An Inconvenient Lie

The environment is a emotive issue and a there is a whole swag of nutters propping up the edges. Still it was mildly confusing to see the inconvenient self promoter Al Gore awarded the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this month.

The Peace Prize??? Were the carrots denying land rights to the tomatoes on the basis of colour or perhaps they were worshiping the wrong fertilizer brand (All hail the life giver). The cobras of Indonesia were planning to launch a ssssssssssssssneak attack on the Malaysian Cobras for sssssssssssstealing a sssssong that nobody gives a stuff about and then in rode Al Gore and brokered a peace deal. Or just maybe its because if he was nominated for the Nobel Science Prize, his little home movie would actually have to go before a panel of scientists and be assessed on facts.

The truth of the matter is the Noble Peace Prize has long been a bit of a politically correct joke. Lets grab a couple of past winners for a laugh (or perhaps a sob), Kofi Annan (for shady family oil deals and the ability do absolutely nothing no matter how many lives it costs), Yassar Arafat, Shimon Peres (for middle east peace?? and more shady money deals) OH well you get the picture.

Back to fat Al's little movie of big fibs. A British High Court Judge, Justice Michael Burton has ruled that the movie can no longer be shown in schools unless accompanied by a fact sheet detailing the outright lies and untruths big Al so skillfully presents as uncontested truths.

This of course is a ruling of much needed good sense. Lets not forget Paramount and Jackgreen International, which makes money from the global warming scare offered free DVDs of An Inconvenient Truth to every school in England not to mention other places. A nice piece of propaganda, still brainwashing kids is the hallmark of lying fanatics.

Lets have a look at what Justice Burton ruled to be big fat fibbs:

Gore presents Mt Kilimanjaro's melting snows as proof of global warming. In fact, the snows are vanishing thanks to local factors, including deforestation.

Gore suggests Antarctica's ice cover is melting. Most studies says it is increasing or stable.

Gore shows scary graphics of cities drowning in seas that rise 7m, causing millions of refugees. But the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says the seas will rise at worst by 59cm this century.

Gore uses images of Hurricane Katrina and suggests it was caused by global warming. The Government's expert in this case admitted such one-off events can't be blamed on warming.

Gore suggests ice-core evidence shows rising CO2 caused temperature rises, which ended the past seven ice ages. In fact, the CO2 rises followed temperature rises by 800 to 2000 years.

Gore claims global warming could stop the Gulf Stream, causing an ice age in Europe. Recent studies deny it.

Gore blames global warming for species losses and coral reef bleaching. The Government couldn't show evidence to back this claim.

Gore claims a study showed polar bears had drowned because of vanishing ice. The study actually said just four polar bears drowned, and only because of a bad storm.

Gore suggests Greenland's ice could melt, causing a dangerous rise in sea levels. In fact, Greenland's ice won't melt for thousands of years.

Gore shows the drying up of Lake Chad and claims this was caused by global warming. The Government's expert agreed this was not the case.

Gore claims rising seas have forced people to flee Pacific islands to New Zealand. There is no record of any such warming-caused evacuation.


Geez...Doesn't leave much of the movie huh?

I also loved this bit by another commentator

"The British Government has now rewritten its guidance to teachers to take in those 11 objections, while trying very hard not to make Gore's film seem fraudulent.

To correct that last false claim, for instance, of global warming causing islanders to evacuate their homes, the guide now includes this weasel disclaimer: "It is not clear that there is any evidence of evacuations in the Pacific due to human-induced climate." What: not clear?"

But that's not the only sign that the educationists who push Gore's film on to students are as devoted to his apocalyptic faith as are our own class of teacher-preachers.

Note this line from the guide, urging children to question even their parents' lack of faith: "Pupils may ask, what were my parents and grandparents doing during this time? Did they know that this was happening?"

