Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
The language was ‘China could not give less of a shit’. The question was why do they bother with solar farms in China?
And I answered your question; it makes money. I suppose it also looks good as a way to appear to the less astute that they are doing something to address the issue (ahem).
But if you think that it ranks remotely high up the list of Xi's priorities, then I have a bridge to sell you.
A brief summary of his top ambitions would be:
1. Stop the Chinese economy tanking due to a number of factors, not least a ticking demographic timebomb which could finish them. 2. Get hold of Taiwan 3. Try and usurp US hegemony of control over international trade (for which he is going to need to build a much, much, bigger navy and invest trillions into the 'belt and road' project to build alternative trade routes, which may cause problems with point 1 above).
You're welcome.
So China has solar farms to make money and look good. The same kind of less of, or more of, a shit for UK wind turbines that make money and look good. So I take from your post that China does not give less of a shit that the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. What can't be said is that the two places have the same sized population.
No China have solar panels and wind farms because both produce power more cheaply than coal fired power stations. Why wouldn’t they build them where they can. They’d be mad not to. That good thing doesn’t compensate for the fact that China commissions two coal fired power stations each week.
Much of southern Europe and northern Africa are in the grip of a severe heatwave which is likely to kill thousands of people, damage crops (leading to shortages and higher prices), wildfires and disruption to normal life. This is likely to affect anyone travelling to Europe on holiday.
This is a weather event, however this type of weather event is happening more and more frequently and is no longer a rare one off. Elsewhere in the world we are seeing devastating floods. How anyone can still believe that Climate Change is not already disrupting life, I really don't understand, yet they get angry at Just Stop Oil Protesters disrupting their lives.
China emits the most CO2, but we are one planet, one human race, and climate change is the biggest global problem.
"An Inconvenient Truth" concludes with Al Gore saying, "Future generations may well have occasion to ask themselves "What were our parents thinking? Why didn't they wake up when they had a chance?" We have to hear that question from them, now!" How would you answer them?
We could, and know how to, reduce our individual CO2 emissions should we want to. So could you honestly say to them, "it wasn't my fault" and pass the blame onto other countries and governments, those elected to enact the collective will of their peoples? If they believe tackling climate change is a vote loser, they'll ignore it. They need to hear the message that we want them to listen and act, and that's what JSO are trying to do.
They may fail, but that doesn't mean they should give up trying. Being a constant in the news headlines does raise awareness insofar as it prompts a reaction and talk about the cause. However, I can't see that it's making our Government re-think it's energy policy and their tactics are alienating many who fundamentally agree with them.
"An inconvenient Truth" was made in 2006 when Greta Thunberg was a toddler. She's old enough to serve a prison sentence now, and might if convicted of blockading an oil terminal at trial later this month, but there is nothing in what she says about the science that wasn't known back then and long before. It's the same truth repackaged, but some of the science has now been proved to be false because the rate at which the ice is melting is accelerating faster than forecast.
Oh well, if she is gaoled, at least the fire alarm will be disabled. Let's hope the fire's under control.
China emits the most CO2, but we are one planet, one human race, and climate change is the biggest global problem.
"An Inconvenient Truth" concludes with Al Gore saying, "Future generations may well have occasion to ask themselves "What were our parents thinking? Why didn't they wake up when they had a chance?" We have to hear that question from them, now!" How would you answer them?
We could, and know how to, reduce our individual CO2 emissions should we want to. So could you honestly say to them, "it wasn't my fault" and pass the blame onto other countries and governments, those elected to enact the collective will of their peoples? If they believe tackling climate change is a vote loser, they'll ignore it. They need to hear the message that we want them to listen and act, and that's what JSO are trying to do.
They may fail, but that doesn't mean they should give up trying. Being a constant in the news headlines does raise awareness insofar as it prompts a reaction and talk about the cause. However, I can't see that it's making our Government re-think it's energy policy and their tactics are alienating many who fundamentally agree with them.
"An inconvenient Truth" was made in 2006 when Greta Thunberg was a toddler. She's old enough to serve a prison sentence now, and might if convicted of blockading an oil terminal at trial later this month, but there is nothing in what she says about the science that wasn't known back then and long before. It's the same truth repackaged, but some of the science has now been proved to be false because the rate at which the ice is melting is accelerating faster than forecast.
