THE KYOTO "SOLUTION" TO THE GLOBAL WARMING "CRISIS"
How appropriate - the same politicians who invented the global warming "crisis" - which isn't a crisis - have invented a "solution" which doesn't solve anything. Aren't you glad?
The Kyoto protocol went into effect on 16 February 2005, seven years after it was decided on by people who had nothing to lose. (177 of the world's nations are exempt from Kyoto, including China (world's biggest emitter of CO2) and India. Negotiated by the Clinton Administration, under the leadership of vice-President Gore (the man who invented the Internet), it was completely ignored by the US Senate (who voted 95 - 0 to ignore it).
Kyoto, as envisioned by its founders, would require "developed" countries to reduce their carbon/carbon dioxide emissions by 5.2 % less than a baseline amount, set at 1990 levels. How convenient! 1990 was an auspicious year:
Great Britain, flush with North Sea oil and natural gas, had shut down its dirty coal generated power plants. (Margaret Thatcher HATED! coal miners.)
Germany - post Berlin Wall - was shutting down the dirty (i.e., socialist) industries of the former (GDR) East Germany.
Russia - no longer The Soviet Union - was shutting down its filthy (i.e., communist) industries. In 1990, the Soviet Union emitted 2405 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) ; today, the CO2 footprint of Russia is 1614 million tons. Guess who has 800 million metric tons of CO2 emission credits to sell?? Hmmmm, wonder if Gore knows?
France - didn't care. The French get most of their electricity from nuclear generation. That's not an option in the US because of the moron "environmentalists" who don't want us to use nuclear power - either. Or oil. Or, really, anything.
China, India, Brazil, and 177 other "developing countries" certainly didn't care. They're exempt. China is about to become the #1 emitter of carbon dioxide, in 2007 - three years earlier than predicted [International Energy Agency, Wall St. Journal, 24 April 2007] Outsourcing, here we come!
It took seven years for the Kyoto Treaty to go into effect. In July 2004, the Russian Academy of Sciences - a very highly respected scientific body, especially in the field of radiative transfer (that's the theory behind "greenhouse gas warming") - give their opinion of "global warming." They said:
1) Temperature changes do not follow changes of carbon dioxide. The opposite is true. ERGO, carbon dioxide does not cause temperature changes.
2) There's a much better correlation between solar activity and temperature than carbon dioxide and temperature, citing the warm periods in the early Medieval period and the Roman Empire warming. Remember, these are people who live next to the Arctic Ocean. If the Greenland ice cap is melting, they want to know about it.
3) Sea level is not rising faster than in the past; about 6 inches per century. (The IPCC says 7 inches per century - or maybe 5, or maybe 9.) Right!
4) Tropical diseases - e.g., "malaria" - are not spreading faster and wider due to "global warming." The Russians ought to know. The worst outbreak of malaria, anywhere, anytime, was in Russia in the 1920's. Ten thousand Russians died of malaria in Archangelsk - up on the Arctic circle. In Skakespeare's plays, various characters suffer from "ague" - guess what "ague" is? Yes, malaria.
5) There is no correlation between "global warming" and severe weather. This is Meteorology 101 - Meteorology for Football Players. Mid-latitude storms derive their kinetic energy from the contrast of cold and warm air masses. "Global warming" dimnishes such contrasts.
Good science, Academicians. However, in 2005, Vladimir Putin decided Russia should join the Kyoto Protocol as a "developing country" (i.e., exempt from restrictions). Good deal; Russia can now sell "carbon emission" credits to the European Union. Did I mention the Kyoto Protocol has NO enforcement mechanism? If the US signs up for Kyoto, a million goody-two-shoes "environmentalists" from Boulder will provide enforcement for US! No doubt they'll be richly rewarded for this important function.
Japan also signed up for Kyoto. Currently (2007) Japan is 8% above the 1990 CO2 emission limit; its obligation is to cut to 6% below 1990. Japan is just coming out of a decade-long recession/stagflation. They're going to cut back their industry by 14%? You think?
Europe, Europe, Europe! These are the guys that inspire Al Gore. Why? Well, European countries typically have parliamentary political systems, in which the splinter - but reliable - "Green Party" can be an important bloc of votes. The US has a two-party system (all the left-wingnuts are isolated in the Democrat party). As of 2007, only Britain (North Sea Gas) and Sweden are on track to meet their modest Kyoto reductions. The others will buy Russian emission credits.
You don't have to take my word for any of this. The (non-partisan) Congressional Budget Office issued a study on April 25 2007 of the cost of implementing some version of the Kyoto. If you go to their web page, you can download it.
$300 billion for Kyoto
The Kyoto Protocol expires in 2010. What's next?
Well, the new idea is that everyone in the world should have a CO2 "allowance." You, and I, and every Chinese peasant should be allowed to emit x gigatons of CO2. Since the Chinese peasant doesn't drive, doesn't have air conditioning, doesn't manufacture 25% of the world's gross domestic product, doesn't fly to international conferences, doesn't live very long, doesn't have hospital care, doesn't have a computer, doesn't use the internet, doesn't have a TV.........he probably has a lot of CO2 credit to sell.
So, do you have to travel to China/India/Brazil/Bongo-bongo to strike your own deal with a small-carbon-footprint peasant? Not to worry, citizen! The UN will take care of it for you. Just send money. Think the UN's Oil-for-Food program was good for Kofi and his family? Wait 'til you see "Son of Kyoto."
Man, you wimpy Americans are nothing like us Norsemen. I'm kind of ashamed of you - since, in a sense, I was the First American. We Norse found this continent a thousand years ago. Now you're giving it away to those stay-at-homes in Europe. Lucky Leif
Home
Rev. EarthDay07