I believe that we should understand the UN secretary-general's comments to mean: Profits are great, work is great; but in practice, if that eventually leads to the end of life itself, is it really worth it? I feel that's why he was talking about madness and immorality.
You're talking about people who have jobs because of the fossil fuel industry. I'll give you that. However, these days, when it seems like fossil fuels are on the way out, you have to recognize that the companies in this industry are making huge profits. At Imperial Oil Limited, we're talking about a net profit of about $1 billion in the first quarter of the year, almost triple the profits reported in the same period last year and one of its highest quarterly profits figure in 30 years.
Again, how can we reconcile this race to rake in profits by the fossil fuel companies with what the UN secretary-general said in August, that this race to make record profits in the middle of an energy crisis is just plain immoral?