Global domination? Whoa, Canada!

Boston Globe

Could we (the U.S.) handle a muscular new version of our quiet northern neighbors (Canada)? For that matter, could they? Full story here.

Commander-in-Chief Harper in Afghanistan

PLT Vindicated!

PLT: Not to boast or anything, but, on Nov. 1st...yesterday.... Bloomberg Businessweek, a magazine owned by the Mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, published a cover story entitled, "It's Global Warming, Stupid," (l.) in reference to Hurricane Sandy. In the spring of '09, over 3 years ago, I wrote a story entitled...wait for it...."It's Global Warming, Stupid." If you don't believe me, check it out, yourself!

New York Mayor Bloomberg Brings Climate Change out of the Closet in Stunning Snub to Romney

The Guardian

Mayor's endorsement could turn climate change into a serious election issue – and it might even embolden Republicans. Details here.

Yellow cabs underwater in New York.

Hypocricy, Cynicism and Lies Stain the Tory Record in Manitoba (Letter)

Dear Editor,

I never thought I'd say this. But I may be lucky to be living in a riding represented by a Member of Parliament on the government side, (Robert Sopuck - Dauphin/Swan River/Marquette) after all. I say this because the government Mr. Sopuck represents, under Stephen Harper, has decided the Assiniboine River, one of millions of lakes, rivers and streams in Canada, is among the very few designated as "protected" by its new, "Navigation Protection Act."  (It happens to flow through Mr. Sopuck's riding.) 

Shellmouth Dam on the Assiniboine. Could it now be harder to approve such structures in Tory ridings - but easier elsewhere? PLT photo.

The Assiniboine forms Lake of the Prairies, a popular area for cottagers and boaters, just a few clicks west of where I live. This protection means that ice-fishers, anglers and pleasure boaters will keep their historic right, which dates back to Sir John A. himself, to navigate the river without having to deal with any more bridges, mining or forestry equipment, pipelines or dams. At least, any proposed new infrastructure of this kind will need a permit from Ottawa. That apparently won't be the case for all those unprotected waterways. They, on the other hand, will be "wide open for business." 

For example, anyone living in the northern Manitoba riding of Churchill will apparently be left at the mercy of Captains of Industry who want to treat the waterways there as commodities for their own, personal gain. That's because the Churchill River is not on that "protected" list. The MP for that riding represents the Opposition NDP in parliament. Word even has it that over 90 percent of the waterways designated as "protected," fall within ridings represented by government members. I guess that'll teach us who to vote for, next time!

I speak with tongue in cheek, of course. In fact, this kind of government patronage reeks of a shoddy new low, even for the Harperites. And it once again lays threadbare the "cloak of green" Mr. Sopuck likes to put on, to cleverly disguise himself as an environmentalist.  

Also left in tatters is Harper's infamous pledge in his election victory speech, to be a leader "for all Canadians."

In fact, Mr. Sopuck is to speak tomorrow to the "Frontier Centre," where he actually used to work. It is a right-wing, climate-change-denying think-tank, currently being sued for libel by a leading U.S. climatologist. No, his scheduled topic is not, as it should be, about that recent, enormous Hurricane, Sandy or whether climate change played a role in it. Rather, it is the "improvements" his government is making to                             (Above) A PLT creation         environmental assessments and "the need to base decisions on science."

         

The reality is, Ottawa is gutting those assessments to the benefit of resource exploitation, removing habitat protection from many fish species and spitting in the faces of reputable scientists everywhere. For example, it slashed funding to the Experimental Lakes Area project earlier this year. The ELA has, for years, been recognized for world-renowned, ground-breaking research on water quality.

Meanwhile, in parliament, Mr. Sopuck has, in his speeches, helped perpetuate the lie that the NDP Opposition is advocating a carbon tax to help fight climate change. It is not. Even if it were, I'd say, so what? A carbon tax makes a lot of sense. Even sectors of the oil industry seem in favour of this as an effective way to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions. While I believe there would be a net benefit in turning to more alternative energy sources, surely we have to resign ourselves to paying some kind of price for a cleaner energy future.

Sadly, Mr. Sopuck's wilful mis-statements simply emphasize the fact that the Conservatives are the only party we can count on to do nothing about global warming, the most dangerous crisis facing the planet today. How many "Frankenstorms" like Sandy will we have to survive, to get him and his government to sit up and take notice?

Their fixation with investment and foreign trade deals, no matter what country we may be climbing into bed with, no matter how much sovereignty we may lose in the process, must end. 

Now.

Larry Powell
Roblin Manitoba

131 Years of Global Warming in 26 Seconds (Video)

OnEarth
From our friends at NASA comes this amazing 26-second video, depicting how temperatures around the globe have warmed since 1880. That year is what scientists call the beginning of the “modern record.” You’ll note an acceleration of those temperatures in the late 1970s as greenhouse gas emissions from energy production increased worldwide. The data comes from NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York, which monitors global surface temperatures. As NASA notes, “in this animation, reds indicate temperatures higher than the average during a baseline period of 1951-1980, while blues indicate lower temperatures than the baseline average.”

Scientists say Global Warming is Likely "Driver" for Intense Hurricanes

Calgary Herald 
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As America’s financial and political capitals braced for what the National Weather Service has called a storm of historic proportions, the subject that politicians here dare not mention has suddenly been pushed to the forefront of public attention by the massive power of nature. Details here.
Prof. Raymond Bradley
Unversity of Massachusetts

Organic Farmer Worries About Weedkiller Sprayed in Ditches in Rural Manitoba

CBC News:  
The Rural Municipality of Morton defends use of Tordon 101 for weeds.  Details here.

PLT: I despair over the lack of sensitivity which is all too common among our local councillors. They sometimes remind me of gunslingers from the Old West who shoot first and ask questions later. Do they even know what's in the stuff they so liberally spray around with apparent abandon? Here's what Wikipedia says about Tordon 101.

The maker of Tordon 101, Dow AgroSciences, has seen fit to give it a code name - "Agent White." It is a powerful herbicide which the US military sprayed as a defoliant during the Vietnam War. It was one of the so-called "rainbow herbicides" that included the more infamous Agent Orange. Unlike Agent Orange, Tordon 101 does not contains the potent poisons known as dioxins. But it does contain 2-4-D, another potent weedkiller which robs plants of their ability to absorb life giving, airborn nitrogen. And its other active ingredient, Picloram is, or was, contaminated with two known carcinogens. Dow is said to have greatly reduced the amounts of both of those in 1985.

Trouble is, determining what is an "acceptable minimum" level for carcinogens is tricky, to say the least.

I happen to know the central figure in this story, Mr. Neufeld. He is a sincere, intelligent and hard-working organic producer who genuinely wants to help make the world a better place. He does not deserve the blame-game his RM seems to be playing here.