The online version of Adbusters has stripped Stephen Harper of what it calls his "green veneer":
After failing to get any support for his ironically-titled Clean Air Act, Harper’s government announced a new climate change policy last April called “Turning the Corner” that was supposed to strike a balance between environmental and industry concerns. But the new strategy was a gift to corporations and gave them so many loopholes and exemptions from target caps that it will actually lead to a rise in greenhouse gas emissions.
Through “intensity-based targets,” corporations can increase their pollution as they increase their production. It will also give new companies three years to start meeting targets – widely seen as a free pass for the oil and gas companies operating in Alberta’s toxic tar sands, which are desperately trying to ramp up production to meet the United States’ insatiable need for oil. Under the new plan, companies can also meet 70 percent of their targets simply by paying into a fund, and those that don’t meet their targets can just buy their way out with carbon credits.
Harper’s attempt to portray himself as environmentally conscious is all the more insulting considering his track record. Since he was elected in 2006, Harper has cut 20 different federal programs meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, made secret deals with George Bush and American oil executives to bolster production of the Albertan tar sands (which already consume 600 million cubic feet of natural gas a day), and introduced the incredulous Clean Air Act, which doesn’t set hard caps on emissions until 2050.
Like many aspects of his appearance, Harper is trying to mask his persona as a right-wing radical and re-brand himself as a middle-of-the-road moderate in order to appeal to Canadian voters. While he has managed to calm some people’s fears by diluting his stance on the Iraq War and gay marriage, Harper’s environmental transformation is a façade. But Canada and the rest of the world have little time left to play with his disguises. With the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warning that billions of people around the world are going to face food and water shortages caused by flooding within 13 years, Harper’s “greening” is nothing more than a whitewash.
After failing to get any support for his ironically-titled Clean Air Act, Harper’s government announced a new climate change policy last April called “Turning the Corner” that was supposed to strike a balance between environmental and industry concerns. But the new strategy was a gift to corporations and gave them so many loopholes and exemptions from target caps that it will actually lead to a rise in greenhouse gas emissions.
Through “intensity-based targets,” corporations can increase their pollution as they increase their production. It will also give new companies three years to start meeting targets – widely seen as a free pass for the oil and gas companies operating in Alberta’s toxic tar sands, which are desperately trying to ramp up production to meet the United States’ insatiable need for oil. Under the new plan, companies can also meet 70 percent of their targets simply by paying into a fund, and those that don’t meet their targets can just buy their way out with carbon credits.
Harper’s attempt to portray himself as environmentally conscious is all the more insulting considering his track record. Since he was elected in 2006, Harper has cut 20 different federal programs meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, made secret deals with George Bush and American oil executives to bolster production of the Albertan tar sands (which already consume 600 million cubic feet of natural gas a day), and introduced the incredulous Clean Air Act, which doesn’t set hard caps on emissions until 2050.
Like many aspects of his appearance, Harper is trying to mask his persona as a right-wing radical and re-brand himself as a middle-of-the-road moderate in order to appeal to Canadian voters. While he has managed to calm some people’s fears by diluting his stance on the Iraq War and gay marriage, Harper’s environmental transformation is a façade. But Canada and the rest of the world have little time left to play with his disguises. With the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warning that billions of people around the world are going to face food and water shortages caused by flooding within 13 years, Harper’s “greening” is nothing more than a whitewash.
4 comments:
He's not the only one. Do I believe this statement? I don't think so.
Quite something to see.
Subject: Impressive melting glacier.
Besides being a pleasantly cool experience on a hot day,
It's quite the movie clip.
It's of the Perito Moreno Glacier, in Argentina ! It depicts a grandstand, where tourists, and visitors can watch the Glacier advancing down the hill, and a glacier icemelt stream from above, flowing through the Glaciers downhill trudge, creating an Ice - Tunnel, which eventually melts, and falls into the stream, in bunches and gobs. - - obviously enthralled the tourists and visitors, and hope you enjoy it too ! This isn't "global warming " happening, it's the natural progression of a glacier, slowly advancing down the hill, due to it's overall weight, and the melting at the bottom there-from! It's pure physics! Watch till end to get the full impact!
Glacier.wmv (5.1MB) Take a look. It might be awe inspiring to watch but it is the drastic state the world finds itself. Emma
How unfortunate that Harper is at war with the marjority of Canadians on this matter. We know that it's not going to kill us or our future economy to cut emmissions. He uses the old fear factor from Bush's book.
BTW, I have no idea what the hell the other commentor before me is saying - all the inhalation of GHG I guess.
I too think Harper is masking his real nature - on the environment, constitutional rejigging and on Afghahnistan - in his quest for a majority. He's far too dogmatic in his ideologies to have made such an enlightened transformation as depicted in the face he now presents to the public. He knows what Canadians value and he's determined to prevail despite that.
Is it only me or has anyone else ever noticed that Harper speaks with the same, measured cadence as Cheney? Listen for it next time you hear him interviewed.
Weenie: It means Harper has no intention of doing anything about GHG and he feels supported by events and comments as per my comments. Why does Harper have to when people around the world believe Glaciers are rapidly melting just for the fun of it. Search Glacier.wmv in the search engine and see for yourself. You seem to be fairly articulate but perhaps you are the one who has inhaled too much GHG and not able to connect the two. Enna
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