Saturday 14 May 2011

Defend the Planet Against Government Hypocrisy - before breakfast!


The Lib Dems look as if they are going to renege on yet another promise - is it double figures yet? Environmental organisations have called an emergency demonstration for Monday - a good one for the early risers amongst you:

EMERGENCY DEMONSTRATION

8.00 am at Lib Dem HQ, at 4 Cowley Street, Westminster Demand the Lib Dems stand up for their environmental principles!  Or are they just poodles to the Tory right? 
8.45 am  Move on to Downing StreetDemand that Cameron stick by all he argued for when he supported the Climate Act. Or was that all just green posturing? Is this the most green-backtracking government ever?

The Campaign Against Climate Change say:
This looks like crunch time for this government, and for the country on whether we will have any meaningful targets on emission cuts, or whether they will be watered down in the interests of the business lobby and short term economic interest every time…

The crucial decision will be taken at a meeting on Monday… hence the timing of this demo

Never mind that the targets - even before they are watered down - are not stringent enough in the light of the latest science, anyway. Never mind that the UK’s whole carbon-cutting strategy will rapidly unravel once regular budgets for cutting emissions like this are not maintained. Never mind that delaying emissions cuts risks putting a fatal amount of carbon in the atmosphere before we ever get to making those cuts anyway. Never mind that the fate of billions hangs on us actually getting to grips with the climate crisis and making it our number one priority. Never mind that we will never be able to influence other countries effectively if here at home we are seen to put our own economic welfare before the global environment  we share with the rest of the world….

…still it looks like short sighted, short term, economic considerations are threatening to take us down the path to misery and suffering on a colossal, unimaginable, scale…
See:
www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/may/09/climate-defining-green-moment-cameron
www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/may/09/friends-earth-ipcc-proposals-policywww.monbiot.com/2011/05/09/shaking-the-tree/
www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/may/09/vince-cable-chris-huhne-carbon-emissionswww.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-13343055

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