The key question, in relation to protsts like that at Stansted last week, is: which side are you on? Are you on the side of big corporations profiteering from completely unsustainable climate-destructive behaviour? Or are you on the side of people with no vested interests just making a non-violent stand, at considerable cost to their own time and money, for the sake of all our futures? It doesn't seem to me a hard judgement to make... Rupert Read Green Party Councillor, Norwich, and Lead Candidate for Eastern Region for the Greens in the 2009 Euro-elections. DID YOU KNOW: A vote of about 10% across Eastern Region on June 4 2009 would be enough to get me elected to the European Parliament... http://rupertsread.blogspot.com
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If you look at the detail of the article, it says Obama's target is a cut of "14-20% by 2020, compared with 2005 levels".
You must know these figures are completely inadequate. Caroline Lucas recently argued "To have even a 50/50 chance of keeping the global temperature rise below two degrees, the industrialised countries need to adopt binding targets to reduce emissions by at least 40% by 2020, based on 1990 levels" (see http://www.zmag.org/znet/viewArticle/23175)
Why don't you mention how poor Obama's offer really is rather than presenting them as wholly positive?
Ian
Please note that this was a very SHORT blogpost. Just a glorified 'tweet' really. It set out to make just one, optimistic/realistic , point.
You are of course absolutely correct in the point of criticism you are making here. I would add a number of others - most notably, the pessimistic/realistic point that last time around, with Kyoto, the then President (Clinton) tried a similar maneouvre - and the Senate later voted Kyoto down, 95 to 0. I see no reason for much hope that Obama will actually GET (m)any emissions reductions through
the Senate.
But: that doesn't take away from the fact (which was all that Iwas blogging about) that Obama's (inadequate) target, which would be better than nothing, may at least now energise and focus the minds somewhat, at Copenhagen.