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Climate Apartheid
“You’ve been negotiating all my life,” Anjali Appadurai told the plenary session of the U.N.‘s 17th “Conference of Parties,” or COP 17, the official title of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Durban, South Africa. Appadurai, a student at the ecologically focused College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine, addressed the plenary as part of the youth delegation. She continued: “In that time, you’ve failed to meet pledges, you’ve missed targets, and you’ve broken promises. But you’ve heard this all before.”
After she finished her address, she moved to the side of the podium, off microphone, and in a manner familiar to anyone who has attended an Occupy protest, shouted into the vast hall of staid diplomats, “Mic check!” A crowd of young people stood up, and the call-and-response began:
Appadurai: “Equity now!”
Crowd: “Equity now!”
Appadurai: “You’ve run out of excuses!”
Crowd: “You’ve run out of excuses!”
Appadurai: “We’re running out of time!”
Crowd: “We’re running out of time!”
Appadurai: “Get it done!”
Crowd: “Get it done!”
That was Friday, at the official closing plenary session of COP 17. The negotiations were extended, virtually nonstop, through Sunday, in hopes of avoiding complete failure. At issue were arguments over words and phrases—for instance, the replacement of “legal agreement” with “an agreed outcome with legal force,” which is said to have won over India to the Durban Platform.
The countries in attendance agreed to a schedule that would lead to an agreement by 2015, which would commit all countries to reduce emissions starting no sooner than 2020, eight years into the future.
“Eight years from now is a death sentence on Africa,” Nigerian environmentalist Nnimmo Bassey, chairperson of Friends of the Earth International, told me. “For every one-degree Celsius change in temperature, Africa is impacted at a heightened level.” He lays out the extent of the immediate threats in his new book about Africa, “To Cook a Continent.”
Bassey is one among many concerned with the profound lack of ambition embodied in the Durban Platform, which delays actual, legally binding reductions in emissions until 2020 at the earliest, whereas scientists globally are in overwhelming agreement: The stated goal of limiting average global temperature rise to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) will soon be impossible to achieve. The International Energy Agency, in its annual World Energy Outlook released in November, predicted “cumulative CO2 [carbon dioxide] emissions over the next 25 years amount to three-quarters of the total from the past 110 years, leading to a long-term average temperature rise of 3.5 [degrees] C.”
Despite optimistic pronouncements to the contrary, many believe the Kyoto Protocol died in Durban. Pablo Solon, the former Bolivian ambassador to the United Nations and former chief climate negotiator for that poor country, now calls Kyoto a “zombie agreement,” staggering forward for another five or seven years, but without force or impact. On the day after the talks concluded, Canadian Environment Minister Peter Kent announced that Canada was formally withdrawing from the Kyoto Protocol. Expected to follow are Russia and Japan, the very nation where the 1997 meeting was held that gives the Kyoto Protocol its name.
The largest polluter in world history, the United States, never ratified the Kyoto Protocol and remains defiant. Both Bassey and Solon refer to the outcome of Durban as a form of “climate apartheid.”
Despite the pledges by President Barack Obama to restore the United States to a position of leadership on the issue of climate change, the trajectory from Copenhagen in 2009, to Cancun in 2010, and, now, to Durban reinforces the statement made by then-President George H.W. Bush prior to the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the forerunner to the Kyoto Protocol, when he said, “The American way of life is not up for negotiation.”
The “American way of life” can be measured in per capita emissions of carbon. In the U.S., on average, about 20 metric tons of CO2 is released into the atmosphere annually, one of the top 10 on the planet. Hence, a popular sticker in Durban read “Stop CO2lonialism.”
By comparison, China, the country that is the largest emitter currently, has per capita emissions closer to 5 metric tons, ranking it about 80th. India’s population emits a meager 1.5 tons per capita, a fraction of the U.S. level.
