The REAL REASON for the "Global Warming" Rhetoric. YOUR MONEY!!

[Desertdog]

France Tells U.S. to Sign Climate Pacts or Face Tax
By KATRIN BENNHOLD
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/01/world/europe/01climate.html?ei=5090&en=718095d16a7c2e7f&ex=1327986000&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=print

PARIS, Jan. 31  President Jacques Chirac has demanded that the United States sign both the Kyoto climate protocol and a future agreement that will take effect when the Kyoto accord runs out in 2012.

He said that he welcomed last weeks State of the Union address in which President Bush described climate change as a serious challenge and acknowledged that a growing number of American politicians now favor emissions cuts.

But he warned that if the United States did not sign the agreements, a carbon tax across Europe on imports from nations that have not signed the Kyoto treaty could be imposed to try to force compliance. The European Union is the largest export market for American goods.

A carbon tax is inevitable, Mr. Chirac said. If it is European, and I believe it will be European, then it will all the same have a certain influence because it means that all the countries that do not accept the minimum obligations will be obliged to pay.

Trade lawyers have been divided over the legality of a carbon tax, with some saying it would run counter to international trade rules. But Mr. Chirac said other European countries would back it. I believe we will have all of the European Union, he said.

Mr. Chirac spoke as scientists from around the world gathered in Paris to discuss an authoritative international report on climate change, portions of which will be released on Friday.

Mr. Chiracs critics say that despite his comments in support of environmental measures, his record as president is far from green. He angered environmentalists across the globe when he conducted nuclear tests in a Pacific atoll within months of coming into office in 1995. He has been a loyal ally of French farmers and their pollution-causing practices, blocking some proposed Europe-wide reforms.

Most recently, Frances national plan for allocating carbon emission credits to businesses had to be revised after the European Union rejected it as too generous.

[Sindawe]

Sounds equitable to me.  We don't sign the Kyoto accords => they impose a carbon tax => we impose a duty on all European products and pull ALL our troops and material from Europe while returning the bases to a plot of bare land.

[Standing Wolf]

Mighty France speaks again. The world trembles.

[The Rabbi]

This has ALWAYS been about cadging more money from the U.S.  Virtually every idea to come from multinational organizations is aimed at getting more money from the U.S.   That's all it is.

[CAnnoneer]

They cannot impose it universally, because that will kill Chinese exports to them. They are far more interested in keeping China happy than keeping us happy. Something to do with their fifth liberal column in our country.

[HankB]

It seems that virtually all proposals to deal with the "problem" of manmade global warming are about money and power.

Period.

[Art Eatman]

China and India are not bound by the Kyoto accords.  Both nations have been industrializing at a great rate, and building coal-fired power plants as well as nukes.  Both have been extending their road systems; their vehicular traffic has been in exponential growth as well.  Yet, there's no limit on their output of CO2.

Returning to a 1990 level of CO2 output would pretty much wreck our economy; we wouldn't be able to produce all these goods for export to Europe, then.

Art

[HankB]

Returning to a 1990 level of CO2 output would pretty much wreck our economy;

And there we have the REAL reason much of Europe supports the Kyoto accords.

No doubt we have problems - big one - largely due to the insane increases in government spending over the last decade. But if you take a look at things like economic growth, unemployment, etc., Europe is, on average, in worse shape. They're afraid of falling behind us, but thanks to their coalition governments (which include Greens, socialists, etc.) they can't make any substantive changes in their economies to address their competitiveness.

So if they can't bring themselves up to our level . . . their only alternative to maintain a rough long-term parity with us is to drag us down to their level . . . and Kyoto (or something like it) is their current vehicle to do so.

(BTW, notice that virtually all international proposals to address "global warming" involve the USA paying other countries big bucks, and receiving nothing tangible in return?)

[Boomhauer]

Yep, and our politicians (each and every one of 'em) will be happy to sell our country out to them...
Remember the article about the polluted snow in Russia? Well, that is pollution coming out of CHINA, not the US- us driving hybrids and killing our economy won't help when that is going on...If our politicians do sell us out, then China will possibly become the sole superpower...
But don't worry- you won't have to learn Chinese. They are learning English in preparation for taking us over...

[Dannyboy]

Here's how I see the whole "Global Warming" thing.  These people obviously don't know the difference between corelation and causation.  I think that's fairly obvious.  More importantly, though, is that they all want everyone to be equal.  What's the best way to do that?  By taking the money away from the rich and making them poor as well.  If they get their way the global economy will be ruined and we will all be poor.  Equality through poverty.