Oh well, if she is gaoled, at least the fire alarm will be disabled. Let's hope the fire's under control.
Good post and sums up the reality of where we are. It does need a global solution but as a race we still haven’t gotten past killing each other and coveting each others lands. What chance getting together and planning for the survival of the human race.
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
And all hail the clear increase in vegan and vegetarian consumption judging by the way the shelves have changed in the shops in recent years. (Some of the offerings of the veggie/vegan 'manufacturers' are rank mind you).
Setting aside our differences for a second, what should I be looking for that might tempt me to try more. My wife once told me we'd be divorcing if I ever served her Linda McCartney's sausages again, which were like cardboard, but most things I've tried since have been better, some alarmingly worse, the texture like I don't know what.
We'll have been married 20 years on Thursday, no thanks to those sausages.
Richmond make the best vegetarian sausage I’ve tasted, not that I’ve tasted many. Not sure how that helps the debate though.
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
why aren't people protesting China more then? As the biggest contributor currently do they not have an obligation to do far more than anyone else right now?
It seems to me that everything always boils down to being on us to make changes, how about the Chinese stop profiteering and contribute? If we were the biggest contributors we would be expected by the world to put more effort in than others, but apparently that isn't the case when it comes to looking for leadership elsewhere... why? Historic guilt? You can show me as many fields of solar panels as you like, they are still contributing 50% of the damage worldwide right now despite that- but apparently holding up the traffic HERE is what is going to make the difference? It's laughable.
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
Thanks. This doesn’t get reported nearly enough. 👍
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
This proves that there are two sides to every storey
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
This proves that there are two sides to every storey
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
why aren't people protesting China more then? As the biggest contributor currently do they not have an obligation to do far more than anyone else right now?
On a per capita basis, they’re not though.
I do agree more could / should be done and from what I see, more is done, constantly.
Sigh. The point is they don't care, like we do in the West. They pay lip service and only initiate projects that actually make them money. We plough money into loss making green projects as well as profitable ones (e.g wind farm profits are marginal at best, despite the almost constant increase in electricity prices, because e.g they frequently break down and are very expensive to fix).
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
Green initiatives, like free solar panels for new homes and massively subsidised energy costs the government here an absolute fortune.
I just took a train across the country and went past 1,000s of wind farms, almost every single person I know relies entirely on solar for all of their hot water (which is really shit in winter, trust me)
Factories across the country are regularly forced to close when AQI readings become too high.
I’ve seen many protests opposing opening of PX factories, one such project was scrapped here as a result of local opposition.
The fact China has higher emissions than Europe should come as a surprise to no one when it has double the population! Is China doing enough? No, absolutely not, no one is, but to suggest they are doing nothing is utter nonsense, I’ve seen it happening every day over the last 12 years.
why aren't people protesting China more then? As the biggest contributor currently do they not have an obligation to do far more than anyone else right now?
On a per capita basis, they’re not though.
I do agree more could / should be done and from what I see, more is done, constantly.
so is bigstemarra making up stuff then on the previous page? or are we supposed to believe eye witness testimony over literal facts that China are opening up multiple coal mines across their country at a rapid rate?
why is it ok to question our (relatively tiny) contribution but it seems when it comes to China they seem to have some kind of free pass? If we coated Kent in wind farms but in Newcastle we opened ten new coal mines would that be ok?
but it's all ok because per person they aren't doing so much damage. FFS lol the fact there is more of them means they have a bigger obligation not a lesser one
I don’t think I’ve ever questioned the issue of coal factories, it is indeed a big issue here and falls into the category of must do better, but that doesn’t take away from everything else that’s being done up and down the country, solar, wind farms, hydro, massively subsidies for electric cars.
I’ve never once said China should get a free pass, or does nothing wrong, but to suggest they’re doing absolutely nothing is at best utter ignorance, at worst sinophobia.
I’m not sure I can agree and (developed) nation has more of a responsibility than another, we’re all in this together and ideally everyone would not only do everything they can internally, but we should also be supporting 3rd world and developing nations to progress in a green and ethical way.
