John Howard - "World Not Coming To An End Tomorrow" On Warming - Wants "Balanced " Approach

[hatrack]

Sound familiar?

:puke:

Mr Howard was responding to the release of a dramatic new report on the dangers of global warming by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). "My view is that there's a serious challenge,'' Mr Howard said. "My view also is that the world is not coming to an end tomorrow and that like all of these things we have to get a commonsense, balanced approach.''

Mr Howard said the Australian people should vote at next weekend's election for the party that has the best and most balanced plan to fix climate change. "You need an emission trading system that's comprehensive, and we have proposed that,'' he said. "You need an investment in alternative energy, and we have proposed that. "You need a new international agreement that includes countries like China, and we have always argued for that, and Labor now agrees with us.''

He also said people should be "very afraid'' of the prospect of having Labor's environment spokesman Peter Garrett represent Australia's interests at next month's international climate change summit in Bali.

But Labor leader Kevin Rudd said the prime minister had been economically irresponsible by failing to outline a future plan to deal with climate change.

EDIT

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22778836-1702,00.html

[MADem]

1. I agree with a "balanced approach" myself!!! I think we have to balance out all those years of

spewing SHIT into the water, the earth and the air by incorporating Green technologies into our daily lives to the maximum extent possible!

That seems like a reasonable "balance" to me!!!!!!

[PDJane]

2. Balanced, huh..........

Balancing drought with the oceans rising? Floods and hurricanes with forest fires?

God, how did we ever manage to get to be dominant?

[cal04]

3. Australia's Rudd will sign Kyoto pact if wins vote

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SYD3726.htm

Australia's Labor Party leader Kevin Rudd said on Monday he would lead his country's delegation to December's Bali climate summit and sign the Kyoto pact if he wins power at this weekend's parliamentary elections.

Rudd, strongly leading conservative prime minister and Kyoto critic John Howard in polls, said the fight against catastrophic climate shift would be his top priority if he won on Nov. 24.

"I want to simply demonstrate that we have gone from outside the tent to inside the tent, I think it is important to make that statement," Rudd told the Australian Financial Review.

Australia, the world's biggest greenhouse polluter per head, has along with the United States refused to sign the Kyoto pact, with Howard arguing it would harm the economy and cost jobs.


Libs at war over Kyoto
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22783391-601,00.html

NSW opposition energy spokesman Peter Debnam has contradicted Coalition climate policy, saying Australia should have signed the Kyoto protocol long ago.

His stance puts him at loggerheads with Prime Minister John Howard, who warmly endorsed Mr Debnam in his failed bid earlier this year to become NSW premier at the state election.

[razzleberry]

6. means nothing

lots of countries ratified Kyoto.

none passed enacting legislation

[marmar]

4. Apparently he hasn't been paying much attention to his local news....

Hasn't Australia been suffering from weather extremes for the last few years? He's Bush with a cool accent.

[lordsummerisle]

5. The worst drought in a millenium

http://www.guardian.co.uk/australia/story/0,,1941942,00.html

[phantom power]

7. That's kind of ironical

considering that Australia may be on the ropes from climate change sooner than any other industrialized country. Except maybe for Atlanta here in the USA.

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. He's an idiot.