We told you so….
Bookworm on Apr 26 2008 at 9:50 am | Filed under: Climate change
….but you wouldn’t listen. You had to go ahead and do it anyway, and only now, when things are getting serious, are you figuring it out yourself. These are words parents say to teenagers, and conservatives say to liberals. In teenage land, you end up with pregnancies, STDs, and substance abuse. In liberal land, you end up with increased greenhouse gases and world starvation:
The worldwide effort by supermarkets and industry to replace conventional oil-based plastic with eco-friendly “bioplastics” made from plants is causing environmental problems and consumer confusion, according to a Guardian study.
The substitutes can increase emissions of greenhouse gases on landfill sites, some need high temperatures to decompose and others cannot be recycled in Britain.
Many of the bioplastics are also contributing to the global food crisis by taking over large areas of land previously used to grow crops for human consumption.
The market for bioplastics, which are made from maize, sugarcane, wheat and other crops, is growing by 20-30% a year.
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Concern is mounting because the new generation of biodegradable plastics ends up on landfill sites, where they degrade without oxygen, releasing methane, a greenhouse gas 23 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. This week the US national oceanic and atmospheric administration reported a sharp increase in global methane emissions last year.
“It is just not possible to capture all the methane from landfill sites,” said Michael Warhurt, resources campaigner at Friends of the Earth. “A significant percentage leaks to the atmosphere.”
“Just because it’s biodegradable does not mean it’s good. If it goes to landfill it breaks down to methane. Only a percentage is captured,” said Peter Skelton of Wrap, the UK government-funded Waste and Resources Action Programme. “In theory bioplastics are good. But in practice there are lots of barriers.”
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Bioplastics compete for land with biofuels and food crops. About 200,000 tonnes of bioplastics were produced last year, requiring 250,000-350,000 tonnes of crops. The industry is forecast to need several million acres of farmland within four years.
I like to say “I told you so” when I forecast something good, viz, “I told you you’d get the promotion.” It depresses me when I forecast something bad.
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http://www.av1611.org/osteen.html
Joel Osteen was somebody whose televised speech to his congregation I caught in part, a few years ago.
The general tone of his words and the slices of the Bible he used were always designed to motivate people to look up and make their lives better. This is compared to Rev Wright whose words and uses of the bible are designed to make people bitter and make people demand entitlements and make people spring up in violence at what they see as injustice.
I was surprised when I googled Joel Osteen, because it was only recently that I got the guy’s name, and found many sites critical of him that was purported to be based on a “Christian” fundamental disagreement with Osteen.
This is somewhat related to your Global Warming post because Black Liberation Theology, Leftism, Environmentalism, and Osteen’s Church are all religions based upon faith.
Obama’s got plenty of the liberation theology down pat, it just so happens that only blacks deserve to be liberated in Obama’s view, never Iraqis, Vietnamese, or anybody that can’t vote for Obama cause they aren’t in the US.
I like to say “I told you so” when I forecast something good, viz, “I told you you’d get the promotion.” It depresses me when I forecast something bad.
I think if you know political engineering and machinations, that it is very plausible and propaganda that environmentalists and Leftists motivated the creation and development of such products precisely because they knew it would be more inefficient and more polluting. After all, if the pollution levels on this Earth gets better without the political and thought crime legislation that the Leftist environmentalists would wish to shackle humanity under, then you are never going to be able to convince people to “sacrifice” for an environment that is improving without the need for those sacrifices.
So the solution, Book, is to make the environment worse and then you can step in and say “I have the solution”. Well, obviously, since the problem was engineered by you in the first place, you should have the solution. This solution will require sacrifices, of course. And conveniently, when people sacrifice the food on their table and the food for their children, it coincidentally and magically goes into the pockets of the rich and powerful environmentalists and their lobbies.
That is the magic of Gaia.
On a historical note, there have been plenty of tyrants and idiot rulers that insisted on growing cash crops that produced some benefit to the ruler, yet drove the price of food up until only the nobles could afford it. This is why having a strong military and an even stronger civic body is so important. The wolves and barbarians are always at the gate. Whether they are called “Huns”, “Mongols”, “Environmentalists”, “Leftists”, “Communists”, or just plain jihad women killers.
that it is very plausible and propaganda
That should be “and probable”.
Also check out Olsteen’s words himself here.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=di9-PebV634
Complete with subtitled criticisms.
I’d like to get exPreacherman’s views on this subject or anyone else that have been part of the Christian faith.
The news on food shortages etc opens up an enormous oppty for McCain. He should come all out for the development of all sources of energy — existing plus new technologies. He should come out in favor of new drilling (ANWAR, off-shore), nuclear, clean coal and solar.
Food shortages are not only tied to ethanal but also to the price of oil. “Each food item in a typical US meal has traveled an average of 1500 miles.” [Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, page 5]
The price of food is directly related to the price of oil. And the price of oil is directly related to the weak dollar. So in addition to pursuing new energy sources, McCain should also promise to take steps to strengthen the dollar.
Independent truckers are being forced out of business due to the cost of fuel. That’s who is hauling our food to market. The first politician that jumps on this issue (price of food/price of oil/weak dollar) will win because it is only going to get worse — fast. And if the “free market” folk don’t jump on it , you can bet the “get the government involved” crowd will.
What is “awaiting moderation” ??
“Only a percentage is captured,” said Peter Skelton of Wrap, the UK government-funded Waste and Resources Action Programme. “In theory bioplastics are good. But in practice there are lots of barriers.”
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“In theory, X is good. But in practice there are lots of barriers.”
It that doesn’t sum up the entire problem with liberalism, I don’t know what does. The dream almost always turns out to be a nightmare. From slavish devotion to Stalin and Communism in the 30’s, through Welfare utterly destroying formerly stable inner city communities in the 60’s, through the certainties of global warming today, the theory is always perfect (or the model is always perfect), but when implemented in reality, something deeply horrifying almost always occurs.
If WE could have seen the future we could have offered to pay the 100% food cost increase that seems to be on the horizon from all this fool hardy bio-stuff, say $2000 per person per year–in exchange for an agreement from environmentalists to shut-up already about global warming. In hind sight it would have been a fair deal.
If we could just hurry up and use all the oil up, we’d be in a position to solve the problem.
Just a note from my archaeologist sister: California had air pollution from slash and burn agriculture 1500 years ago. It was so bad, so much worse than it is today, that some days you couldn’t see AT ALL!
awaiting moderation means only you can see your post. Anyone else just probably sees a gap.
[...] 4/28/08: Fellow Webloggin contributor Bookworm finds something else that perhaps should be getting some of our attention…one wonders what [...]
>>…make the environment worse and then you can step in and say “I have the solution”>>
As also in stirring up hate, unrest and anarchy so that strong government suppression is required? As in this small group of people against that small group of people? as in “divide and conquer”?
Got it.
http://www. recreate68.org.
Sorry…that didn’t go in as a live link. You’ll have to copy and paste, if you’re interested.
As also in stirring up hate, unrest and anarchy so that strong government suppression is required?
That’s what most agent provocateurs are hired to do in protests. Specific people are hired to induce violence or a violent backlash in order to capture it on video and garner public sympathy for the protestors and public scorn for the authorities.
As in this small group of people against that small group of people?
That’s another segment on tactics, usually. Usually insurgency themed and related to sowing confusion amongst the enemy.