So it seems U.S. intransigence, its unwillingness to get off its fossil-fuel addiction, effectively killed Kyoto in Durban, a key city in South Africa’s fight against apartheid. That is why Anjali Appadurai’s closing words were imbued with a sense of hope brought by this new generation of climate activists:
“[Nelson] Mandela said, ‘It always seems impossible, until it’s done.’ So, distinguished delegates and governments around the world, governments of the developed world, deep cuts now. Get it done.”
Denis Moynihan contributed research to this column.
21 Comments so far
Show AllHardly worth an article Amy. Of course the US is going to kill off Kyoto. Given. Now it appears Canada, Japan and Russia are helping us do so.
To paraphrase Paddy Chayefsky, there is no US, there is no Russia, there is no Japan. There is only BP, Halliburton, Chase...
You said it Kyle.... and the thing is, it is all so obvious, their power plays and blatant disregard for any thing but power and money. It's really getting to me how so much is evident in their abuses of the democratic system, but yet, we are still not awake enough, I say this in regards to many issues, but mostly in regards to climate... the envrionment.... there are very few people, average people who even a real clue as to what kind of serious, immediate trouble we are in.... I know, I talk to some of them almost every day.
People who want to stop the killing of our planet have no political or economic leverage. The other side has it all: Control of mass media, control of finance, and a worldwide goon squad, not to mention a planet full-O-cattle ready to keep mooing.
Fighting it would require an underground movement that would have to monkeywrench it to death. Not sure that can happen at this point –at least enough to make a difference. Too many want to tweet and document every single thing they do.
Before you can stop climate change you've got to stop the ones causing it.
They probably aren't going to cooperate. :)
Oil profits and unyielding GREED equal inertia.
Well, the DIE is now cast.
The U.S. leads the world in the sale and development of weaponry. It is also the CHIEF promoter and exporter of war & violent conflict.
The U.S. banker-elites created the phony derivatives & swaps that have massacred the economies of much of Europe. Warren Buffet called these items "weapons of mass financial destruction."
And now, for the grand trifecta, the nation that acts as the #1 polluter and contributor to global warming backs out of its duties & obligations not only to its own citizens, but to those situated 'round the world, most notably in Africa.
From the perspective of Universal Law: that's 3 strikes to the old U.S.A!
I've related this before, but it's worth mentioning again. The U.S. is in line for an opposition from the planet Pluto. Its orbit is 248 years, so this cycle has been LONG in coming. No astrological factor is more directly related to ruin, to breakdown and eventual rebuilding; and frankly, it is also associated with death. In this case, I believe it's the symbolic death of the U.S. as central power (or empire), and the beginning dissolution of its ungodly power structures. The cycle is already building, with the peak taking place in late 2012-2014.
In addition, Uranus, the planet that upsets the applecart, challenges the status quo, and is linked both to rebellion and revolution, will square the U.S. sun in the next 2 years. (This takes place once every 42 years.)
Saturn will enter Scorpio in autumn 2012. Currently the Zodiac's key signature of the law of karma is passing through the sign of its greatest honor, Libra. It is here where the scales of justice are intended to balance. Instead, the U.S. leadership abrogates law at every turn, from Habeas Corpus to The Geneva Conventions, with the Bill of Rights and Constitution also tossed onto the proverbial junk heap!
When law is not upheld or respected, then the next phase on the evolutionary cosmic clock brings Saturn to Scorpio. Here it is that the sting of the scorpion is most felt in acts of retaliation. Saturn Scorpio will square the nation's Aquarian Moon meaning the people will act as they will feel bitterly betrayed. This is strong in 2013-2014.
In my view, the next 2-3 years will be some of the hardest this nation, and its people, have ever experienced. There were so many chances to turn the karma around, so many opportunities--like Haiti! to show generosity, to cease and desist from the ruthless, useless making of war. Genuine leadership would have instead invested in those technologies that would assist the population in adapting to climate change.
Instead, at EVERY juncture, the worst decisions were made.Some of these are ostensible Crimes Against Humanity! And while most of us on CD realize these policies were taken to favor the financial (and power hungry) interests of narrow elites, at what point does the realization that whatsoever is done to the natural world, is done unto all... set in?
