The biggest story of 2017 was the sudden release of research all year alongside freak weather events that pointed out that catastrophic climate change can occur far faster than was ever thought possible.
This latest report is grim reading…
Ice Apocalypse
Minute-by-minute, huge skyscraper-sized shards of ice cliffs would crumble into the sea, as tall as the Statue of Liberty and as deep underwater as the height of the Empire State Building. The result: a global catastrophe the likes of which we’ve never seen.
…the speed with which our climate can flip has been strenuously ignored by politicians and capitalists.
This reality is being understood by some, but not the political class yet…
While the terms of the climate debate often get misleadingly framed as a polarity, especially as defined by President Donald Trump and his surrogates—real or hoax—Goodell has illuminated a far more complex gray area. The facts of rising sea levels and the consequences thereof are already clear to political, military, and business leaders alike. The story behind why they fail to act in the face of that reality isn’t simply about whether they believe or not. It has as much to do with the all-too-human reflex to rationalize our actions, and a woeful inability to grasp the full import of those actions in a temporal world, as it does climate denial, or even greed.
We are past the point of climate denial and climate optimism. We must face an adaptation future, which is why allowing an oil drilling ship to come here seeking more oil exploitation and continuing irrigation programs for mass dairy is the intellectual equivalent of putting an alcoholic in charge of a brewery.
Jacinda said Climate Change was our nuclear free moment. I agree with that in the sense that climate change will destroy us as surely as a nuclear war, I’m yet to see any real attempt to challenge the vested interests that continue to profit on the destruction of the planet though.
This threat is worse than anything the prospect of a nuclear war could have created. In fact, it’s kind of like a very slow nuclear war taking place but instead of a “nuclear winter” we’re getting the opposite.
I fear for what our descendants will have to cope with. What a shitty legacy to leave our kids.
Yes Otto and Martyn,
We have been hoodwinked by the likes of the ‘road transport forum’ and their CEO Ken Shirley this week.
This when he snarled at assusations from the daming report out on NZ rail vs road freight emissions, – showing road freight is the main culprit in climate change transport emissions.
This is all featured in this weeks listener, entitled on the front page as; “The great rail revial,- can we rid roads of killler trucks”
Apparently a report was prepared by EY a consultancy agency for Ministry of Transpot and NZTA a year ago that meassured the emmissions of all transport systems and made road freight look so bad that it was somehow held back from being released by Treasury and thwe national partry then or the ministry of transport or NZTA, so it paints a picture of National while in Government holding back important documentation we had a right to see released so we could get action sooner on climate change.
This is what you Martyn had long complained about with the Nats with holding evidence on so much stuff over the years including the panama papers, TPPA, Afganistan, Todd barclay and Winston peters leaked private information.
Now we see a laughable act of national jamming up labour MP’s with over 6000 questions claiming “it is our right to know what the Government are doing”!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am feardful that labour need to act strongly and foercefully now on climate change issues.
I sent our request for them to study this document released in the Listener on 23rd november issue.
Sent: Sunday, 26 November 2017 4:19 PM
To:’Jacinda Ardern’ ;
Cc: ‘Rt. Hon. Winston Peters’ ; ‘julieanne.genter@parliament.govt.nz’ ; ‘phil.twyford@parliament.govt.nz’ ; ‘grant.robertson@parliament.govt.nz’ ; ‘shane.jones@parliament.govt.nz’ ; ‘stuart.nashmp@parliament.govt.nz’ ; ‘james.shaw@parliament.govt.nz’ ; ‘Megan.Woods@parliament.govt.nz’ ;
Subject: DEAR MINISTERS. THIS WEEKS COPY OF THE LISTENER ARTICLE ON THE BENEFITS OF WHY WE NEED RAIL FUNDED FOR OUR FUTURE. making roads safer by using more regional rail freight & passenger services.
Importance: High
Public COMMUNITY letter;
26th November 2017.
Dear Ministers,
THIS WEEK’S “NZ LISTENER” ARTICLE (ATTACHED ABOVE) IS IMPORTANT FOR ALL YOU TO REVIEW AS THE FACTS INCLUDED ARE INFORMATIVE ON OUR RAIL IMPORTANCE FROM NOW ON.
NEW ZEALAND LISTENER
23rd November 2017
“The great rail revival”
Subject: Listener article re Rail in N.Z
Attached is an article that appears in the latest Listener. I think it describes the current scene very well.
Please skill up on the facts as presented in this report, when the National opposition party came calling on you for details during this last week of parliament and good luck to you all.
We have sent you all many reasons to use rail rather than trucks & curb our use of trucks to move freight around NZ, and our argument has been that using trucks for freight distribution is causing an increase our levels of CO2 ‘climate change gases.’
Now that you are aware of the direct increase of CO2 levels that has been linked to using trucks last week by a report by Dr James Renwick, Professor of Physical Geography, School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences Victoria University, “Warnings over NZ’s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions” http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018618970/warnings-over-nz-s-contribution-to-greenhouse-gas-emissions
“due to people burning more fossil fuels for electricity generation, heat, transport, manufacturing and construction we have the fifth-highest level of emissions per person of the 35 countries in the OECD”
Now this UN report, released recently, clearly shows also our need for rail is more urgent than before due to this new UN report released. (see below)
https://www.yahoo.com/news/carbon-dioxide-levels-grew-record-pace-2016-u-100129353.html
Please as requested before, Restore our HB/Gisborne rail freight/passenger services.
Warmest regards,
Obstruction of justice is oft quoted as a crime and charges are laid.
Denial of: climate change, pollution by various activities including dairy, damage wrought by irrigation schemes, draining of land and the general stuffing up of our world, are crimes and charges should be laid. Justice must not be obstructed.
A system that does not have that happen is corrupt and needs urgent change.
The number of people I personally know who still don’t believe in man-made climate change is astounding.
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