John Kerry on Climate Change: "the entire way of life that you live and love is at risk,"

[ProSense]

John Kerry on Climate Change: "the entire way of life that you live and love is at risk,"

by Lefty Coaster

Today John Kerry had a dire warning for the people in Indonesia about what Climate Change has in store for the archipelago 247 million Indonesians call home.

Kerry Warns Indonesia: Climate Change Threatens 'Entire Way Of Life'

By Scott Neuman

"When I think about the array of global climate, of the global threats, think about this: terrorism, epidemics, poverty, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," Kerry said in a speech to students in the capital, Jakarta. "All challenges that know no borders. The reality is that climate change ranks right up there with every single one of them."

He stressed that 97 percent of scientist agree that climate change is "unequivocal" and that those people who deny the facts "are simply burying their heads in the sand."

"Because of climate change, it's no secret that today Indonesia is ... one of the most vulnerable countries on Earth," Kerry said.

"It's not an exaggeration to say that the entire way of life that you live and love is at risk," he added.

More from Kerry's speech:

Furthermore, climate change means fundamental transformations in agriculture worldwide. Scientists predict that, in some places, heat waves and water shortages will make it much more difficult for farmers to be able to grow the regular things we grow, like wheat or corn or rice. And obviously, it’s not only farmers who will suffer here – it’s the millions of people who depend on those crops that the farmers grow. For example, the British government research showed that climate change may have contributed to the famine that killed as many as 100,000 people in Somalia just back in 2010 and 2011.

And scientists further predict that climate change also means longer, more unpredictable monsoon seasons and more extreme weather events. Now, I’ll tell you, I can’t tell you – no weatherman on TV or anybody is going to be able to look at you and tell you – that one particular storm was absolutely the result of climate change. But scientists do predict that many more of these disastrous storms will occur if we continue down the current path. Ladies and gentlemen, I saw with my own eyes what the Philippines experienced in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan and I will tell you it would be absolutely devastating if that kind of storm were to become the normal thing that happens every single year in many places.

On top of the unspeakable humanitarian toll, the economic cost that follows a storm like that is absolutely massive. I don’t mean just the billions that it costs to rebuild. We’ve seen here in Asia how extreme weather events can disrupt world trade.

It is time for the world to approach this problem with the cooperation, the urgency, and the commitment that a challenge of this scale warrants. It’s absolutely true that industrialized countries – yes, industrialized countries that produce most of the emissions – have a huge responsibility to be able to reduce emissions, but I’m telling you that doesn’t mean that other nations have a free pass. They don’t have a right to go out and repeat the mistakes of the past. It’s not enough for one country or even a few countries to reduce their emissions when other countries continue to fill the atmosphere with carbon pollution as they see fit. At the end of the day, emissions coming from anywhere in the world threaten the future for people everywhere in the world, because those emissions go up and then they move with the wind and they drop with the rain and the weather, and they keep going around and around and they threaten all of us.

Now, as I’ve already acknowledged, I am the first one to recognize the responsibility that the United States has, because we have contributed to this problem. We’re one of the number – we’re the number two emitter of greenhouse gas emissions. The number one is now China. The fact is that I recognize the responsibility that we have to erase the bad habits that we have, which we adopted, frankly, before we understood the consequences. Nobody set out to make this happen. This is the consequence of the industrial revolution and the transformation of the world, and many of the advances that we made that have changed the world for the better came from these steps. But now we do know the attendant consequences that are linked to these actions.

link

Its true that island nations like Indonesia and the Philippines are in some of the regions most at risk from the effects of Climate Change. Of course regions facing less risks will still have to grapple with our own monumental challenges as a result of Climate Change.

- more -

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/02/16/1278127/-John-Kerry-on-Climate-Change-the-entire-way-of-life-that-you-live-and-love-is-at-risk

Full speech: http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/texttrans/2014/02/20140216293162.html#axzz2tXnETeMM

Text also posted here: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/02/17/1278176/-Kerry-warns-CC-is-weapon-of-mass-destruction-urges-action-slams-deniers-and-fossil-industries

[greytdemocrat]

1. And??

Try giving the speech in China and India.

[ProSense]

2. What does

"And?? Try giving the speech in China and India."