I am actually very much in favour of the environment, the trouble with people like Gore is they divert valuable resources and funds into self serving pie in the sky billion dollar twaddle for an Armageddon that is at best dubious. Closer to home, I could say the same thing about the NEWMONT case here in Indonesia a patently obvious bunch of wank driven by money, politics and a seriously compromised environmental group(and religious nutters)now better known as the Wanky Wallies!

Last environmental point today, if you are taking part in major religious festival and giving all praise to GOD/Allah/Buddha whomever, does it seem a bit rude to leave the area covered with plastic water cups, paper, fire crackers. Seems to me that the big guy/girl is gunna be a bit pissed that he invited everyone for a party and they all crapped in his back yard.

AN UPDATE: On my last post "IA" quite correctly pointed out that it is also very difficult for the average Indonesian to escape paying income tax as well as their wages are garnished before they see them. Which raises the point WHY ARE THERE ONLY 1.3 INCOME TAX PAYERS in Indonesia, who are the parasites then, the tax office? the employers? the phantom? Mmmmm...the plot thickens and I would still love to know what the "dear leader" of the new order and the fabulous baker boys paid in tax last year.

LAZY NGO'S

Been “jalan jalan lagi” but strangely that had little effect on the world. The world didn’t stop and wait for me to get back.

I see the Newmont trial is over and Mr. Ness and the company has been acquitted of pollution and environmental damage charges. Based on newspaper reports of mishandled evidence, false reports and various other agenda driven slanders, it remains bizarre that the process took this long.

It’s a shame that various NGO still have not realised the damage to their credibility this case has done to them. It’s a bigger shame the NGO’s have compromised themselves just when Indonesia needs a reliable and transparent environmental watchdog the most. Its time for some leadership reviews and not just in the corporate world.

Here’s a tip …..’Walli’s” of the world, take a trip out to Surabaya and go play in the toxic mud brought to us by the Brothers Grimm. Perhaps out there you may regain some perspective.

Meanwhile a recent strike at Freeport, Papua raised a number of comments around the blogsphere. Predictably (and some what of a yawn), it was the mostly the “BIG BAD MULTINATIONAL” biased comments flowing again.

Invariably, the calls from the rabid green are to close the mine down and pay compensation (based on what??) and return the land to the people.

Of course, you never hear of what will replace the mine as the single biggest taxpayer in Indonesia. Perhaps a payroll tax on the ojek drivers?

In this strike, native Papuans wanted to a pay rise to over 3 times the national average and were concerned that Javanese were always given preference to Papuans in recruitment and career options.

The recruitment and promotion of Javanese over other ethnic groups is an explosive issue throughout many of the provinces. Decades of unequal school funding and “transmigration” policies have left many provinces way behind their Javanese cousins and this has yet to reach its crisis point. Although its safe to say the government does not have a lot time left to act.

The Papuans have every right to demand more opportunities from the wealth taken from their land. I can’t help but think their anger is misdirected. Any company is going to select its employees from the most qualified. A better question is where have the taxes and royalties gone? Why haven’t we got the best schools and hospitals in Indonesia based on out input to the national coffers? These are not questions that Freeport is responsible for.

The other issue is getting paid over three times the National Average. I know makes the NGO’s and other rabids feel all warm and fuzzy. Yippee!! We have screwed a few more bucks of our wealth back from the evil multi national!

Its short sighted, immature and devastates the communities involved. Basic supply and demand principles mean than market prices rise to the level the consumer can afford to pay (Hero Bali vs Hero Solo). Unless you can afford to employ every member of that community, you have condemned those without access to those higher wages to even greater poverty. (Does anyone want to take a bet that the price of a bag of rice in Papua does not double on the basis of the new wages?)


Perhaps instead of chasing ghosts and glory, the WALLI’s of this world could actually develop and propose viable working plans that ensure “All” of the community advances on the back of the natural bounty of the land.

Of course, this would require a bit of thought and planning. You cannot go changing the rules halfway thru the game .. UPFRONT AND TRANSPARENT