Before a car crashes, there's a slight gap as it rushes towards the inevitability of where its momentum has taken it. WE, as a nation, are experiencing that gap now. I fully realize that MILLIONS are already suffering; but I also understand what the Astro-Logos indicates. Some in this forum do not want this information known, so they blemish my reputation. What astrology reveals has ALWAYS been incovenient for power elites... and the news sure ain't good for the promised land that ran amok.
Eventually, out of the ashes the Phoenix will rise... but it's so painful knowing that many of the now inevitable outcomes (karmic blowback) could have been avoided. The enormous pain cast unto others is coming home... no nation can live by the sword and avoid owning the karma.
Very nice post Ms Sioux Rose, especially the last line. "No nation can live by the sword and avoid owning the karma". Good luck with the cattle. And Alcyon you are right on about stopping or greatly reducing 'meat eating'.
Sioux Rose....I thank you for that, very eloquent description. I study astrology myself, and as you may remember, have been in discussion with you before, although not much. I have never really been able to get it together to make astrology my profession. I have studied since 1977. I had been determined to identify as an astrologer for the last few years, however. I love astrology's ability to assist human's to stand back and observe, but to also, describe the most inner and deep human processes. The study of mundane astrolgy has helped me to also understand that we are living, working, loving, creating, within a particular system, culture, environment. Yes, one does have to take some responsibility for his/her life situatio, but, there are also parameters to consider coming from the individuals outer circumstances - even with the wellknown phrase, of nuture vs. nature, most people, I think, have a very negative view of themselves, if they are not conforming and being successful with in their situation. I believe that with the current culture that we have developed over the last few decades, ( or even couple of hundread years if you look at historical trends)... the psychological toll has come to a head and now many people are awakening to how THAT culture has betrayed them...... we are awakening, although maybe late in the game.
>>Amy Goodman: "... the trajectory from Copenhagen in 2009, to Cancun in 2010, and, now, to Durban reinforces the statement made by then-President George H.W. Bush prior to the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the forerunner to the Kyoto Protocol, when he said, “The American way of life is not up for negotiation.”
The “American way of life” can be measured in per capita emissions of carbon. In the U.S., on average, about 20 metric tons of CO2 is released into the atmosphere annually, one of the top 10 on the planet. Hence, a popular sticker in Durban read “Stop CO2lonialism.”
By comparison, China, the country that is the largest emitter currently, has per capita emissions closer to 5 metric tons, ranking it about 80th. India’s population emits a meager 1.5 tons per capita, a fraction of the U.S. level."<<
***************************************************************
Only 5 comments so far, even though this "climate apartheid" is at the heart of the problem. Perhaps not so surprising that there are so few comments here, compared to that other story on Arctic methane. That one relates to "urgency", as in **MY** safety, whereas this note by Amy Goodman refers to "equity", as in, what happens to the poor losers elsewhere. And it's clear what the western countries, led by the EU, were stressing on at Durban: it was URGENCY. What escaped the notice of most people here was what the other developing countries were demanding: to balance urgency with EQUITY.
This same contrast has been seen before when people got all worked up over the risk of a nuclear disaster. Because that's MY as$ on the line! Whereas when it comes to shutting down the coal power plants, which are threatening the whole world, people might nod their heads, but I doubt they are prepared to live with the implications of losing 45% of USA's electricity generation capacity from coal. It is doable: just shut down ALL frivolous use of energy, as in, not essential for a healthy life, and use all remaining energy supply for a transition to an all-renewable system. But someone pointed out that if the government were to shutdown all the coal power plants (before setting up renewable energy systems), there would be rioting and the whole country would burn! Well, there you have it!