.."and" mean? He did:


02/15/14 Remarks at Cummins-Foton Joint Venture Plant; Secretary of State John Kerry; Cummins-Foton Joint Venture Plant; Beijing, China
http://www.state.gov/secretary/travel/2014/t5/index.htm

[greytdemocrat]

3. Again, and???

Do you really think they give a rats ass what some
blowhard politician from the US says??

Do you really think they care?? Good dog,this speech was
nothing but a fluff piece. Does Kerry think the people of
Indonesia really CARE what he has to say???

Will it do anything??? No it won't. And if you think it
will you are beyond naive.

And in case you couldn't guess, I don't buy into
the world is ending climate change dodo.

And as has been mentioned here before, it's amazing how
quickly you always have an answer and linky, like it's almost like
you have a pre-planned agenda all mapped out for whatever you post!!

A lot of people would call that propaganda...

[ProSense]

5. You know

Do you really think they give a rats ass what some
blowhard politician from the US says??

Do you really think they care?? Good dog,this speech was
nothing but a fluff piece. Does Kerry think the people of
Indonesia really CARE what he has to say???

Will it do anything??? No it won't. And if you think it
will you are beyond naive.

And in case you couldn't guess, I don't buy into
the world is ending climate change dodo.

...this is a classic example of just wanting to complain about shit. I mean, you obviously don't give a shit, and expect others to be as cynical as you are. And because you are, you want to call them stupid.

Yes, people do "give a rats ass" what our elected officials say: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024511737#post1

Shockingly, there were people, young people, listening to Kerry's speech:


https://twitter.com/JohnKerry/status/435036282528350208/photo/1

And as has been mentioned here before, it's amazing how
quickly you always have an answer and linky, like it's almost like
you have a pre-planned agenda all mapped out for whatever you post!!

A lot of people would call that propaganda...

I call that bitterness. Maybe you should ignore what I post. I really would rather not read such stupid drivel.

[greytdemocrat]

6. Heh.

Never mind. Thanks for making my point.

[ProSense]

8. Clearly

"Never mind. Thanks for making my point. "

...you have nothing after being called out for your irrational responses to the OP.

[The2ndWheel]

4. I think the word world gets thrown around too much

This is the consequence of the industrial revolution and the transformation of the world, and many of the advances that we made that have changed the world for the better came from these steps.

The first use of that word makes sense. The second time it gets used, the word civilization should be used instead. Two very different things. One exists within the other, or on the other.

Think of civilization as a 1%ers bank account, and the world as society at large. The bank account just keeps sucking in and hoarding resources. If an economy can't function if that happens, then the planet doesn't function if it happens either. You know how the 1% keep writing the rules which govern them, and it's tough to get their money?

[woo me with science]

7. And yet...

Fracking is a huge environmental and human threat. Why does Obama support it?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024470380

Oil industry wrote State Department report on Keystone
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024487677

2013 In Review: Obama Talks Climate Change–But Pushes Fracking
http://www.democraticunderground.com/112760899

I told myself this couldn't be true: Big Oil and Gas is Exempt from Major Environmental Laws
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024480868

Obama's Oil Expansion Plans: A Clear and Present Danger to Public Safety
http://www.democraticunderground.com/112759747

Video: Romney And Obama Argue About Who Loves Big Oil More
http://www.democraticunderground.com/101768935

Obama and Climate Change: The Real Story
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014675710
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024190645

WikiLeaks Release: Administration Retreating on Environment in Talks on Pacific Trade
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014697818

WikiLeaks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Environment Chapter: "Toothless Public Relations Exercise
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024374847

Obama is determined to push the TPP through despite opposition
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024505012

Leaked TPP Document Reveals No Regard for Environment in Trade Agreement
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017169842

TYT: Obama Relies On Corrupt Consultants For Crucial Environmental Report
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017173081

Obama Administration Sells More Than 20 Million Acres in Western Gulf of Mexico for Oil and Natural Gas Exploration and Development
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021896005

Eighteen leading environmental groups demand an end to Obama's "all of the above" energy strategy
http://www.democraticunderground.com/101683340

[ProSense]

9. Are you going to

post that "propaganda" in every thread?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024512367#post4
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024505179#post14
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024512342#post15

If you do, and I come across it, I'll post this:

From your last link

And here’s more commentary from Trip Van Noppen, president of Earthjustice, another group that signed the letter:

In addition, “all of the above” leaves the American people holding the bag of drinking water contamination in our communities, crude oil pipeline bursts in our neighborhoods, toxic chemicals in our air, fracking groundwater accidents across the nation, oil spills in our precious Arctic waters and in our seafood-rich Gulf, carcinogenic dumping in our community waters, mountaintop removal across the Appalachians, historic coal ash spills, and more.

