Carter's Storm

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Roger Cohen discusses the controversy over Jimmy Carter and his recent book "Palestine: Peace not Apartheid." Mr. Cohen is a bit hard on Israel, but he seems a nice counter-weight to Monk's rather striking pro-Israel zeal (a zeal that perhaps owes something to the terrorist tactics of the Palestinians and their jihadist supporters). In this discussion, though, I was glad to see the Democrats continuing to stand firm with Israel:

Here is what Pelosi had to say in a recent statement: "With all due respect to former President Carter, he does not speak for the Democratic Party on Israel." On the contrary, she continued, "We stand with Israel now and we stand with Israel forever."

With respect to the strong ways that Isreal separates herself from the Palestinians, what should one do anent those who continually seek to attack the country? As far as the poverty of Palestinians goes, is it Israel's fault that the Palestinians follow policies of terrorism and warfare instead of those of economic and democratic self-improvement? The Palestinians need to work on the skills of peace and prosperity, which are necessary ingredients for statehood.

( Cohen column )

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Carter's Storm

♠
Roger Cohen discusses the controversy over Jimmy Carter and his recent book "Palestine: Peace not Apartheid." Mr. Cohen is a bit hard on Israel, but he seems a nice counter-weight to Monk's rather striking pro-Israel zeal (a zeal that perhaps owes something to the terrorist tactics of the Palestinians and their jihadist supporters). In this discussion, though, I was glad to see the Democrats continuing to stand firm with Israel:

Here is what Pelosi had to say in a recent statement: "With all due respect to former President Carter, he does not speak for the Democratic Party on Israel." On the contrary, she continued, "We stand with Israel now and we stand with Israel forever."

With respect to the strong ways that Isreal separates herself from the Palestinians, what should one do anent those who continually seek to attack the country? As far as the poverty of Palestinians goes, is it Israel's fault that the Palestinians follow policies of terrorism and warfare instead of those of economic and democratic self-improvement? The Palestinians need to work on the skills of peace and prosperity, which are necessary ingredients for statehood.

( Cohen column )

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The Ultimate Hot Potato

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I suppose that it is a sign that the global warming information is being taken seriously when we see a lot more finger pointing. Here is China:

BEIJING, Feb. 6 — China said Tuesday that wealthier countries must take the lead in curbing greenhouse gas emissions and refused to say whether it would agree to any mandatory emissions limits that might hamper its booming economy.

Jiang Yu, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, said China was willing to contribute to an international effort to combat global warming but placed the primary responsibility on richer, developed nations that have been polluting for much longer.

“It must be pointed out that climate change has been caused by the long-term historic emissions of developed countries and their high per capita emissions,” she said, adding that developed countries have responsibilities for global warming “that cannot be shirked.”

And here is Brazil:

RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb. 6 (Reuters) — The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said Tuesday that wealthy countries were responsible for global warming and that they should stop telling Brazil what to do with the Amazon rain forest.

“The wealthy countries are very smart, approving protocols, holding big speeches on the need to avoid deforestation, but they already deforested everything,” Mr. da Silva said during the announcement of a public works project in Rio de Janeiro.

But I suppose nothing much will be done. Everybody wants more stuff and more economic development, rich and poor countries alike. And what will be, will be.

(Source: Jim Yardley for The New York Times)

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The Ultimate Hot Potato

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I suppose that it is a sign that the global warming information is being taken seriously when we see a lot more finger pointing. Here is China:

BEIJING, Feb. 6 — China said Tuesday that wealthier countries must take the lead in curbing greenhouse gas emissions and refused to say whether it would agree to any mandatory emissions limits that might hamper its booming economy.

Jiang Yu, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, said China was willing to contribute to an international effort to combat global warming but placed the primary responsibility on richer, developed nations that have been polluting for much longer.

“It must be pointed out that climate change has been caused by the long-term historic emissions of developed countries and their high per capita emissions,” she said, adding that developed countries have responsibilities for global warming “that cannot be shirked.”

And here is Brazil:

RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb. 6 (Reuters) — The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said Tuesday that wealthy countries were responsible for global warming and that they should stop telling Brazil what to do with the Amazon rain forest.

“The wealthy countries are very smart, approving protocols, holding big speeches on the need to avoid deforestation, but they already deforested everything,” Mr. da Silva said during the announcement of a public works project in Rio de Janeiro.

But I suppose nothing much will be done. Everybody wants more stuff and more economic development, rich and poor countries alike. And what will be, will be.

(Source: Jim Yardley for The New York Times)

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How We Learned To Love Global Warming

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Don't be fooled. The dirty secret about global warming is this: We have no solution. About 80 percent of the world's energy comes from fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas), the main sources of man-made greenhouse gases. Energy use sustains economic growth, which -- in all modern societies -- buttresses political and social stability. Until we can replace fossil fuels or find practical ways to capture their emissions, governments will not sanction the deep energy cuts that would truly affect global warming.

-- Robert J. Samuelson for The Washington Post

I like to limit the global warming story down to no more than one post per day, but it has been a big couple of weeks, and I think that Mr. Robert Samuelson caps affairs nicely. He can come across as being wretchedly cynical in this column, but sometimes that is what it takes to get to the sour truth. Or at least this black note resonates well with my own mood.

( Samuelson column )

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How We Learned To Love Global Warming

♠
Don't be fooled. The dirty secret about global warming is this: We have no solution. About 80 percent of the world's energy comes from fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas), the main sources of man-made greenhouse gases. Energy use sustains economic growth, which -- in all modern societies -- buttresses political and social stability. Until we can replace fossil fuels or find practical ways to capture their emissions, governments will not sanction the deep energy cuts that would truly affect global warming.

-- Robert J. Samuelson for The Washington Post

I like to limit the global warming story down to no more than one post per day, but it has been a big couple of weeks, and I think that Mr. Robert Samuelson caps affairs nicely. He can come across as being wretchedly cynical in this column, but sometimes that is what it takes to get to the sour truth. Or at least this black note resonates well with my own mood.

( Samuelson column )

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The Times Are A-Changin'

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“I really don't know whether we'll be printing the Times in five years, and you know what? I don't care, either.”

-- Arthur Sulzberger

Mr. Sulzberger is the publisher of the New York Times, and I just think this is a nice indication of how the world is changing. Forward and onward, brave new world! Besides, printed papers are so dirty, and you cannot copy & paste.

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The Times Are A-Changin'

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“I really don't know whether we'll be printing the Times in five years, and you know what? I don't care, either.”

-- Arthur Sulzberger

Mr. Sulzberger is the publisher of the New York Times, and I just think this is a nice indication of how the world is changing. Forward and onward, brave new world! Besides, printed papers are so dirty, and you cannot copy & paste.

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