The global warming lie.

by Garry Cook

The British Government has gone environment crazy.

The news, the radio, every national newspaper (apart from the Daily Star and Daily Sport) have been buzzing with the story. Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor Gordon Brown must be loving it. Attention for the right reasons.

The pair want to cut carbon emitions worldwide. Good. They want action to stop deforestation. Good. They want to charge us higher taxes. Not good.

The Stern report, published at the end of October 2006, says we are entering ‘dangerous territory’ unless carbon emissions are cut sharpish.

Like everybody else I’d like to see carbon emissions reduced. I’d also like to the end of all wars and a stop to the destruction of beautiful green spaces. None of these things are going to happen.

While I accept that everyone needs to pull in the right direction, what I can’t stomach is the quite unfounded threat that we are all doomed if global warming gets out of hand.

Blair and his ‘mate’ Brown’s unification behind the Green Issue and green taxes wreaks of self-interest – opportunism to raise a bit more cash. What we need, especially from a British media which seemingly can’t help itself every time it is handed en environmental scare story, is a bit of truth and honesty.

Put down your Daily Mails and listen.

Let’s get this straight – global warming is happening.

But let’s get another thing straight – global warming is NOT due to carbon emissions.

Long before man roamed the earth, this planet was forever heating up, cooling down, freezing and then burning. Do you remember being taught about the Ice Age at school? Did you know that before that Britain was once a desert?

The extreme changes in climate of this planet – hot to cold too hot too cold - probably goes far beyond anything we will ever know. Only thing is, millions and billions of years ago there were no carbon emissions to blame.

No, this climate change business is purely natural. The reason for it is complicated. The position of the earth’s axis – its wobble – and how far away it is from the sun on its natural orbit (which can vary greatly over millions of years).

Presently, we are midway through a ‘hot’ period.’ In fact, the planet is slowly getting warmer. In northern England, I remember winters twenty years ago much colder than they are now. We used to get much more snow then. My mam and dad used to experience months of snow, often six feet deep in the 1950s. Not now.

It is wrong to blame this gradual warming on carbon emissions, greenhouse emissions or whatever you want to call it.

So is it right that the government threaten us with stories of oblivion, and use it as an excuse to introduce ‘green’ taxes? Is it bollocks.

What governments around the world should be doing is gathering together, looking long term and trying to work out how we will cope with increased temperatures, higher sea levels and other consequences.

Blaming consumers and taxing them is both false profiteering.

In a way George W Bush and his thoughtless Yanks were right not to sign the Kyoto Agreement, though they probably refused to conform for the wrong reasons (i.e. greed and profits for domineering American companies).

Even if every consumer in this country (or any country) recycled to the hilt, saved the maximum energy possible and reduced gas emissions from central heating, cookers and cars, it would only make a fraction of difference as heavy industry uses up the bulk of energy in any country.

Heavy industry also emits far more pollution than consumers. Ditto wasting energy.

It is heavy industry which governments need to take target if emission reduction targets are to be met.

And even then, if the impossible is achieved and heavy industry does cut emissions, the world will still be warming up afterwards.

We need to stand up against the excuse of taxes behind green issues. But this is a battle which won’t be won lightly. The media are not on our side, the government is our enemies. The people need to speak. Common sense needs to prevail. Pick up your recycling boxes’ lids and prepare for battle.