General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe most important thing in the world is nowhere in the news.
That's the climate summit in Paris, almost a week elapsed, with the largest international representation and the most at stake for any event in history.
Well, it's not "nowhere" in the news, unless you count back pages and search-only stories as "nowhere." Taking all the headlines and most of the ink, of course, is mass murder: 14 here, 120 there, 7 down the road. Our media are now so geared to stories of killers, first responders, crime scene investigations and candlelight vigils that the reporting jargon is becoming standardized, from week to week and from town to town.
Despite some compelling evidence that a warming climate is related to terrorism and violence around the world, US media are not gonna go down that road. In fact, accusing Obama of fiddling around with global warming while ISIS threatens our American Way Of Life is standard fare for talk radio and right-wing political cartoons. Culture war hot buttons like abortion, religion and guns fit right into the jangling narrative around terrorism (witness the number of threads on DU), but truly deeper issues of long-term survival just don't have the legs for TV, or even Internet spaces.
Some part of my brain tells me the Powers That Be, while perhaps not happy about the violence currently spinning out of control, are content to let Paris stories be less about this week's events and more about last month's.
DFW
(54,480 posts)Not enough uncontaminated fresh water, and too much salt water, which is also getting too warm and too dirty to sustain marine life as we have known it during the last few centuries.
Knowing us, we'll wait until Cape Hatteras, Miami Beach and Nantucket become underwater marine sanctuaries before seriously looking at why.
riversedge
(70,419 posts)marym625
(17,997 posts)And more about the protest than the summit.
I don't understand why the right wing still denies global warming.is happening. There's no doubt about it and I don't believe for a second they don't know this.
Obviously, profit is more important than anything to them. More important than women's lives. More important than civil rights and human rights. More important than civil liberties. Worse, more important than leaving a habitable planet to their kids and grandkids.
.
It won't be too far in the future that all the guns in this country will be used to protect fresh water on someone's property and to steal that water. People are already killing each other for fresh water in Yemen and a few other places. The Syrian refugees are due, not just because of ISIS but to the fact that farmers can't use the land any longer.
Over population will continue, which will cause even a greater shortage of natural resources and will increase the rate of global warming.
We do something now or it will be too late. If it isn't already
Prism
(5,815 posts)Behold and realize just how hard we're fucking ourselves.
It's fine, though! Kind of not our problem!
Our kids and grandkids though . . .
(Although, we have a lot of "By 2050 . . ." going on, and I'll probably be afoot then. Oh well, whatever!)
malaise
(269,257 posts)272 dead so far.
hatrack
(59,600 posts)With a thin patina of solar panels on top, of course!
Bernardo de La Paz
(49,064 posts)CJCRANE
(18,184 posts)including fundamentalist ideologies.
Lordquinton
(7,886 posts)or thereabouts. Way worse than California, and not nearly the infrastructure.
Droughts cause unrest, migrations, and wars. The Anasazi collapse was due to severe drought. Not only can it happen here, it has happened here.
raouldukelives
(5,178 posts)The more that stand with Wall St, the less that stand with Main St.
There are realities that are bad for long range profits. Those realities are ignored, marginalized or dismissed on behalf of shareholders, thanks to the financial backing of the shareholder and the John Hancock of the shareholder which grants the corporations fiduciary responsibility in their name. Carte blanche to rape, pillage, pollute and lie to us all, in return for wealth for themselves.
It is no secret, it is just the way it is. And nothing will get better until people grow up, stop supporting avarice with all their soul and start supporting a habitable future for all, not just the wealthiest.
We live in the most reality, the most change, the most progress, the most peace, Wall St investors will allow the rest of us.
Vinca
(50,323 posts)Corporations are the sugar daddies of the right. Politicians on the right don't care if the planet is habitable for their heirs as long as they can generate a buck for the corporations and fill their campaign coffers. The main objective is to keep the bank accounts of big corporations filled to the gills and politicians safe in their cushy jobs. Anything related to the well being of the citizens of the country is secondary.
femmedem
(8,209 posts)Last edited Sat Dec 5, 2015, 08:48 AM - Edit history (1)
But my local paper? Small stories, not prominently placed. And on the eve of the talks, they ran an op-ed by climate change denier Alex Epstein.
freedom fighter jh
(1,782 posts)Democracy Now is covering it. Amy Goodman broadcast from Paris all this week.Clips are posted at democracynow.org.
Mojorabbit
(16,020 posts)muriel_volestrangler
(101,405 posts)Negotiators are edging towards a compromise on one of the most divisive issues between countries at the COP21 climate change talks in Paris.
"Loss and damage" is the idea that compensation should be paid to vulnerable states for climate-related events that they cannot adapt to.
The issue has provoked heated arguments and walkouts at previous conferences.
But here in Paris, negotiators from the US and small island states are said to be "closer" to an agreement.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-35012781
spanone
(135,921 posts)Ron Green
(9,823 posts)the transportation bill would look very different.
Duppers
(28,130 posts)Last edited Sat Dec 5, 2015, 07:25 PM - Edit history (1)
Folks, check out the Environment & Energy Group -
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1127
olddots
(10,237 posts)and lethal .
Mojorabbit
(16,020 posts)and it was all guns guns guns. Guns will not matter if we do not do something about climate change.
freedom fighter jh
(1,782 posts)except maybe access to dry land and clean water.
freedom fighter jh
(1,782 posts)I've started another thread that tries to do more of the same.