Despite the left pretensions of many people on this site, I am more and more convinced that many are just fake leftists and fake environmentalists. I mean, they are obviously smarter than the right-wing morons, smart enough to understand the danger of it all, but not honest enough to look at the per capita consumption levels in the USA, Canada, etc., and admit that it matters, and that it is at the heart of the crisis here. And not courageous enough to consider a serious reduction in their ecological and carbon footprints. Even when pointed out the effect of something so personal as a dietary choice. Yes, there is not 100% choice on this matter. But there is not zero choice either. And livestock raising, meat transportation, storage and consumption worldwide has been estimated to account for a full 51% of all greenhouse gas emissions. I used to cite a figure of 18% based on the UN FAO report "Livestock's Long Shadow." But a recent study by the Worldwatch Institute has found that the FAO report underestimates this component by a huge margin! PDF file of the report "Livestock and Climate Change" available online:
http://www.worldwatch.org/files/pdf/Livestock%20and%20Climate%20Change.pdf
Here is a serious area of action that is within the power of most people, even while they work towards changing the system. And this action is about the future of life on this planet. And it is not even counter to other actions that target the system either. And yet, I have to wonder, how many will treat this as a priority.
Everyone will point to "the system", the corporations and so on. That's so convenient. For those who might take the trouble of clicking a couple of links, I would like to refer them to a couple of my recent rants on this "urgency" vs. "equity" conundrum, closet patriots and a challenge "What have YOU done?":
Canada First Nation to Pull Out of Kyoto Protocol
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/12/13
Alcyon - Dec 13 2011 - 10:54pm
Durban Climate Deal Struck after Tense All-Night Session
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/12/11-0
Alcyon - Dec 11 2011 - 3:45pm
I have NO DOUBT in my mind that "urgency" of action and "equity" in action are related so damn closely, and I have NO DOUBT that the solution to this crisis lies in recognizing this link. The solution lies in reducing everyone's ecological and carbon footprints drastically. Many people may not even have much clue as to what "drastically" means. Those who may have an idea may not agree for such drastic cuts in consumption. And yet, they would like to be considered as part of the "left" and as environmentally concerned and all that. It is important to have an idea of our own ecological footprint and see how it compares with the rest of the world. And that should raise some serious, serious questions in the minds of those who are honest with themselves.
ALCYON: There's definitely a preference on this site for personalities and the political horse races that pass for elections. Some might say that facing the reality of climate change is too tough for most to bear. Most of us learn to pretend... pretend that everything is okay or will be okay. It's a coping device not unlike pretending we will never die...
I chose to live close to Florida's natural springs because I honor Mother Nature, and also because in coming times of crisis, I felt that having access to decent water would be a real plus. Turns out not one mile from one of Florida's most pristine springs, a giant cattle operation just began. I saw them putting up expensive fences and wondered if this was going to be the net effect; but when I mentioned my fears to my boyfriend's father (he's well-connected around here), he told me that 20 years ago the cattle had been moved in, and were soon forced out.
Then, just tonight, when I went biking, there it was... I could see at least 800 cattle, and I am VERY upset. I went over to the entrance to the state park to ask if they knew that the cattle had arrived, and I inquired if there was an interest on the part of the EPA (even though it's been so painfully gutted under both recent Democrat & Republican administrations) to try to fight this. I did get a phone number in Tallahassee and I will certainly call.
It doesn't take long for all the excrement & urine from these huge numbers of cattle to enter the underground labyrinths and thus the springs. I heard some idiot say "it won't hurt the springs for a long time... like 10 or 15 years." These imbeciles would be prepared to trade cheeseburgers in not-exactly paradise for a decimation of the last of the pure waters?
I remember when Oprah Winfrey went up against the beef industry in Texas, and I don't know if I could muster interest among my mostly Bible belt, retired neighbors in something in the way of a class action lawsuit. Then I think about the rising methane levels, the invisible radiation streaming over from Fukushima, the long-term impacts of all that oil & Cor-exit in the Gulf of Mexico. Add all this to the horrifying truth that Obama, the presidential prostitute to any and every big business interest, just gave BP another go ahead... and it makes the cattle shit issue seem less a tragedy. When so much is tragic, it's hard to focus on any one factor. This culture of death, destruction, and despair is too much with us. It is beyond sickening...
