I'm sure I'm used this same title somewhere down the line, or perhaps not. When the leader of the US, no matter how myopic he is on the subject, withdraws the US from the Kyoto Protocol, and continues to refuse to come together with the rest of the world and reduce greenhouse gases, the world sits up and takes notice. It's not that other countries haven't taken notice before, but during this time, there has been a mounting opposition from other countries on the global warming issue.
There is a direct correlation between this administration's refusal to cut greenhouse gasses and their refusal to acknowledge global warming as an issue. In fact, once Bush took over the administration, the number of americans that believed global warming is not a reality has grown. And while we're talking about American's not being able to acknowledge a scientific reality, we might revisit the states lag in teaching science report issued earlier this week. I wonder why?
The report, released Wednesday by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, suggests that the focus on reading and math as required subjects for testing under the federal law, No Child Left Behind, has turned attention away from science, contributing to a failure of American children to stay competitive in science with their counterparts abroad.
The report also appears to support concerns raised by a growing number of university officials and corporate executives, who say that the failure to produce students well-prepared in science is undermining the country's production of scientists and engineers and putting the nation's economic future in jeopardy.
So, when you hear the bobble-heads screaming that there is no such thing as global warming, that these other countries are hacks, trying to destroy Americna businesses, you have to wonder what the truth is. Perhaps, it would be more appropriate for the Bush administration to sit up and take notice, when 150 countries will launch formal talks on reducing greenhouse gasses WITHOUT the US. However, there will be another set of talks, that are non-binding, and basically exploratory in nature, in which the US will participate.
More than 150 nations agreed Saturday to launch formal talks on mandatory post-2012 reductions in greenhouse gases _ talks that will exclude an unwilling United States.
For its part the Bush administration, which rejects the emissions cutbacks of the current Kyoto Protocol, accepted only a watered-down proposal to enter an exploratory global "dialogue" on future steps to combat climate change. That proposal specifically rules out "negotiations leading to new commitments."
The question remains why won't the Bush administration and supporters recognize the global effects they are contributing to?
A broad scientific consensus agrees that these gases accumulating in the atmosphere, byproducts of automobile engines, power plants and other fossil fuel-burning industries, contributed significantly to the past century's global temperature rise of 1 degree Fahrenheit.
Continued warming is melting glaciers worldwide, shrinking the Arctic ice cap and heating up the oceans, raising sea levels, scientists say. They predict major climate disruptions in coming decades.
It would behoove this administration to rethink it's policies. The fact that the US contributes some 20% of the carbon dioxide, from only 5% of the population of the world, is negligible. Asking companies to volunteer to make emissions cuts isn't going to work. How could it?
Comments