Climate talks stall amid protests in Copenhagen

[pampango]

Source: BBC

Formal negotiations at the UN climate summit have ground to a halt following wrangles about what documents should be used as the basis for talks. Beneath the dispute lies a long-running accusation from developing countries that the Danish hosts are trying to sideline their concerns.

Outside, police clashed with protesters who stormed barricades around Copenhagen's Bella Centre. Activists have been angered by lack of progress on a new climate deal.

The day began - as many have - with a delay of more than an hour, leaving delegates less than 20 minutes to discuss reports back from various working parties. On the most controversial issue - further emission cuts from developed nations - there was no agreement, the working group reported.

In the main hall, meanwhile, leaders speeches continued, with Mr Zenawi - who chairs the African group here - among the first to the platform. "Every one of us knows that Africa has contributed virtually nothing to global warming but has been hit first and hardest," he said. "But we are not here as victims of the past but... so that we can build a better and fairer future for all of us."

Earlier, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown conceded that a deal might not be achievable here. But, he added: "If you don't get an agreement this week, people will doubt whether you can get an agreement at all."

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8417305.stm

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Sounds pretty depressing. Almost a mirror image of the chaos in our Senate with its HCR discussions. A critically important issue (health care/global climate change) is being discussed, but no progress is being made. Indeed it seems like things are heading in the wrong directions and opportunities that may not come again soon are being wasted.

[pampango]

1. Copenhagen: An aura of gloom hangs over climate conference-Global Post

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/global-green/091216/copenhagen-gloom-over-climate-conference

"With two days to go before the end of the summit, almost two weeks of negotiations were supposed to have produced a draft committing nations to slash greenhouse gas emissions, defend tropical forests, pump billions into supporting clean development of poor nations and other measures to stall the inexorable rise of global temperatures."

"China joined developing nations to blast the rich north for trying to wriggle out of commitments; the European Union appealed to the Chinese and Americans to raise their emissions-cutting ambitions; Africans demanded more financial help to cope with the impact of rich nations' pollution; the leftist leaders of Venezuela and Bolivia railed against western imperialism; small island states despaired at the lack of progress as rising sea levels threaten their very existence."

"Elsewhere deep rifts remained. The U.S. and China both rejected European calls for greater emissions cuts. The EU dismissed as unrealistic developing nations' demands for an extension of the Kyoto Protocol which commits mostly rich nations to binding emission cuts without including new industrial powers like China and India."

"Here I turn to the United States and China. Together you are responsible for half of the global greenhouse gas emissions," (Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik) Reinfeldt told the meeting. "Together your ambitions to limit emissions will make or break the world's efforts to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius."

[Uncle Joe]

2. I feel more confident

they will work out an agreement regarding climate change because the stakes are simply too high to allow failure, even for most of, if not all the wealthy and powerful, after all, we're talking about life as we know it. This is not to say there aren't narrow self-serving, cynical, or basking in denial wealthy and powerful opponents, ie; fossil fuel corpse and such.

On the other hand, while real health care reform, ie; Medicare for everyone, would benefit the vast majority of the American People, the primary obstacles are the wealthy and powerful for profit "health" insurance and pharma corporations. The "world's most deliberative body" the *Senate is busy trying to figure out how to represent the best interests of their wealthy and powerful clients, not the American People as a whole. So if anything passes through the Senate, I believe it will be more an ongoing endowment to the same illogical, dysfunctional, for profit, feudal system which most contributed to our 37th in health care world wide ranking in spite of spending the most on that endeavor.

In short, they're both the Titanic, but the second scenario has lifeboats for the wealthy and powerful, that's why the passengers are constantly treated to the ship band playing that old standard "Look What Tiger Woods is Doing!" or some other variation on the same song to keep us distracted.

*Of course there are exceptions but not enough, too many have been bought off.

Thanks for the thread, pampango.

[Ghost Dog]

3. Friends Of The Earth, WWF, Avaaz, Others Expelled From COP15: Interview With Amy Goodman

Video & Transcript: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x413635

Please see Avaaz "Real Deal Now!" Petition (aiming for 15 million signatures in 72 hours; 11,193,127-strong at posting, and rising at rate of 10,000 per hour): http://www.avaaz.org/en/copenhagencrisis/

Petition to the 110 Presidents and Prime Ministers negotiating in Copenhagen:

We call on each one of you to make the concessions necessary to meet your historic responsibility in this crisis. Rich countries must offer fair funding, and all countries must set ambitious targets on emissions. Do not leave Copenhagen without a fair, ambitious and binding deal that keeps the world safe from catastrophic global warming of 2 degrees.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/copenhagencrisis/