We know what the problem is, we know how to fix it, and still the worlds leaders prevaricate and procrastinate. COP28 will be headed by the Head of the UAEs national oil company for fuck sake! Tony Blair preaches caution about the speed of change, whilst lunchinbg with Murdoch with Starmer. What is needed is for the UK to set a world example by explaining the need, bringing strict green planning, abolishing tax relief on aviation fuel, offering subsidies to firms growing food and making stuff in this country and Europe rather than in the Pacific Region. Radical change and a vision – tax pollution to subsidise environmentally friendly schemes.
BONKERS
Apparently 18 million Americans believe that violence is justified in returning Trump to the White House! Basically USA is a third world country with a veneer of respectability. A country with some of the most advanced technologies is also one which lacks the depth of democracy which runs thjrough most of Western Europe. I am aware of the growth of right wing parties in Germany, Netherlands, Italy and more, but they seem to adhere to democratic values at their core. Is religion at the base of this American lunacy? Total belief in the unproverable – it is clear that the belief, or not, in God is not open to scientific justification. This gives huge swathes of American society a justification in whatever fantasy they want to believe in. even when there is clear and incontraversal proof of something e.g. the geological time scale – millions of Americans totally belive that humans walked the earth with dinosaurs! A friend of mine refered to te USA as being like a huge experiment that had gone badly wrong.
Is it because the vast majority of Americans are descended from migrants (Ntive Americans excepted) who in the most part were fleeing from persecution or poverty (usually the result of persecution of the poor). Basically most were fleeing from, and had a total mistrust of authority. Power was for those who could grab it – hence the prevalensce of lynchings and gun law. The state is fundamentally distrusted by millions. The contradictions in their philosophy are unimportant as is their belief in god.
That they are trying to export this belief in the lunacy of the individual to the UK is of concern. The employment of grifters like JR-M, Wooton, Farage, Johnson, Dorries undermines our democracy
CALLOUS BASTARDS
Rhodes and Corfu continue to burn, USA and China have record temperatures, India has floods and high temperatures – and the right wing looneys supported by the RW trash press move to cut back on net zero. All because of ULEZ (which they introduced themselves into London) giving them a vague chance of retaining seats in the suburbs of London. ULEZ is about health rather than climate, although the two are inexcurably linked. We know the right wing extremists like JR-M & Co hate scientists and the facts – they prefer to believe the ones they conjure up themselves.
But FACT – global average temperature has been brokem this year.FACT – sea tea[peratures are te highest recorded, Heat waves in Europe are 2.5C hotter than normal, in USA 2C and China 1.5C hotter. These heatwaves will occir much more frequently as the temperature warms up.
The Greek navy has helped evacuate people from the beaches with 19000 displaced – where are the Brish Navy? Large numbers of British nationals are involved. The government has not even issued a don’t travel warning, leaving it to the travel companies and airlines who were flying people in last weekend despite the situation.
The arguments made by the loonies on the right are that a. Global warming is a natural phenomenon and we need to adapt to it (also the belief of the proponent if the GAIA philosophy); b. The climate crisis is a scam by governments and industries to rip people off (which they know ALL ABOUT!). c. Why should we act if China and the ISA do not? (a reasonably good point to a degree, but inaction makes us all complicit – we could become world leaders in the new technologies and then do a Tim Berniers-Smith and give it to the world for free?).
OK so I am an optimist and and naive and idealistic. Please Keir do not let me down!
CLUELESS
James Cleverly whom I believe is the Foreign Office Secretary, has done nothing to help those stuck in Greece, no surprise there. The EU is mobilising help – we should be part of that (helping our neighbours). I am sure that the Cabinet will congratulate itself on avoiding having to pay money to the Greeks to help compensate for the havoc caused by the fires, so much for good neighbours!
STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES!
So the government is to cut bck on green policies. Maximise profits before losing power? Create an even bigger problem for the next government. Maybe is should be ‘NASTY IS AS NASTY DOES’?
Why does the government not issue a travel warning for Rhodes and Corfu – Oh becausde that could hit the profits of the travel companies – no concern for holiday makers? Why has the government not chartered planes to get people out? Flood warnings acrosss the north of the UK. Sewage warnings across the south west. Of course people would rather nit have extra costs during this economic crisis – but properly explained they would understand the need, especially if subsidised by the government – and NO Starmer I do not buy the shortage of money aspect. The government found a 25% pay rise for the King (on top of the hundreds of millions he is making from offshore wind farms. Selling off Buckingham Palace could bring in a couple of billion!