Siouxrose, I mentioned livestock because here is ONE area of action that is within the power of the individuals and families, and that is to stop, or greatly cut back on, meat eating. When I found out about the report and the figure of 51% of GHG emissions related to meat and dairy production, I thought, wow, what are all these countries fighting over at Kyoto, Copenhagen and Durban? All it would take is to educate and encourage all the people the world over to give up or drastically reduce their meat and dairy consumption, then close down frivolous energy use such as for amusement parks, ice rinks where the ambient temperature is so damn hot, a ski resort in Dubai, open freezers in the supermarkets, overcooling and overheating in buildings, and so on. Shutting down all the coal power plants should be possible when much of the non-essential use of energy is eliminated.
People don't want to hear simple solutions. And people don't want to hear simple truths: that it is NOT JUST "the system" and the corporations. It is PEOPLE who don't want to change their ways of error even when the consequences are pointed out. I am all for changing the system. But if we cannot even talk to our neighbors and people we come across, how are we going to take on the system?
The Arctic methane release should be a wakeup call. The reason I mention equity is that there is a huge difference in the carbon footprints of the rich nations compared with developing countries. And the historical, cumulative share of the rich nations in the CO2 that is already in the air and the oceans is so much more than that of other nations. And what we see today is the effect of this cumulative emissions over decades and going back a couple of centuries, and NOT just that of the last few years. And reducing the emissions in the rich countries is much easier, given the amount of waste and extravagant consumption there. What this means is that the rich countries have used up nature's "spare capacity" to regulate such imbalances as a net addition of carbon emissions much more than other countries. So they should take the first step of "freeing up" this capacity by cutting back on their own emissions first. All countries should act, no doubt. But who should cut more is a debate only for those who don't see or who don't care.
People understand inequality when it hits them, when it is within their own countries. What about this inequality on a global basis?
You have been writing about the violent nature of society. I think the violence lurks just beneath the "civilized" demeanor of even ordinary people. All it would take to bring it out is to tell them that their way of life is threatening the world. I mean they may not become violent enough to hit you, but they will get provoked, and their sense of entitlement will take over. I see this in a different, much more subtler form in this forum too.
There is little interest to look closer to home. There is little interest in simpler solutions. IMO, the simplest and the fastest approach is to start from the basics, to decide intelligently as to what it is that we truly need. When we have figured it out for ourselves, it will be easier to talk to others and take on the system or whatever it is we have to do, in order to try and avert this looming danger. It is much simpler to simply close down activities that are dangerous, even while working on alternatives. This may mean a period of drastically reduced consumption for everyone. Yes, there is the capitalist system. But my question is, are the people who want to change it truly prepared to live a basic, frugal life? If they are, they would only become stronger and more effective in their effort.
If I were the "leader of the free world," here's what I'd do:
1. Make car pooling mandatory OR allow people to drive 3 X a week. In other words ration gasoline.
2. Enforce an 80% harm tax on all profits made from derivatives and similar scams, and apply that money to immediate GREEN technology development.
3. Teach conservation in schools so that teenagers don't spend 15 minutes in a shower wasting water.
4. Teach that eating meat increases the risks of heart disease, etc. and start a program that shows children the relationship between french fries, soda, and fast food "meat" with what these items do to their bodies. (Eric Schlosser's "Fast Food Nation" is a good place to start).
5. End war and use the MIC manpower to Green the nation's infrastructure
This is just a beginning list...
I don't eat meat, by the way. I wrote a film script entitled, "Fat Chance," when I moved to this area 5 years ago. What "inspired" that subject was seeing many people fatter and wider than the average steer shopping at Wallmart. (I buy pet food there.) I once had a local couple help me move furniture and besides paying them, I invited them out for breakfast. At the time, there was this great cafe in High Springs and they had the BEST organic blueberry pancakes. I ordered that for my friend's husband and he just couldn't eat them. He was so used to some pre-packaged Aunt Jemima style mix, that HEALTHY food was alien to him.
