The Fate Of A Country…The Fate Of Our World, Rests In ‘Our’ Hands
Posted by Michelle Moquin on December 14th, 2009
The talks in Copenhagen continue on this week, and throughout the talks the country of Tuvalu, a small island and the poster child for many other developing countries, has been the hot topic.
Ian Fry, the lead negotiator for the small island nation of Tuvalu — one of a handful of countries severely threatened by climate change — called for the strongest of possible agreements: a legally-binding treaty that would demand developed countries help bring atmospheric CO2 down to 350 ppm. It’s a bold demand that the US and other developed countries will not accept, and which developing countries, bent on a renewal of Kyoto, also reject. Today he delivered a speech that, according to Jamie at 350.org, “had delegates from around the world in tears.”
Though the EU just announced it would pledge $3.6 billion a year until 2012 to a short-term fund for poor countries, a draft agreement sent around Friday to the 192-nation conference set no firm figures on financing or on cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
The provisional text calls for emissions reductions by a wide range — 50 percent to 95 percent by 2050 — and asks rich countries to cut emissions by 25 to 40 percent by 2020, both against 1990 levels.
Todd Stern, the special U.S. climate envoy who earlier this week balked at developing countries’ demands for what he referred to as “reparations,” called the text “constructive” but said the section on helping developing nations lower their growth of CO2 was “unbalanced.” Because the requirements on industrial countries were tougher than on developing nations, he said the section was not “a basis for negotiation.”
The next few days will tell whether negotiations can yield something more than tears and tough talk.
Readers: I blogged about the importance of our CO2 emissions dropping down to 350 ppm awhile ago.
“Climate change is not a crisis of developing countries’ making, yet the impacts of global warming will disproportionately hit the world’s poorest people.”
The question is, will we as a country, will we as one world, do our part to save all world citizens? The planet will survive, no doubt, but will we? Blog me your thoughts.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: Your Bad Ass Bitch Editor
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December 14th, 2009 at 10:10 am
It is a saddening show to humanity, and mostly, a self proclaimed “Christian – god fearing” country, the United States. The US Legislators who continually soapbox themselves during campaign seasons as caring individuals for human rights, climate change, and freedom for all people as they allow Presidents to send others children to die in wars that mean and solve nothing, stall or pollute health care bills with pork or filibusters so as to quell votes, sell their souls while they reside on this blue dot…This does not mean all, as there are certainly those legislators who fight hard for the good of all, here and abroad…those few…
The continued arrogance and greed of the United States has shown itself and its true colors this past decade. It is saddening to have to watch a servant of a country, that is at the fate of a country who is pivotal in the damage that the world is experiencing, plead for his country’s continued existence, all the while, knowing that it is a tourist haven for that same country who he is pleading to.
“The fate of my country rests in your hands…” The United States seems to relish in statements such as this as it shows our depleting global power grip is still in existence. It shows the old, stodgy, white men that their viagra assisted pricks still yield power.