NET ZERO
Even a cursory look around the media for world events will make it staggeringly obvious that the time for action on climate change is NOW! Cynical politicans seeking to get into or stay in power can state the cost of changing to a cleaner more healthy way of living, they can also claim that it is unfair for us to make the changes necessary when the big polluters are doing little i.e. China and USA.
Gove and Sleaze-Dogg are happy to talk up the costs, but fail to talk about the costs of inaction. We are already very dependant on gas imports so diversification into alterntive energies would be strategically beneficial and also mitigate against world surges in fossil fuel cost. Developing a work force to develop the necessary technologies would put us in an excellent position in this market which is already developing at a pace. The savings too the NHS woukd also nbe massive. If the cost is too high – then subsidise it with money saved from elsewhere and taxes on the polluting companies. Energy prices are unlikely to fall anytime soon.
So politicians are willing to sacrifice a cleaner, healthier more ethical life for their retention in the sordid cesspit of Westminster?
CLIMATE
Full article from Guardian here but the stats are astounding. Phoenix has 43.4C or more for 19th day running; Morocco anounces red temperature alert as temperatures exceed 44C; Spain hits 45.4C with fears fot the olive crop for second year running; Italy 47C; Greece wildfires; Canary Islands wildfires; China 52.2C; Gaza38C; India floods; South Korea floods; Japan 37.3C. Since the mid 1980’s the planet has warmed by another 0.5C, with present policies the world will warm by 2.7C. Avian flu has killed millions of not hundreds of millions of sea birds so far this year Whilst this mynot be related to climate change the warming temperatures will not have helped. And then we have sea temperatures at record levels and Antarctic ice at record low levels.
The responce of our Cabinet (according to the Mail) is to press Sunak to drop eco legislation and policies! Is this to incite “Just Stop Oil” into ever more outrgeous acts and then blame Labour for them? The summer heat killed over 60000 in Europe last summer.
BYE-ELECTION RESULTS
A shit noght for the Tories, despite holding onto Uxbridge with a tiny majority they were stuffed by Labour in Selby and the LibDems in Devon.
Labour and Khan need to consider the impact of the ULEZ. Whilst being implemented for the best of reasons, without a scrappage scheme, reasonably priced second hand electric cars and plentiful and reasonably priced charging points it is just another financial burden on the poorest in society at a time they can least afford it. Financial support is essential if it is to be implemented across the board – otherwise a phased introduction is necessary.
LibDems in Devon, the scale of their victory shows the great dissatisfaction with the tories in Southern England. Starmer cannot take too much succour from this result though as it would tend to point to. a potential coalition? The result in Selby was more stunning for the size of the swing from Tory to Labour. I think most thought this one would be closer than the humiliation it became. The drop in Tory votes of 26% in Selby and 30% in Somerton and Frome are an indictment of the governments performance over 13 years. Sunak is trying to put a spin on the ‘only 7% drop in Uxbridge but it is cler that without the ULEZ controversy (which Khan will surely now reconsider), Labour would have won easily. His government are without ideas, ficus or ambition.
He is likely to have a reshuffle of his cabinet, possibly as soon as today, but the paucity of ability, together with the continued prescence of the ERG means he has few options.
There was no evidence of support for the Rwanda Policy, or anything else!
JUST WORDS
A fall in the rate of inflation is nice, that’s all! The cost of things is still 7.9% more expensive than a year ago – how many peoples wages are that much higher? Food and drink inflation is 17.3%. Perhaps the word inflation needs replacing with “more than a year ago”. Food from the rest of the world is also klikely to be hit by the climate crisis, sugar is up 54% and olive oil up 44%. I think I am correct in saying that further Brexit restrictions for food and plants come in in January. The new Russian restriction on Ukranian products will also have an impact on bith supply and prices. Besides the Mediterranean, Southern USA and China are both experiencing extreme weather conditions which will affect their production and export of food stuffs.
CLIMATE CRISIS
Kerry needsd to tell the Chinese to act now to cut emissions. The arguement put forward by China about historic emmissions is just not valid in the present crisis. They are correct that the west gained an early advantage by burning coal, oil and gas, but the crisis is here, and now, and every country needs to face it.
Right wing politicians across Europe with nationalist agendas also need to look closely at their use of the climate crisis in culture wars and anti-woke measures. History will not be kind to them.