Sadly I don’t think anywhere near enough is going to be done to prevent this reaching a massive crises, for every person willing to ditch their car and cycle, someone else will buy a 2nd car to be able to drive 7 days a week. (Many Chinese cities ban certain number plates from driving on specific days to reduce congestion and pollution, a noble use, far too easily worked around)
I don’t think I’ve ever questioned the issue of coal factories, it is indeed a big issue here and falls into the category of must do better, but that doesn’t take away from everything else that’s being done up and down the country, solar, wind farms, hydro, massively subsidies for electric cars.
I’ve never once said China should get a free pass, or does nothing wrong, but to suggest they’re doing absolutely nothing is at best utter ignorance, at worst sinophobia.
I’m not sure I can agree and (developed) nation has more of a responsibility than another, we’re all in this together and ideally everyone would not only do everything they can internally, but we should also be supporting 3rd world and developing nations to progress in a green and ethical way.
Sadly I don’t think anywhere near enough is going to be done to prevent this reaching a massive crises, for every person willing to ditch their car and cycle, someone else will buy a 2nd car to be able to drive 7 days a week. (Many Chinese cities ban certain number plates from driving on specific days to reduce congestion and pollution, a noble use, far too easily worked around)
But it does. that is the point.
sorry. i wish the facts were different. But that is the truth.
i wasn't referring to you when i mentioned people giving them a pass - you live there - it's people here doing that all the time because politically it is so much easier for us to be the bad guys all the time - we create the demand and apparently that is so irresistible to the developing world that they cannot just say no - as has been said, this is a global issue - just because people want to throw money at you doesn't mean it stops being a moral endeavour. If China want to join the rest of the world and take responsibility for their own purely choice emissions then fair play.
I've linked an up to date report on China's CO2 emissions and energy policy for those concerned. It's a complex picture but not all doom and gloom!
It is rather long, but you need to bear with it to fully appreciate what's happening, and to portray them as villains in global attempts to lower C02 emissions isn't helpful when they are more committed to meeting their 2030 targets than others I could mention much closer to home.
The countries with the most advanced economies today did so on the back of 150 years worth of fossil fuel burning since the industrial revolution. They/we have a moral and ethical obligation to lead in efforts to combat global warming.
I don’t think I’ve ever questioned the issue of coal factories, it is indeed a big issue here and falls into the category of must do better, but that doesn’t take away from everything else that’s being done up and down the country, solar, wind farms, hydro, massively subsidies for electric cars.
I’ve never once said China should get a free pass, or does nothing wrong, but to suggest they’re doing absolutely nothing is at best utter ignorance, at worst sinophobia.
I’m not sure I can agree and (developed) nation has more of a responsibility than another, we’re all in this together and ideally everyone would not only do everything they can internally, but we should also be supporting 3rd world and developing nations to progress in a green and ethical way.
Sadly I don’t think anywhere near enough is going to be done to prevent this reaching a massive crises, for every person willing to ditch their car and cycle, someone else will buy a 2nd car to be able to drive 7 days a week. (Many Chinese cities ban certain number plates from driving on specific days to reduce congestion and pollution, a noble use, far too easily worked around)
But it does. that is the point.
sorry. i wish the facts were different. But that is the truth.
i wasn't referring to you when i mentioned people giving them a pass - you live there - it's people here doing that all the time because politically it is so much easier for us to be the bad guys all the time - we create the demand and apparently that is so irresistible to the developing world that they cannot just say no - as has been said, this is a global issue - just because people want to throw money at you doesn't mean it stops being a moral endeavour. If China want to join the rest of the world and take responsibility for their own purely choice emissions then fair play.
So opening coal plants and not doing anything to improve in other areas would be just as bad as opening coal plants whilst investing heavily in other greener sources of energy? Seems entirely illogical to me.
The coal fired power stations are an issue in China and ought not to happen, just like the proposed new coal initiative ought not to happen in the UK, nor the extraction of undersea oil. For many China, over a lot of issues, seems to be almost the global go to Bond villain. Talk of China being allowed to join the world community is absurd, they already are. I know that aware Chinese people are as concerned about the environment as others. Citing China seems to be an excuse for people to do nothing themselves.
The coal fired power stations are an issue in China and ought not to happen, just like the proposed new coal initiative ought not to happen in the UK, nor the extraction of undersea oil. For many China, over a lot of issues, seems to be almost the global go to Bond villain. Talk of China being allowed to join the world community is absurd, they already are. I know that aware Chinese people are as concerned about the environment as others. Citing China seems to be an excuse for people to do nothing themselves.