People in Amerika have been taught that they have the RIGHT to do anything and everything, so long as they "pay" for it. So through the artificial device of transfers of paper money, a totally manmade item and construct, they distance themselves from the TRUE costs to nature and the surrounding world. To re-educate a lot of these people is a task beyond what Hercules could accomplish. I don't want them to turn their wrath my way as most are well-armed. They don't want some uppity liberal from New York to tell them what's thus and so. I've related this in many posts, what's needed after years of TV programming are genuine de-programming campaigns. And is there time... as the methane pops???
Siouxrose, your last paragraph above just about describes the reality on this matter. You are also right about earning the wrath of some people who may not like to hear about conservation and that there is room in their lives to reduce consumption while actually improving the quality of their lives. I sometimes think it may be easier to talk to young people, though not all of them will take the message to heart. But we have to keep trying.
You are probably right about the "coping device" in a previous post above. Sometimes all this is too much even for me, that I feel the need to just tune out. But then it is nature that makes life want to continue. To be knowingly on a suicidal path is completely against nature. So hopefully the same nature will find a way to work through our hearts to avert disaster, and come out wiser and more humble at the end.
re: Anjali Appadurai - when I want some 17 year old kid from India's opinion, I'll ask her for it. In the meantime, I'd really prefer that she not be in charge of my country or my world.
As to the rest of you - comparing us to India and China - do you not realize that, combined, they have more people living in the most abject poverty beyond your feeble imaginations ( try 'less than $ 1 / day income ) than we have total people in the USA ?
You're damn skippy, 'the American way of life is not up for negotiation' ! No, we are not going to go live 12 people to a mud hut with electricity for an hour once a week like they do, nor are we going to buy them the kind of lifestyle we live here in the US !
We already sent all our programming job, tech phone support, even 'order taking at McDonald's' jobs to India, we sent all our manufacturing jobs to China, what more would you like ? Perhaps our housepets ? WIll the Indians and Chinese supply their own sweet and sour sauce, or must we provide that also ?
Rush! Could you make that slurping sound? That one just cracks me up. You know, Bialek, pronounced Buy-A-Lick, slurp, slurp, get it? That one just kills me. Could you do that again, sometime?
If you want to check out his earlier comments while you wait for him to do that again, here are some: :)
http://www.commondreams.org/video/2011/12/09-0
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/09/02-5
Anyway, Anjali Appadurai's parents may be from India, but she is most likely a Canadian, studying in the US.
I think this poster does not trust young people enough to let them take a leading role in cleaning up the mess created by those who came before. But it's good to have this kind of comments here so people can have a reminder as to the reality out there. It also supports my contention that the problem is NOT JUST with "the system" and the corporations.
Alcyon - nice to know you're keeping track of me :-)
You're right - I don't think 17 year old kids are qualified in any way, shape, or form to run the world.
If you have some years beyond 17 behind you, let me ask you this - do you still understand as you did then ? Think as you did then ?
When you were 17, did you think you would ever be different, think differently, hold different opinions, at 27 ? 37 ? 57 ?
Did you even conceive of living to the age of 40 ? 50 ? Or was that 'My Dad's generation, WTF do they know anyway ?'
I can tell you I was a long-haired hippy freak of the 60's / 70's, 'to the max'. Hair to my waist, cute girlfriend that 'embroider-ried on my jeans', all of that. I was just a couple of years too young to have the balls to go to Woodstock, otherwise I would surely have been there ( and staying away from the brown acid, man, it's like a bummer, you know ? ). I still love those albums, and vids. I saw many of the acts 'live' in later years ( Jefferson Airplane - the original with Grace Slick etc, Richie Havens, Joe Cocker, etc,etc ). I listen to that music to this day, among many many others that I never would have allowed into my thoughts 'back then'.
Then again, in my life I've seen / shaken hands with Leonard Bernstein, Joe Zawinal, Oscar Peterson, and perhaps some others also beyond the ken of Woodstock. Has life not yet offered you the same diversity ?
