In fact the Sun's Lorrie Goldstein has not only mentioned Kyoto in today's Point of View - "McGuinty's Green Smoke Screen", but also in his own column featuring the Top Ten Problems with the Kyoto accord (The Kyoto Horror Show).
Sheila Copps throws in her own two cents worth as well (Kyoto Cost Tories Dearly).
The Ontario Government's disingenuous attempt to portray itself as Kyoto compliant is a topic I'll leave for another day.
Copp's piece on the other hand, smacks of everything that causes the public to become cynical about politics, as she urges the government to support opposition's Kyoto bill:
Why not take a leap of faith and support Kyoto targets? Even if the requisite tonne reduction is not met, politics is about perception.
And there, my friends, is Liberal-think unplugged. Ugh.
Lorrie Goldstein has put together an incredibly insightful list of reasons why the Kyoto targets are flawed and unrealistic. Most have to do with the fact that non-signatory countries produce far greater greenhouse gas emissions than we do.
Copps says, "By standing up as the only party against Kyoto, the Tories were strangely out of step with the House of Commons and the country."
But Goldstein counters:
Finally, do Canadians support Kyoto? Our national media seem to think so, based largely on a recent Globe/Strategic Counsel poll, which asked people whether we should "try" to achieve our Kyoto targets. That received a 63% to 30% favourable response. But surely, Canadians believe we should "try" to do many things. Whether we're willing to make unfair sacrifices in a doomed effort, is the real question.
Interestingly, when The Strategic Counsel asked the same people if they supported charging "significantly higher prices" for gasoline and heating their homes -- a far more relevant question -- the vote was 64% to 34% against.
A CanWest/Innovative Research poll which was in the field at almost the same time as The Strategic Counsel, found about seven in 10 respondents agreed with the statement: "I don't care whether the new federal government implements Kyoto or not, so long as they take real action to make our environment better." Hmmm.
So, Canadians appear to support Kyoto, but when asked to put their money where their mouths are, they start jumping off the bandwagon.
I would go further and agree with the Globe's Jeffrey Simpson, that Canadians have been indoctrinated with the erroneous message that "Kyoto equals concern about climate change".
So here is my (once again) free and unsolicited advice, this time for Stephen Harper and the CPC. Drop those attack ads right now. Replace them with ads showing the real facts about the effects of Kyoto; both in terms of unrealistic targets and the possible effects on the economy. Lay out a pragmatic plan to reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions in Canada.
Expose the opposition and Kyoto for the shams that they are; but show me - don't tell me.
* * * *
Great link to Lorne Gunter's latest column at Political Staples - The Problem is Bigger than That. Edmonton Journal - Dion Paints Himself into Green Corner.
Some hilarious stuff here about 'Greenie' - Officially Screwed and SDA.
Monday Update: Check out Uncommon Truths - Another poll gone horribly ungreen...
Some hilarious stuff here about 'Greenie' - Officially Screwed and SDA.
Monday Update: Check out Uncommon Truths - Another poll gone horribly ungreen...
27 comments:
Harper is the Wartime leader we need.
Dion is soft on teror
"So here is my (once again) free and unsolicited advice, this time for Stephen Harper and the CPC. Drop those attack ads right now. Replace them with ads showing the real facts about the effects of Kyoto; both in terms of unrealistic targets and the possible effects on the economy."
You're absolutely right, Joanne. There's plenty of misinformation out there & the Conservatives need to inform the public about what is realistically feasible & what is not.
Joanne, It's amazing how often our posts are on the same topic. I linked to you today. Do you have the MSM URL for the information about the "speaker being dangerously close to partisanship?" I had it the other day, but I can't find it. Of course I agree with you. As I posted yesterday, the hysteria is both depressing and interesting at the same time -- probably why you find it amusing! Bottom line, it is what it is. I am so grateful for the National Post and the Sun group -- they are at least getting both sides of the issues out there (e.g., today's Sheila Copps' column).
Sandy, it was in the Post.
Don't you just love the fact that Dion's central plank,
is a fiction,
a false premise,
a mathematical impossibility, and
certain evidence of his own party's inaction, on the very issue that is his central plank.
A team of Tory strategists couldn't have come up with a better scenario themselves.
For those of you who want the Conservatives to drop the attack ads: in a word DON'T. One of the reasons we have been saddled with left wing governments (Liberal and red Tory) over the past 45 years, is that the left has been successful in discrediting the right wing by using attack ads. They have often falsely accussed the right of using the very tactics that they are guilty of themselves.
The MSM is not going to point out that the emperor has no clothes, if the emporer is a left wing politician. Here is a golden oppportunity to convince the public that the left is not to be trusted.
While the Goldstein column is accurate in pointing out that the Kyoto treaty is unfair to Canada. and that nothing Canada does will make a real difference to the level of CO2 in the air, he misses one point. On a per capita basis Canada has the best reecord of any major country in the world in NET greenhouse gas emmmisions.
While we are larger than average emiters of greenhouse gas, the huge amount of forest that stretches acrossso much of Canada takes out an even greater amount of CO2 from the air. We lead the world in green without Kyoto.
While we are larger than average emiters of greenhouse gas, the huge amount of forest that stretches acrossso much of Canada takes out an even greater amount of CO2 from the air. We lead the world in green without Kyoto.
Good thing Harper planted all those trees!
Wow - I'm no fan of the Sun, but I have to say that Goldstein is right with that Top Ten list. Kyoto is a foolish idea that will not reduce GHG emissions and not affect in any way anthropogenic warming.
Kyoto is a terrible, terrible idea, and I do believe that Harper made the right choice removing us from it.
