Well did you hear, there’s a natural order.
Those most deserving will end up with the most.
That the cream cannot help but always rise up to the top,
Well I say: Shit floats.
If you thought things had changed,
Friend you’d better think again,
Bluntly put in the fewest of words,
Cunts are still running the world,
Cunts are still running the world. From Cunts Are Still Running the World, by Jarvis Cocker
The coverage of climate negotiations in Copenhagen has varied from dismal to dismaying. In the weeks before 15 000 government reps and associated lobbyists hit the Danish capital, world media was already canvassing developing nations to measure their reaction to annual assistance of $US10B.
By and large, they were angered and offended, pointing to the trillions of dollars so readily thrown at banks and investment houses that caused the GFC, to the genuine need for several hundred billion if anything is to be done to even mitigate the impacts they face, to the 17-year-old commitment developed nations and particularly the US made at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 when the Framework Convention on Climate Change was initially created.
Namely, developed nations, especially America, have already committed to help developing nations prevent, manage, and adapt to climate change. They just haven’t done anything about it.
But all of this protest seemed to disappear under fanfare headlines celebrating the fantastic financial commitment and auto-erotic back-patting of developed nations… approaching $US30B over the next 3 years at last count. Put in perspective, that’s about 1 per cent of Australia’s GDP per annum.
Developing nations are asking for 1 per cent of the GDP of all developed economies – because at a minimum this is the amount they’ll need. And because whether they knew that carbon dioxide was going to destroy the planet, wealthy nations have become wealthy by pumping out atmospheric Thalidomide for the last 200 or so years. And “polluter pays” is a long-established principle of international law.
At least, it used to be.
Despite all the nice speeches, promises of future action, and declarations of benevolent urgency, it seems that genuine commitment, vision, and solidarity are almost totally absent from the leaders on the world stage. But at least it’s been a good chance to get informed as all cultures of the world try to work together. Right?
No.
On December 7, NewMatilda.com drew attention to an allegation made in The Guardian (UK). More than 50 newspapers worldwide, in 20 languages across 45 countries including France, China, Dubai, America, India, and Israel, had signed up to take “the unprecedented step of speaking with one voice through a common editorial. We do so because humanity faces a profound emergency.”
Indeed, the editorial was a deeply thought out call for unity in action, with the potential by its unique nature and massive global readership to have some impact on politicians in Copenhagen.
But Fairfax chose inaction. According to The Guardian,
Two Australian papers, the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald, pulled out at a late stage after the election of climate change sceptic Tony Abbott as leader of the opposition Liberal party recast the country’s debate on green issues.
Fairfax instead chose to run articles claiming that the Australian delegation was nearly 100-strong and would have a massive carbon footprint. By Fairfax’s new reality, this shouldn’t cause any anxiety because climate change is once again nothing but a left-wing conspiracy… or free market opportunism… but it certainly isn’t real.
The fact that the Australian delegation was actually 60-strong for the very good reason that 24-hour discussions over several weeks in different languages – including sleep deprived Legalese – needs an experienced and multiskilled support team didn’t seem worth a mention, let alone a retraction. Neither did the fact that Britain is already committed to emission reductions of at least 34 per cent by 2020; similarly, the EU, with its 27 member nations, to at least 30 per cent.
Heaven forbid we should ‘act’ first.
Heaven forbid we should act at all.
Heaven, home to God the Father of Tony Abbott and Barry O’Farrell.
God, who doesn’t need journalism to be objective and would surely not allow something as awful as manmade climate change loose in a world where we can safely rejoice in the wonders of nuclear power, war, cancer, deforestation, genocide, black Nazis, Tim Blair and NSW Labor.
Thanks Fairfax. What the Hell was I thinking?
