Remember when I wrote about prominent liberals in this country (and elsewhere) who said that we must 'shrink the economy' to stop global warming? Well, they've gotten their wish, and thus (following the 2010 election results), you can bet your ass that global warming as an issue is now dead. Americans aren't buying it and prefer wealth to poverty.
I've said this for years: Global warming is nothing but a means to--finally--circumvent capitalism and advance socialism. The intellectual elite figured they had finally found a way to sneak it past all of us simpletons. After all, what's more noble than trying to save the planet? If you raise taxes, you're doing it to save the planet. If you harm wealthy, developed countries to redistribute wealth to the underdeveloped Third World, you're doing it to save the planet. If you kill off oil as the primary source of energy (and kill oil companies and capitalism in the process), it's all done to preserve Mother Earth.
Why would scientists really want to do anything except advance science? Because most of them are left-leaning intellectual elites; they know better than you about things and want to save you from yourselves. But don't worry...they're not narcissists or anything.
In one paper Professor Kevin Anderson, Director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, said the only way to reduce global emissions enough, while allowing the poor nations to continue to grow, is to halt economic growth in the rich world over the next twenty years.
This would mean a drastic change in lifestyles for many people in countries like Britain as everyone will have to buy less ‘carbon intensive’ goods and services such as long haul flights and fuel hungry cars.
Prof Anderson admitted it “would not be easy” to persuade people to reduce their consumption of goods
He said politicians should consider a rationing system similar to the one introduced during the last “time of crisis” in the 1930s and 40s.[From Cancun climate change summit: scientists call for rationing in developed world - Telegraph]
