_2022.pdf