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Don't mention the poor

By Lyn Bender - posted Wednesday, 22 May 2013


Many scientists such as esteemed climate scientist James Hansen, formerly of NASA, and moral philosophers such as Clive Hamilton warn us that we are heading for climate chaos and an unrecognisable world if we don't drastically cut emissions

We stand to lose everything by the end of the century says Rod Quantock our most active Aussie comedian, who maintains that global warming is no joke, in his 'climate change explained in a frenzy' show.

This does not mean that we will live high on the hog until 2,100 and suddenly lose it all like a gambler in a casino. It actually means that by centuries end, millions will probably have perished as the angered climate becomes enraged.

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I'm not a theist but global warming brings an apocalyptic promise of flood, fire, famine, and pestilence in abundance. That would be so bad for business as usual, and cut our emissions wouldn't it? But as they say in the best good cop bad cop tradition, we can do this the hard way or the harder way or the impossible way.

After widely reading the reports and science, here are the cold hard facts as I understand them. The atmosphere impacts on every living thing on the planet. Carbon dioxide levels are now at 400 parts per million. This is the highest it has been for almost 3 million years. The greenhouse effect has been known for decades. Until Industrialisation the CO2 in the Earth's 'atmospheric blanket' has been at just the right temperature for human life to thrive. It kept us cosy, within a range, so to speak but not overheated.

Our planetary environment has evolved, (much more gradually than the recent warming), into systems that rely on the stability of the earth's temperature leading to relative endurance and predictability of its climate. Cropping relies on predictable rain patterns and temperature ranges. Australia notoriously has been a land of droughts and flooding. However, now at even 1 degree of warming, we are already far beyond the normal variation in extreme weather.

But I fear that I must mention the poor again. Not in order to shake a moral stick at the carbon emitters of the industrialised nations, although it is warranted. I am concerned that emphasising how the poorer nations, particularly the poorest of those nations, will suffer first and most with climate change, falsely soothes and lulls those of us who could stem the tide.

What a relief if the poor, as usual take the rap, play the scapegoat and suffer the ravages of global warming. Like the canary in the mine they will go first, but here is the terrible truth, we all lemming like will accompany them sooner or later.

The recent climate disasters of Australia and The USA are making this very clear. The UN emphasises the responsibility of wealthy nations to repair the damage wrought by their profligate consumption addiction. But this may only reassure us that we are at the top and may be spared.

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A recent UN report states that up to 3 billions who barely leave a footprint, may be thrust into extreme poverty, [code for starvation ?] by 2050. The UN has emphasised how imperilled the poorer nations are by unmitigated climate change. That's if we don't act.

Natural disasters displaced 32.4 million people in 2012. While most of these came from what we term developing nations and used to be called the third world, almost 800,000 people were displaced in the US.

The wealthy have always preyed upon the desperation of the poor or created that very desperation, through slavery, colonisation and now in its modern manifestations of exploitation of their lands its resources and their bodies.

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About the Author

Lyn Bender is a psychologist in private practice. She is a former manager of Lifeline Melbourne and is working on her first novel.

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