I realize that there are a lot of things going on in the news these days, but I find it amazing that when something like the UN Climate Conference is happening in Poland as we speak, I am hard-pressed to find anyone covering it.
Yes, I realize that the economy is in the forefront of everyone mind,(mine included). And Bailouts are the hot topic at the water-cooler. But, (and you knew there was going to be one) why isn’t anyone talking about something that will affect us all for the rest of our lives…let alone the future generations?? Am I being dramatic? I don’t’ think so.
I can easily offer that I have always felt the news is very skewed. If I stand back long enough, I can equate the news media with a group of gossipy girls in high school…always talking about the hot topic and treating everything else like “yesterday’s news.”
Now, I am fortunate that I have available to me friends who are at the conference, so I can keep abreast of what’s going on. But when I run a Google search about the conference, mostly what I pull up is dated from last year. Gee, I can’t imagine why it’s hard to get people involved in taking action in what should matter most to them.
What you are missing is that the United States is actually doing good at the conference. People at the conference are feeling really good about the Obama administration and what promises it is offering our future.
The new villain seems to be Canada, with it’s efforts to weaken their commitment to reducing carbon emissions. “Kyoto required industrial countries to cut emissions by an average five per cent from 1990 levels. Canada has rejected that standard, seeking instead to reduce emissions by 20 per cent from 2006 levels by 2020.” Using a down turned economy as it rationale. Australia is also dragging it’s heels in the agreement, giving keynote speakers like Al Gore a lot to do to convince them to stay on board.
11,600 participants from all over the world are at this convention. Now I realize that it’s not as big as the Obama rallies pre-election, but significant nonetheless. “Negotiators have been discussing a number of issues that are important in the short run – up to 2012 – particularly for developing countries, including adaptation, finance, technology and reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation,” said the UN’s top climate change official Yvo de Boer. If you want to talk “Bailout”, let’s talk about how we need to bailout third world countries so they won’t continue to destroy the rain forests in order to survive.
The decisions made here are amazing and will help guide our future for the better or for the worse. And yet it doesn’t seem to get the attention it deserves. The news may be fair (cough, cough), but I have yet to believe that it is balanced.
