The environment isn't a special interest

Although some people seem to think it is.  It's not like hockey, or hunting, or the opera where you can choose whether or not you want it to be part of your life.  Unlike skiing, or golf, or the art of origami, you can't just ignore it if you aren't interested and unlike those things, it will have a major impact on your life whether you believe it is worth taking into account or not.

Care of the environment isn't something that can be put on hold like renovating the Parliament buildings or building a hockey rink.  We can't keep saying there's no money in our budget to meet the challenges of climate change or protect the ozone layer. 

Because it isn't a special interest and because it affects everyone right at the survival level, we can't treat it like a marketable product that needs to compete with other products or interests.  It can't be forced to compete with oil profits or political ideologies, but largely, that's what's being done.

This week, knowledge-challenged Kent will be going to Durban to discuss climate change.  His plan?  Defend Alberta’s oilsands.  Not discuss ways we can deal with climate change, but defend one of the very things that aggravates the very serious problem.  Our Environment Minister's priority is how to stop environmental protection from interfering expanding oil production.  If anyone still has any doubts that the harper government™ is not at all concerned about climate change or any aspects of our environment, this insane plan for the Durban meetings should quell those permanently.

As harper tries to keep some distance from the crazy Levant, his party has picked up on the term "ethical oil" although Kent thinks we are all as stupid as him and says the term "came from somewhere in (his) unconsciousness" before he ever heard of it in connection to Ezra.  Right.  Sure. 

So Kent is going to use that dishonest argument at a climate change summit to attempt to convince countries that recognize the necessity of actually having an environment that can sustain us that increasing production of Canadian oil will somehow benefit burka shrouded women in the Middle East.

These aren't a bunch of distracted Canadian voters he'll be addressing.  He can't count on their ignorance of science, social issues, and the harsh realities of climate change lapping up at shores across the globe, causing droughts and famines, drying up rivers reliant on ice caps.

Besides embarrassing Canadians by his small town, small minded politics, he will not likely meet with much success -

(N)egotiating climate change agreements in South Africa by bringing up the ethics of Canada’s oil may not be the firmest ground for Canada’s government delegations...

“The ethical oil sort of messaging has certainly been popping up. It certainly wouldn’t have been around three or four years ago,” Matt Horne says. But in Europe, as focus turns to curbing the production of carbon-intensive fuels, “it doesn’t seem to be a dominant part in that debate. They’re much more focused on the environmental implications of different sources of oil.”

“The fact that we have a stable democratic system is good, that’s not an excuse not to move forward on environmental considerations as well, though. It certainly wouldn’t surprise me if it’s raised by some, but I don’t think that will satisfy the many people who are rightly looking at the environmental concerns as well.”

Like Baird before him, on harper's orders, Kent will do what he can to slow progress on climate talks.  I think that rather than gaining any points for Canada, he will return with our image even more tarnished and put us at a disadvantage when invitations are issued for tight groups intent on making real change happen.  We'll be the country listed on their agendas as problematic.