Recognizing the problems from their years in opposition and having analyzed the Liberals dismal shortcomings on the environmental file, with being in power for over a year now, remind me again what the Conservatives have done during their time in office... Don't hold back now.
Many thanks Joanne. I will add the link.
So, Red Tory, are you suggesting that Paul Martin / Jean Cretien / Stephane Dion / The Liberals, are responsible for those trees being there? ? ? ? ?
And also tell me, what did the Liberals do for the past 13 years in office to help reduce greenhouse gases emitted in this country except to make more empty promises and throw more money towards their friends to "study" the problem.
I agree with Swift - the CPC should not drop the attack ads, but should supplement them with the suggested ads showing the real facts of Kyoto. Unless Dion has a miraculous "Road to Damascus" conversion on Kyoto, it would be foolish to not attack the Liberal party's inaction on Kyoto.
Good thing Harper planted all those trees!
Nice sarcasm, RT. Witty without being abusive.
...remind me again what the Conservatives have done during their time in office...
Admittedly, RT, they've not done as much as I'd have liked, but they have been hobbled by an opposition that seems to have, en masse, joined the Church of Kyotology. (BTW, RT, and this is off topic - sorry Joanne, but I just have to ask, is your avatar Benjamin Disraeli?)
Nope....you don't drop the ads when they're working, and they are.
For information from the horse's mouth....check out "Straight talk from the Oilpatch fighting Carbon Dioxide" in today's Edmonton Journal.
http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal
/columnists/story.html?id=da3c38f6-fab1-45fc-be84-f8d5f508e73a
Red, look up bill C30, currently in commitee. It modifies the Liberal bill that was passed in 1999. What were they doing about the enviornment for the last six years of their time in office? Obviously not introducing new legislation. Oh I know. Studying the situation.
Oh I know. Studying the situation.
Nice one, Swift. Giving it right back to him.
Red, please find where billC32 passed in 1999 deals with greenhouse gas emmissions. I can find the where the current bill deals with greenhouse gasses but the Liberal bill seems to be lacking any section dealing with the subject.
"Oh I know. Studying the situation.
Nice one, Swift. Giving it right back to him."
No, just waiting for the treaty to come into effect? That was 2 years and 2 days ago. February 16, 2005.
Yes, you can say they should have moved on it earlier, but it was not clear it would ever come into effect.
Think of ceasefires, everybody is shooting at each other, even though a ceasefire has been agreed on. Then the clock strikes the official start of the ceasefire and all the guns go silent. All at once.
You could say why didn't they stop as soon as the peace deal was made? When you can explain that, you will understand why little was done on Kyoto before February 16, 2005.
Chris -- Of course not, silly.
==================================
Brian -- Yes, it is.
Swift -- I'll attempt to address your question, but not here. Maybe in the next couple of days or so.
Lib Sup, where is this Canada should set an example spirit even though we can not make any real difference. Only for the Conservatives, eh?
There is a slight difference between fighting a war and implimenting Kyoto. If you stop shooting, and the other side doesn't, bad things tend to happen to you. Of course we know that you don't understand this, because you want us to stop shooting in Afghanistan, even withut a ceasefire(which wouldn't be kept any way.)
But what bad things could happen if we unilaterally implemented Kyoto? Your position is that you can implement it without any harm to Canada. Could you be lying?
I agree with Swift - the CPC should not drop the attack ads, but should supplement them with the suggested ads showing the real facts of Kyoto. Unless Dion has a miraculous "Road to Damascus" conversion on Kyoto, it would be foolish to not attack the Liberal party's inaction on Kyoto.
Brian, you and Swift have a good point. Perhaps that's all that is needed - Just add a few more ads explaining what Kyoto really means; especially in Quebec.
The provinicial election there will be crucial for the CPC.
Rather amusing that Dion felt that the ads would confuse those poor folks in Quebec, who according to him would have a problem figuring out whether they were referring to provincial or federal Liberals.
Good thing for Nanny State being there to do everyone's thinking for them.
Nice try swift. Your attempts to define me are ineffective.
Feel free to continue to put words in my mouth and then mock them.
You only mock yourself.
I expect better of you.
Could you be lying?
Well there had to be some reason the Lib,s did not do anything about greenhouse gases. It could be just sheer incompetence of course. After all it is soooo hard to set priorities.
The Kyoto protocol did not come into effect until 2 years and 3 days ago.
Before that would be jumping the gun.
You can continue to say "there must have been some reason" as if nobody has explained it to you, and I will continue to tell you one of them, which is that it was not in force.
Which part of "was not in effect" are you not understanding?
The Kyoto protocol did not come into effect until 2 years and 3 days ago.
Before that would be jumping the gun.
In what way, LS?
RT, I look forward to your cogent, articulate and reasoned answer to swift's question. Hopefully, it will also address this later point of his (which LS seems to be ignoring): There is a slight difference between fighting a war and implimenting Kyoto. If you stop shooting, and the other side doesn't, bad things tend to happen to you....But what bad things could happen if we unilaterally implemented Kyoto?
A follow-up question of my own (which either LS or RT could answer) would be: Why would these same bad things not happen in the absence of China's or India's participation in the Kyoto war against ghg emissions?
Brian -- Many people are working on the assumption that China and India will not be participants in Kyoto. While they are not included in the initial phase, my understanding is that they are to be brought into the fold as the next phase(s) come on line.
RT, you haven't been listening to China. They have no uintention of participating.
LS, I am quite aware of when Kyoto was ratifiee. My point is that if Kyoto is such a good thing, and so easy to put into effect, anybody who really believed in it would have gone ahead before it became official.
Instead the Liberals hadn't a clue what to do when they themselves ratified the treaty. Naming a dog Kyoto was the most effective thing they did!
Post a Comment