Fiona Harvey at The Guardian writes Worst ever carbon emissions leave climate on the brink:
Greenhouse gas emissions increased by a record amount last year, to the highest carbon output in history, putting hopes of holding global warming to safe levels all but out of reach, according to unpublished estimates from the International Energy Agency.
The shock rise means the goal of preventing a temperature rise of more than 2 degrees Celsius – which scientists say is the threshold for potentially "dangerous climate change" – is likely to be just "a nice Utopia", according to Fatih Birol, chief economist of the IEA. It also shows the most serious global recession for 80 years has had only a minimal effect on emissions, contrary to some predictions.
Last year, a record 30.6 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide poured into the atmosphere, mainly from burning fossil fuel – a rise of 1.6Gt on 2009, according to estimates from the IEA regarded as the gold standard for emissions data. ...
• About 80% of the power stations likely to be in use in 2020 are either already built or under construction, the IEA found. Most of these are fossil fuel power stations unlikely to be taken out of service early, so they will continue to pour out carbon – possibly into the mid-century. The emissions from these stations amount to about 11.2Gt, out of a total of 13.7Gt from the electricity sector. These "locked-in" emissions mean savings must be found elsewhere. ...
Another telling message from the IEA's estimates is the relatively small effect that the recession – the worst since the 1930s – had on emissions. Initially, the agency had hoped the resulting reduction in emissions could be maintained, helping to give the world a "breathing space" and set countries on a low-carbon path. The new estimates suggest that opportunity may have been missed.
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At Daily Kos on this date in 2007:
So you're a power broker in your state. THE power broker. Your party's governor is scandal plagued, under indictment, and sports approval ratings that rival George Bush's. So you gin up a primary challenger, let's call her "Anne Northup". She's a former congresswoman, still fairly popular, and relatively clean from an ethics standpoint. She barely gets 30 percent of the vote as your indicted governor romps to an easy victory.
Supporters of this indicted governor, let's call him "Ernie Fletcher", are feeling frisky. You've been exposed as the proverbial emperor with no clothes. Your "machine" is out of gas. And, in a fit of pique, they start revving up a potential primary challenger. Oh, did I mention you're a Senator? And not just any senator, but the leader of your party?
What to you do?
Apparently you get down on your knees.
“I’ve never met a finer man than our governor, Ernie Fletcher,” said [Mitch] McConnell. “I’m proud of Ernie Fletcher. I’m proud of Glenna Fletcher. And I’m proud of the image they present for our state.”
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