Today is Blog Action Day 2009, a perfect excuse to reawaken my blog. This year, Blog Action Day is focusing on climate change, a topic I'm particularly passionate about, believing it to be the single most important issue facing us today.
When at university, I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to work for a local MP, organising a climate change event in the constituency. I used the opportunity to learn everything I could about climate change, reading books, watching documentaries, watching Commons debates and observing committee proceedings.
I immersed myself in everything relating to climate change, learning everything I could about the subject. So much so that my dissertation tutor was baffled as to why I didn't choose it as my dissertation topic (I wish I'd listened to him). The most important thing I realised was that there is no longer a credible debate about human induced climate change. In face, the debate has now shifted to how soon we will suffer the consequences.
One experience I will never forget, was watching Lord Lawson appearing before the Joint Climate Change Committee (a committee responsible for scrutinising the draft Climate Change Bill). The bewildered faces addressing Lawson as he confidently asserted climate change wasn't happening, sea levels weren't rising and that temperatures were in fact falling, seemed to represent the whole climate change debate. A single voice of denial opposed to the many who accept we need to act to combat climate change
I am glad to see we currently have a Government prepared to act on Climate Change. The Climate Change Bill should see a significant reduction in carbon emissions. However the words of Douglas Carswell, calling climate change a 'lunatic consensus', demonstrate we must remain vigilant. We must drown out the voice of denial and pressure any future Government to do what is necessary to stop climate change, before it's too late.
The European Parliament elections are today and it's important that every person votes to keep out the fascist BNP.
Heres a few facts about what a BNP Britain would look like, taken from the Hope Not Hate website, together with a video showing the BNP's true face
* The BNP would kick out all those people who were not born in Britain. What if every other country in the world kicked out the Brits? A staggering 5.5 million people would be sent back here – far more than would leave our shores. This includes 800,000 from Spain, most of whom are pensioners. * What if ... In a BNP BritainIf non-white people were ordered out of Britain then the NHS would collapse overnight. 16% of nurses are from minority ethnic communities, as are 40% of new dentists and 58% of new doctors! * The BNP would introduce apartheid into Britain. The BNP call for whites to be given first preference in housing, education and jobs. This is no different from apartheid South Africa, a racist regime which the BNP supported. * Mixed-race relationships would be outlawed. The BNP constitution opposes any racial integration. Articles in BNP journals condemn mixed-race relationships as “mongrelising the white race”. * The BNP’s answer to violent crime is to allow every household to have a gun. We kid you not. This barmy idea was in the BNP’s 2005 general election manifesto.
The BNP require a small proportion of the vote to get a MEP elected. The electoral system means that EVERY vote counts. So a vote against the BNP is one more vote the party needs to find somewhere else. PLEASE go out and vote today!
If anyone was in doubt as to which club is the greatest football club in the land, on Sunday they got their answer. Could I talking about Manchester United, who snatched a last minute victory against Aston Villa? No, in fact I'm talking about Luton Town FC!
Before calling out the men in white coats, let me present the fact. Luton Town, a club at the bottom of the Football League and facing relegation to the Conference, took 40,000 fans to Wembley Stadium. This was three times as many fans as Scunthorpe United, a team currently aiming for promotion to the Championship. Such was Luton's support, complaints were made that Luton were unable to increase their ticket allocation. How many other clubs could count on such fantastic support in such dire circumstances?
They also took part in what has been described in the Guardian as the greatest Wembley final since 1988, the year when Luton Town beat Arsenal to win their only major trophy so far. In fact this is a club that has a habit of playing in memorable matches, think also of their battling performance against Liverpool in 2006. Of course this was only the Johnstones Paint Trophy Final but for a club which had been unfairly deducted 30 points, due to the inept running of the club by the previous owners, this game meant so much. That passion could be seen on the pitch and produced a fantastic match, won 3-2 in extra time by an ecstatic Luton side.
Of course Luton don't have the great players seen in the Premier League and would get annihilated playing the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool. However football is not just about great players. For me, no other club could have produced such varying emotions for its followers, from elation to total despair. I truly believe they have the greatest fans in the country, who have stuck with them through thin and thinner. Their attractive football has also seen them play in some of the most entertaining matches of recent times. It will be a sad day when they are eventually relegated from the Football League. However for a club which has so often triumphed over adversity over its history, I'm sure they won't be languishing in the Conference for long.
Many people are well aware of my feelings on climate change. Having studied climate change at university, as well as helping to organise a screening of 'An Inconvenient Truth' for a local MP, I have become passionate in my belief that it is the greatest threat facing us. The vast majority of scientists accept that the planet is warming and that this is down to the levels of carbon dioxide we are all pumping into the atmosphere. It is an incredibly serious problem, made even harder to solve due to the scepticism which still exists over the issue.
It is crucial to win over the general public if we are to have any hope of cutting carbon emissions and solving this crisis. This is precisely why I strongly oppose the actions of "Plane Stupid", who are doing more damage than good.
