More than 120 environment ministers were asked to sing along at a U.N. climate meeting in Bali on Wednesday — to lyrics written by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
Against the backdrop of a video showing mudslides, trees uprooted by storms, floods and droughts, the words of the song rolled over the bottom of the screen, almost like in a karaoke bar.
Not many delegates dared to show off their singing skills (despite encouragement, twice, from a woman hosting the event). Here are some of the words (to a tune similar to the U.S. hit ”We are the world, we are the children”… but not quite):
“We have only one planet
Where we live and make our home
Together we must save it
For our childrens’ future
Mother Earth is getting warmer
Climate change is tragedy for all
Together we must find answers
Don’t let it destroy our life
(and then the chorus)
We all gather in Bali
We all gather in Bali
We want to save our planet
We want to save our planet
We are all united here in Bali
For a better life, a better world
For you and me.”
The video ended with a shift to smiling children dressed in white in a beautiful tropical forest.
…So when did your prime minister or president last write a song?
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2 comments so far
In your article on the US reversal on a climate change treaty in Bali, you state President Bush pulled the US out of Kyoto. How can you post such blatant falsehood?
During President Clinton’s administration, the US Senate voted unamimously to approve the Bryd-Hagel Resolution. The Bryd-Hagel Resolution basically stated the Senate would not reconisder Kyoto until such time as it treated all nations equally. Our Constitution requires our Seante to aprove a treaty by a 2/3rds majority before the treaty is presented to our President for ratification. Since our Senate voted NOT to endorse Kyoto while Clinton was President and has never voted on it again, it is impossible for President Bush to have pulled us out of Kyoto - we were never in it! Furthermore, the President in office when the Senate voted against Kyoto was CLINTON, not BUSH.
This kind of shoddy reporting on climate change is a huge reason so many myths on the subject exist.
For example, yes the US is the biggest emitter of greenhouse gasses but WHY? Simply because we produce the most. If you look at prdouction efficiency in terms of energy used per unit produced, we other perform every other industiral nation by huge amounts. In other words, we produce more but we already lead the world in terms of smallest amount of pollution per unit produced.
Since 2000 (when Bush took office, I might add), the US has retarded their rate of Greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) more than any other industrialized nation in the world. In 2006, we were the only industrialized nation to actually REDUCE the rate of our GHG emissions.
Meanwhile the industrialized nations in Kyoto struggle well behind their emission restriction goals.
If environmentalists TRULY wish to curb GHG rates worldwide, perhaps they should take a closer look at what President Bush is doing and get other nations to follow suit instead of slamming him over and over. President Bush has the US strides ahead of the Kyoto signatories in terms of GHG reduction.
In the meantime, Reuthers should get off their politcal agenda driven reporting and stick to reporting the facts. Filling your articles with garbage and editorial comment does nothing but cement your reputation as one of the most unreliable sources of news on the planet.
- Posted by Micharl BrennerThere is now an answer to cleanup the climate.
There is a technology to neutralize CO2 emissions from any engine burning fossil fuels. Power Plants, Air transport, Land transport, Sea transport included.
This device has been tested on a motor car and results measured and observed. Currently the technology is being documented.
Peter griffiths http://petergriffiths.org
- Posted by Peter Griffiths