The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Prime Minister Stephen HarperÕs most dangerous delusion is not accepting the scientific consensus that the biggest threat facing Canada Ð and the world Ð is the destruction of our environment in general, and global warming in particular. While Harper has long denied that global warming is real, he is smart enough to know that he has to portray himself as ÒgreenÓ if he wants to stay in power. But HarperÕs ÒleadershipÓ regarding environmental destruction is non-existent. Harper claims to understand the seriousness of the problem, yet has done nothing to protect Canadians. Instead of taking decisive action, he made the absurd claim that living up to our Kyoto commitments would mean shutting down the country. (Not coincidentally, that was the same propaganda repeated by the oil and automobile industries). Worse than mere inaction, the federal government has done everything it can to stand in the way of significant global progress. The position that Environment Minister John Baird took at the recent Bali conference, for instance, was the height of obstruction: in addition to opposing significant mandatory reductions, he proclaimed that Canada would do nothing unless every other country agreed first. Some leadership! If we donÕt invest in sustainable solutions now Ð such as mandatory reductions in greenhouse gases, carbon taxes, and improved public transportation Ð we will end up paying much higher costs in future. HarperÕs misleading statements about costs are contradicted by a British government report written by former World Bank economist Nicholas Stern, which concluded that only one per cent of global gross domestic product (GDP) per year is needed to avoid the worst effects of global warming, while the failure to do so could risk global GDP being reduced by up to 20 per cent. Unless the public demands that all levels of government act immediately, we may soon go past the ecological tipping point. ÒIf thereÕs no action before 2012, thatÕs too late,Ó said Rajendra Pachauri, a scientist and economist who heads the Nobel Prize-winning International Panel on Climate Change. The Canadian government gives billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies to oil and gas companies, and governments around the world waste over $1.2 trillion dollars every year on the military. Continuing to spend money on war while claiming that we canÕt afford to protect the natural world on which we depend is perverse.