Let me be clear, I don't oppose direct action entirely. If used correctly, direct action can bring about real change. However any action should only be taken if it will benefit the cause. Clearly throwing green custard over a cabinet minister does nothing to win the argument and only makes all environmentalists appear irrational and moronic. It does not take very much to throw a cup of green slime over someone. Clearly this was the selfish act of someone who wanted to get her face in the media, without any thought to the negative consequences for the cause she claims to support.
I strongly oppose a third runway being built at Heathrow! However we must face facts. The runway is being built because there is still a high demand for air travel. If this is to change, we must convince the general public. Juvenile pranks can only make this harder.
This week Milton Keynes resembled the frozen tundra of Siberia, as a cold front from Russia brought wintry conditions to the UK. They say we’ve not seen so much snow for at least twenty years. I for one hope it is at least twenty years until such wintry weather returns.
It has been horrible. I may sound like a killjoy. Why was I not out making snowmen and igloos, or throwing snowballs at unsuspecting children?
The truth is I have an unfortunate condition, which makes walking on a bright sunny day a small challenge. I currently wear a splint on my right foot, which stops me from falling flat on my face every one hundred yards. In icy conditions it is even worse. Even with the splint, ive found it incredibly difficult getting about. I’ve tried to follow the suggestion made in the Boston Globe to walk like a penguin. I have to say it worked very well, although I got very funny looks from anyone I happened to pass. Perhaps if the council had chosen the grit the pavements, it would have made getting about easier.
I’m quite proud I’ve only fallen over twice!
However as much as I complain about my condition I recognise I’m actually incredibly lucky. I could have been left severely disabled but am actually quite mobile. There are many people who aren’t as lucky.
It was a shame that news reports chose to focus more on the traffic disruption and less on the human cost of the wintry weather. What about the disabled person, unable to go out to buy food? What about the elderly person, too poor to properly heat their home?
The fact is my difficult journey to work was insignificant when compared with the difficulties being faced by some of the most vulnerable people in society. I guess it’s always important to remember that even when times are hard, there will always be many out there having a much harder time.
The new President’s inauguration speech offered a tantalising vision of what the future may bring. Here I’ve picked a few quotes out of that speech and outlined what I hope they suggest about America’s future direction.
America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
As for our common defence, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.
As we have seen already, President Obama has pledged to close Guantanamo Bay and end the torture on prisoners. This can only be described as a good thing.
Each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories.
And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect.
This suggests President Obama takes the threat of climate change seriously. Hopefully this should mean America will commit itself to a significant cut in carbon emissions, brought about by investment in renewable energy. This also suggests American will not ignore the poverty which blights too many of the earth’s citizens.Obama has already lifted a ban on funding for family planning clinics which offer advice on abortions. I hope this means America will play a significant role in tackling the Aids epidemic in Africa.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
This suggests President Obama wants to see an end to the tribal nature of politics and that he wants to see political parties work together to tackle the financial crisis. Whether this dream can be realised is another matter. Already there is talk of Republicans preparing to oppose some of President Obama’s policies, aimed at kick-starting the economy. While in the UK we have seen a Conservative party which first pledged to work with the Government, before promptly doing the opposite.
The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies.
The Bush administration had given tax breaks for the wealthy in the mistaken belief that this money would trickle down to the less well off. It appears Obama thinks differently. These quotes suggest Obama recognises it is the hardworking individuals, such as those in America’s factories, who are the backbone of the economy. Hopefully this means Obama will introduce a fiscal stimulus similar to the one used in the UK, to kick-start the economy while benefiting the less well off.
We cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
These quotes suggest America will only go to war as a last resort. After the disastrous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, where too many soldiers and civilians have lost their lives, this change of direction should be welcomed. His words also suggest a belief that countries should work together to solve global problems. One wonders what Obama would think if the Conservatives were to take power in the UK, considering their xenophobic anti European policies.
So these are my hopes for the Obama presidency. However hope is the key word. I’m sure most of us are hoping President Obama is a vast improvement on Bush. Although it would be difficult to see how he could possibly be worse.
Today saw the inauguration of President Barack Hussein Obama, a moment which will perhaps be seen as the beginning of a new era in global politics. However the changes were taking place even before President Obama had sealed his place in the White House.
The financial turmoil, which threatened the homes and savings of so many hard working individuals, had swept away the laissez faire philosophy which has come to dominate the politics of recent times. In the UK, the government has rightly stepped in to prevent the total collapse of the financial system and promised much stricter regulation of the markets in future.
The inauguration speech of President Obama promised much of the same. In calling for every American to play a part in the country's recovery, he recognises it is hard working employees in businesses such as General Motors, who build the foundations of the economy. Without those foundations the whole economy will fall and that is why it is so important to bring about a new era of bottom up economic prosperity. It is through measures such as the fiscal stimulus, tried here in Britain as well as elsewhere, which will hopefully see a swift end to this crisis.