And I thought I knew everything. I thought it would never end. Did you, at 17 ? Yeh. I know. Judy in the skies ......
If you have years on you beyond that, 10 or 20 years, has life taught you anything that you didn't know at 17 ? ( hint - if not, then I need to ask you 'When did you decide to stop learning ?' ).
I no more trust today's 17 year olds to 'run the world', 'guide our future ', than, with the richness of hindsight, the wisdom ( I do not claim to be wise, only 'not as stupid as I used to be' ) of years, I would trust my prior 17 year old self to do it.
Yes, I still hold SOME of the opinions today that I held then. And some that I did not.
And I no longer believe that I can live life out of my much-treasured full-frame backpack ( full camping version ), setting up my tent and sleeping bag on the side of the interstate in a gully in the snow ( safe from state po-po patrols ) when it got too late to get a hitch to the next state. Yeh, I've been there, got that T-shirt. It hangs in my closet, don't seem to fit no more. In more ways than one.
If you have had the time to learn like that - has it taught you anything ? Or nothing ?
Best wishes to you in your journey, wherever it may lead.
"If you have years on you beyond that, 10 or 20 years, has life taught you anything that you didn't know at 17 ? ( hint - if not, then I need to ask you 'When did you decide to stop learning ?' )." It taught me age alone does not determine whether or not they have something worth saying. This young woman Anlali sounds to me like she has learned more at 17 than a whole lot of people of my age who can't face the enormity of the climate crisis now at hand. And I agree with her, "Get it done!"
On the subject of the wisdom of youth, I always loved what Tom Lehrer had to say: "It is sobering to consider that when Mozart was my age he had already been dead for a year."
No, PJM, I'm not "keeping track of" you. It was only recently that I had replied to one of your posts on the SAME topic. Therein, I had specifically referred to this young woman, Anjali as a "21-year old", based on a YouTube video note. Ever tried calling a second grader as a "kindergartener"? They don't like that.
And here you are, insisting on calling an articulate, knowledgeable (my impression, based on that second video I referenced, and based on the group she belongs to - "Earth in Brackets") 21-year old young woman as a "17-year old kid from India", even though she's most likely Canadian. Or doesn't it matter to you, because of her ethnicity? And that she had made the choice of traveling to this climate conference when she could have been doing any number of other things at her age? Does that matter, or not?
Those who came before her have so jeopardized the future for all, that she and her generation may not even know IF they can wait around to gather life experience. The situation is that bad.
I cited that other link where you had said something critical of young people protesting the Keystone pipeline, because I remember being surprised by your previous comment on this matter (where I had replied) and out of curiosity, searched for your views. I remember writing a longer post, but then deleted it last time, as I thought, "what's the point?". I remember you didn't think much of Germany's energy policies either. So, what exactly has life taught you that would make the future safer for all?
Anyway, the USA has sent people younger than Anjali Appadurai into the battlefield, to kill or die, while actually making it illegal back home to go and buy booze at that age. I get it. You just don't want them "to run the world".
Alcyon -
"Therein, I had specifically referred to this young woman, Anjali as a "21-year old", based on a YouTube video note. Ever tried calling a second grader as a "kindergartener"? They don't like that."
Thank you for proving my point for me. I neither want second graders, nor those who think and act like them, running the country, the world, or anything else. Anyone who is upset because some stranger may have gotten their age wrong by a few years lacks the maturity to run anything.
"Anyway, the USA has sent people younger than Anjali Appadurai into the battlefield, to kill or die, while actually making it illegal back home to go and buy booze at that age. I get it. You just don't want them "to run the world".
Correct. Being old enough to hold a gun, or be a soldier ( perhaps 12 for the former ? - 17 for the latter, if I recall - perhaps 18 ) is not a qualification to run ANYTHING, let alone spend billions of dollars, hundreds of billions, of other people's money. Nor is being old enough to take a legal drink.