Prescient

The UN Climate Change Summit has been very busy over in Nairobi, in a panic over global warming. Very serious business, this, and hasn't Al Gore been telling us the end is near? For well over the past thirty years? Only this time he really means it?

There's a very, very, very large stumbling block, apparently. It's bad enough that so many of the signatories to the Kyoto Agreement have not met their goals of reducing greenhouse gases. Ireland is well over its mark, pumping out more gas than it was supposed to under the rules. The bigger problem is going to come later, in 2012, when the Kyoto Agreement expires. Rather than sign on again, to perhaps more stringent limits on emissions, many of the major countries are insisting that the developing countries, given a pass on the Kyoto go-round, must sign up as well.

Did they only just figure that one out? While they were criticizing the US of A for not signing the Kyoto Agreement, did they miss the part about the Americans refusing because developing countries could pollute to their heart's content? Not to say we told you so, but, there it is. Come 2012, if nations like China and India don't agree to cut greenhouse gas emissions, no else is going to do it either.

Dick Roche is due at the talks this week, when things really heat up. Someone has to put the pressure on Mexico and Brazil to stop polluting everyone's air. The whole global warming issue is very serious business to the entire planet, and every single country has to cooperate. Eamon Ryan of the Green Party is coming back from the talks, frustrated as can be. According to his observation, the lack of progress on coming to an agreement "is in direct contrast" with the urgency of cutting pollution.

Mr. Ryan also noticed that the United States was not very involved in this round of talks. Poor lad might not have a long enough memory to recall that the U.S. was pushing for equality for all way back, when the rest of the world gave a few big polluters a pass. Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt, Mr. Ryan. The U.S. delegation isn't going to repeat the same old tired speeches. Impatient lot of people, they are, and it doesn't matter if the Republicans lost the recent elections. The Americans said they wouldn't sign on at Kyoto unless everyone signed on. Now some of the other countries are figuring out that the U.S. was right, and they won't sign on again unless everyone does.

I should refer you to Georges Santayana, I guess. No, not the bit about those who cannot remember the past being condemned to repeat it. Instinct learning something from experience, etc. etc. This one is a bit of advice, to help move those talks along:

" The truth is cruel, but it can be loved, and it makes free those who have loved it."

And didn't the American delegation tell you so in the first place?

Technorati tag: Kyoto Agreement