Sorry but citing the main contributor to this issue is not making excuses it's just stating a fact.
I don’t think I’ve ever questioned the issue of coal factories, it is indeed a big issue here and falls into the category of must do better, but that doesn’t take away from everything else that’s being done up and down the country, solar, wind farms, hydro, massively subsidies for electric cars.
I’ve never once said China should get a free pass, or does nothing wrong, but to suggest they’re doing absolutely nothing is at best utter ignorance, at worst sinophobia.
I’m not sure I can agree and (developed) nation has more of a responsibility than another, we’re all in this together and ideally everyone would not only do everything they can internally, but we should also be supporting 3rd world and developing nations to progress in a green and ethical way.
Sadly I don’t think anywhere near enough is going to be done to prevent this reaching a massive crises, for every person willing to ditch their car and cycle, someone else will buy a 2nd car to be able to drive 7 days a week. (Many Chinese cities ban certain number plates from driving on specific days to reduce congestion and pollution, a noble use, far too easily worked around)
But it does. that is the point.
sorry. i wish the facts were different. But that is the truth.
i wasn't referring to you when i mentioned people giving them a pass - you live there - it's people here doing that all the time because politically it is so much easier for us to be the bad guys all the time - we create the demand and apparently that is so irresistible to the developing world that they cannot just say no - as has been said, this is a global issue - just because people want to throw money at you doesn't mean it stops being a moral endeavour. If China want to join the rest of the world and take responsibility for their own purely choice emissions then fair play.
So opening coal plants and not doing anything to improve in other areas would be just as bad as opening coal plants whilst investing heavily in other greener sources of energy? Seems entirely illogical to me.
What I find entirely illogical is people defending the actions of JSO in this country and suggesting it is for "the greater good" and at the same time making excuses for the biggest contributer to global warming on the planet. (Not saying that's you by the way but I've seen a lot of it on here)
I don’t think China are faultless with regards to climate change, far from it. But isn’t one of the major reasons that they are such big emitters that we’ve basically offshored all of our manufacturing there? If we manufactured more of the things we buy in this country then the UK’s emissions would more accurately reflect our consumption. But we don’t, because companies love profits and consumers love cheap things, so now everything gets manufactured in China.
I don’t think I’ve ever questioned the issue of coal factories, it is indeed a big issue here and falls into the category of must do better, but that doesn’t take away from everything else that’s being done up and down the country, solar, wind farms, hydro, massively subsidies for electric cars.
I’ve never once said China should get a free pass, or does nothing wrong, but to suggest they’re doing absolutely nothing is at best utter ignorance, at worst sinophobia.
I’m not sure I can agree and (developed) nation has more of a responsibility than another, we’re all in this together and ideally everyone would not only do everything they can internally, but we should also be supporting 3rd world and developing nations to progress in a green and ethical way.
Sadly I don’t think anywhere near enough is going to be done to prevent this reaching a massive crises, for every person willing to ditch their car and cycle, someone else will buy a 2nd car to be able to drive 7 days a week. (Many Chinese cities ban certain number plates from driving on specific days to reduce congestion and pollution, a noble use, far too easily worked around)
But it does. that is the point.
sorry. i wish the facts were different. But that is the truth.
i wasn't referring to you when i mentioned people giving them a pass - you live there - it's people here doing that all the time because politically it is so much easier for us to be the bad guys all the time - we create the demand and apparently that is so irresistible to the developing world that they cannot just say no - as has been said, this is a global issue - just because people want to throw money at you doesn't mean it stops being a moral endeavour. If China want to join the rest of the world and take responsibility for their own purely choice emissions then fair play.
So opening coal plants and not doing anything to improve in other areas would be just as bad as opening coal plants whilst investing heavily in other greener sources of energy? Seems entirely illogical to me.
What I find entirely illogical is people defending the actions of JSO in this country and suggesting it is for "the greater good" and at the same time making excuses for the biggest contributer to global warming on the planet. (Not saying that's you by the way but I've seen a lot of it on here)
Not seen many giving wholehearted support for their actions on here tbf. Just because I understand why they feel moved to act, that doesn't mean I agree with the tactics, even though they are successful in provoking people to discuss, not just their actions, but climate change in general. Do I think they'll get this Government to change direction? No. Big money and vested interests are what motivates them, so I think they will fail in that objective having hacked off many in the process.
