Will the Paris climate talks speed up the change in the world's energy landscape?
Carl Pope, former executive director of the Sierra Club, writes—
Paris Climate Talks Could Bring as Much Progress as Previous 20 COPs Combined:
Neither Paris nor Lyon are burning—yet. But sweltering, roasting under 40° centigrade (106°F) skies, they definitely are—and the delegates gathering in Lyon to channel the climate action potential of cities, states and provinces feel the heat. In addition to the weather, the World Summit on Climate and Territories suffers from the usual conference burden of deadening boiler plate and an occasional diplomatic aversion to hard truths—such as an entire document on transportation and climate which managed to avoid a single use of the words “oil” or “petroleum.”
Nonetheless, listening to these proceedings and tracking the outside context, it seems likely to me that COP21 may entrain as much climate progress as the previous 20 COP’s put together—which is the kind of breakthrough the world needs.
The reason is simple. This time climate action has momentum. [...]
These delegates are here to make sure their voices—and their contributions—are heard and counted by the national governments which will convene in Paris in December. What is different about the mood this summer, compared to the months before Copenhagen six years ago, is that that summer failure loomed, and people felt trapped. This time the world—a broad diversity of actors—wants in on the action—that’s the gift momentum creates.
Listen to Sharon Burrows, the head of the International Trade Union Federation. Her theme: “Coal is gone in 10-15 years. Oil and gas have maybe another 20-30. But no government is planning for it. We’re not getting ready nearly fast enough.”
She calls for a just transition, and points out that labor has investments as well as jobs at stake. Unions have $30-50 trillion invested in pension funds, etc. “We asked five years ago for 5 percent of our savings to be put into the clean energy transition—but less than 3 percent has moved. It’s largely because pension investors and managers are not governed by the long term. We need an investment and planning cycle that reflects the new realities.”
Blast from the Past. At Daily Kos on this date in 2014—Florida attorney general tries the old 'marriage is for having babies' case against equality:
Despite court after court after court ruling for marriage equality, some opponents of equality are still fighting tooth and nail to prevent progress. That includes Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi [...]
Because no one in the history of ever tried to argue that the state had an interest in preventing some people who cannot have biological children together from marrying while making no objection to the marriages of other people who cannot have biological children together. It's a completely original legal argument likely to be well-received by the courts. Or else it's an argument attempted by Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, only to be slapped down by a federal judge saying "These arguments are not those of serious people." It's one or the other of those. (It's the latter, the non-serious-people one.)
But then, "serious person" is not the most common description of Pam Bondi. This is, after all, someone who delayed an execution to attend a fundraiser, demonstrating her deep and pure concern for matters of human life, justice, and the law.
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today's Kagro in the Morning show, KITM salutes the great city of Madison, WI!
Greg Dworkin comes on to talk of the history of the Confederate flag. Will history repeat itself with the latest Democratic momentum? Is the GOP on the wrong side of history again? Or is Hillary on the wrong side of history? What are the polls saying? Overwhelmed by the depth and breadth of the mistakes in the US media coverage of Greece’s economic troubles and solutions proposed,
Arliss Bunny calls in, comprehensively setting the record straight. One more open carry disaster, in an Austin, TX hotel. Could've been a good guy with a gun, though, until his bullets started entering people.
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