The watertiger household is very, very happy right now - Kevin Rudd of the Labor Party has swept Li'l Johnny Howard, George Bush's second favorite poodle, out of power down in Australia!
AP Photo/Mark Baker
One of the reasons this is so important:
But one of the biggest changes will be in Australia's approach to climate change. Rudd has nominated the issue as his top priority, and promises to immediately sign the Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gas emissions.
When he does so, the United States will stand alone as the only industrialized country not to have signed the pact.
Read all about George's favorite Australian losing EVERYTHING here.
Canada hasn't signed Kyoto either, because it won't achieve its purported goal of reducing greenhouse gases.
It will just put money into the pockets of China and India. It's all smoke and mirrors.
Posted by: Caveat | November 24, 2007 at 09:26 AM
Hmmm - Howard's End!
P.S. Caveat - it doesn't make any difference - one by one they are falling!!!
Posted by: JeffinBerlin | November 24, 2007 at 10:36 AM
Oh, to see such a pained scowl on cheney's face...sooner rather than later, I hope!
Congrats to Rudd and the Aussies!!! Send some of that good vibe over here!
Blessings,
Elspeth
Posted by: Elspeth R | November 24, 2007 at 10:53 AM
We need something that will have impact and Kyoto isn't it.
Polluters/GG emitters will carry on as usual and just pay for the privilege.
If China would sign on to some serious environmental initiatives, that might have an effect.
Funny thing is, consumers overwhelmingly WANT eco-friendly alternatives. There just aren't enough products out there. Educating the consumer is working so if we can get enough demand and principled buying going on the marketplace will comply. Government is the most impotent player in the race to implement positive change in this arena. What they should be doing, instead of wasting time on weak initiatives like Kyoto is investing in new technology and R&D through grants and loans so companies can bring better products to market sooner.
When the technology is available, people will switch, increasing demand which will bring down prices. Right now, most people can't afford to retrofit to active solar ($30 - 50K here in Canada), for example, but if there's enough demand and if eco-friendly features become the norm rather than an alternative, the change will be less painful overall.
jmo
Posted by: Caveat | November 24, 2007 at 12:03 PM
excellent.
Posted by: pansypoo | November 24, 2007 at 12:16 PM
MST3K covered the Australian elections?
Posted by: The Kenosha Kid | November 24, 2007 at 01:14 PM
Of course Howard lost -- his party is the LIBERAL party.
/Limbaugh
Posted by: TeddySanFran | November 24, 2007 at 06:30 PM
YAY!!
Loving chimpy isn't a good career move.
Posted by: fourlegsgood | November 24, 2007 at 09:42 PM
Kyoto may not be the answer to global warming, but I get a little tired of 'Kyoto bashing'. Bush & Co have done enough of it, without supposedly saner individuals jumping on the bandwagon. Kyoto is a commitment. It may not be a particularly binding commitment but it's a start. It's better than no commitment, and the US has made no commitment whatever to combating global warming. While everyone sits around having intellectual debates on what's right and what's wrong, the planet will blow up in our faces. Kyoto was never more than a baseline to build from, a show of willingness to participate. Industrialized nations who refuse to sign it put greed and power above saving possibly billions of lives. Oh, and stop blaming China. China hasn't caused the problem, and European governments were cutting environmental pollution when the phrase hadn't even been invented in the States. What the US needs is government that legislates to force motor manufacturers to produce cleaner, more economical cars (French cars of two liter capacity regularly return over 60 mpg) and corporates to clean up their filthy polluting industries. Then, and only then, can they a) begin to pressure China, and b) criticize the Kyoto Protocol.
Posted by: RJ Adams | November 24, 2007 at 10:03 PM
Good riddance you racist dweeb - go back to the 1950s where you came from and where you think we should all still be!
Posted by: Nicki | November 25, 2007 at 12:32 AM
1850's.
Posted by: pansypoo | November 25, 2007 at 02:12 PM
K, sorry, I was getting serious because the environment is and always has been my number one concern.
What I meant by China is that unless China and the US sign on to a binding agreement, there's no point in even talking about one.
China and the US are responsible for 40% of worldwide emissions so without their commitment, there can't be a positive change.
Now, I promise not to be serious over here again.
Posted by: Caveat | November 25, 2007 at 04:49 PM