Comments
You did see how new coal-fired power stations they are building and have planned, right?
Seen anything remotely resembling Extinction Rebellion or Just Stop Oil in China lately?
Our respective attitudes to the problem of climate change are like chalk and cheese.
This is a weather event, however this type of weather event is happening more and more frequently and is no longer a rare one off. Elsewhere in the world we are seeing devastating floods. How anyone can still believe that Climate Change is not already disrupting life, I really don't understand, yet they get angry at Just Stop Oil Protesters disrupting their lives.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/weather/topstories/deadly-heat-claims-first-life-in-italy-and-spain-faces-44c-as-heatwave-hits-tourist-hotspots/ar-AA1dJTun
https://www.severe-weather.eu/global-weather/heat-dome-strongest-heatwave-summer-2023-europe-mk/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/10/italy-heatwave-temperatures-european-record-forecast
"An Inconvenient Truth" concludes with Al Gore saying, "Future generations may well have occasion to ask themselves "What were our parents thinking? Why didn't they wake up when they had a chance?" We have to hear that question from them, now!" How would you answer them?
We could, and know how to, reduce our individual CO2 emissions should we want to. So could you honestly say to them, "it wasn't my fault" and pass the blame onto other countries and governments, those elected to enact the collective will of their peoples? If they believe tackling climate change is a vote loser, they'll ignore it. They need to hear the message that we want them to listen and act, and that's what JSO are trying to do.
They may fail, but that doesn't mean they should give up trying. Being a constant in the news headlines does raise awareness insofar as it prompts a reaction and talk about the cause. However, I can't see that it's making our Government re-think it's energy policy and their tactics are alienating many who fundamentally agree with them.
"An inconvenient Truth" was made in 2006 when Greta Thunberg was a toddler. She's old enough to serve a prison sentence now, and might if convicted of blockading an oil terminal at trial later this month, but there is nothing in what she says about the science that wasn't known back then and long before. It's the same truth repackaged, but some of the science has now been proved to be false because the rate at which the ice is melting is accelerating faster than forecast.
Oh well, if she is gaoled, at least the fire alarm will be disabled. Let's hope the fire's under control.
It seems to me that everything always boils down to being on us to make changes, how about the Chinese stop profiteering and contribute? If we were the biggest contributors we would be expected by the world to put more effort in than others, but apparently that isn't the case when it comes to looking for leadership elsewhere... why? Historic guilt? You can show me as many fields of solar panels as you like, they are still contributing 50% of the damage worldwide right now despite that- but apparently holding up the traffic HERE is what is going to make the difference? It's laughable.
why is it ok to question our (relatively tiny) contribution but it seems when it comes to China they seem to have some kind of free pass? If we coated Kent in wind farms but in Newcastle we opened ten new coal mines would that be ok?
but it's all ok because per person they aren't doing so much damage. FFS lol the fact there is more of them means they have a bigger obligation not a lesser one
sorry. i wish the facts were different. But that is the truth.
i wasn't referring to you when i mentioned people giving them a pass - you live there - it's people here doing that all the time because politically it is so much easier for us to be the bad guys all the time - we create the demand and apparently that is so irresistible to the developing world that they cannot just say no - as has been said, this is a global issue - just because people want to throw money at you doesn't mean it stops being a moral endeavour. If China want to join the rest of the world and take responsibility for their own purely choice emissions then fair play.
It is rather long, but you need to bear with it to fully appreciate what's happening, and to portray them as villains in global attempts to lower C02 emissions isn't helpful when they are more committed to meeting their 2030 targets than others I could mention much closer to home.
The countries with the most advanced economies today did so on the back of 150 years worth of fossil fuel burning since the industrial revolution. They/we have a moral and ethical obligation to lead in efforts to combat global warming.
https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-chinas-co2-emissions-hit-q1-record-high-after-4-rise-in-early-2023/#:~:text=Data sources-,China's CO2 emissions hit record for Q1,first three months of 2021.
For many China, over a lot of issues, seems to be almost the global go to Bond villain. Talk of China being allowed to join the world community is absurd, they already are.
I know that aware Chinese people are as concerned about the environment as others. Citing China seems to be an excuse for people to do nothing themselves.