Yes, environmentalists are against the “all of the above” strategy.

Environmentalists, however, do recognize progress when they see it.

Earthjustice Statement on President Obama's State of the Union Address

Washington, D.C. —

The following is a statement from Earthjustice President Trip Van Noppen in response to President Obama’s State of the Union Address:

“We are encouraged that President Obama made climate change a centerpiece of his speech tonight. We applaud his commitment to facing this challenge, for the benefit of our children and grandchildren.

“President Obama has taken courageous actions so far to back this commitment. His leadership in achieving strong clean car standards has been a huge accomplishment, and we are thrilled with his leadership in tackling carbon pollution from power plants, the nation’s largest source of climate change pollution. And tonight, the President went further and affirmed that we can’t allow destructive energy development on our pristine public lands.

“The success of the President’s climate plan and our children's future depends on viewing all fossil fuels decisions through the lens of climate impacts, as the president has said he would do for the Keystone XL pipeline. Those agencies responsible for drilling off our coasts, fracking, mountaintop removal, and fossil fuel exports have to prioritize climate change just as the EPA is doing, and the President needs to ensure that they do.

“An ‘all-of-the-above energy strategy’ cannot work for the President’s own climate action plan and the climate vision he espoused tonight. All energy sources were not created equal. Clean energy is better for our families, communities, future generations, and American competitiveness. The United States should be placing our bets on 'best of the above,' not 'all of the above.' The President rightly called out the need to invest in solar energy that can power our homes and our economy rather than fossil fuels.

- more -

http://earthjustice.org/news/press/2014/earthjustice-statement-on-president-obama-s-state-of-the-union-address

As for the Keystone report, here is the assessment unskewed:

Bill McKibben Reacts to Latest Keystone XL Environmental Impact Statement

350.org co-founder Bill McKibben issued the following statement this afternoon in response to the latest State Department environmental impact statement on the Keystone XL pipeline:

“The intrusion of reality into this process is really important. The report concluded that in a scenario where we take climate change seriously and regulate climate pollution, this pipeline will indeed have a ‘significant impact’ on climate change. So now we’ll find out if that’s the world Barack Obama and John Kerry want. This report gives President Obama everything he needs in order to block this project. This is the first environmental issue in years to bring Americans into the streets in big numbers, and now they’ll be there in ever greater numbers to make sure the President makes the right call.”

http://350.org/press-release/bill-mckibben-reacts-to-latest-keystone-xl-environmental-impact-statement/

That's the third statement from environmentalists rejecting the media spin.

NRDC: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024423143#post4
Michael Brune: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024423143#post5

[woo me with science]

10. Yes. As long as the administration continues these massive environmental assaults,

Last edited Mon Feb 17, 2014, 11:35 AM - Edit history (1)

I will continue to list the ACTUAL POLICIES and call out this election-year rhetoric for the hollow, dishonest propaganda it is.

[ProSense]

11. LOL!

"I will continue to list the ACTUAL POLICIES and call out this election-year rhetoric for the hollow, dishonest propaganda it is."

What "ACTUAL POLICIES" did you cite? I mean, a bunch of articles railing against fracking and TPP?

Policies:

Lisa Jackson to Leave EPA: Earthjustice Statement

Statement from Earthjustice Vice President of Litigation Patti Goldman:

“America owes Lisa Jackson a debt of gratitude for her work to protect the public's health from polluters and their allies in Congress. For her efforts to clean up pollution and better protect the environment and public health, she faced a steady barrage from members of Congress and the industrial polluters who back them. Her detractors are the same people who told us taking lead out of gasoline in the 1970's would break the economy and that taking acid out of acid rain in the 1990's would ruin the country. In both cases, the environment and economy were strengthened and this is the approach Lisa Jackson took. There is a lot of unfinished business started by Jackson that the next EPA director will need to attend to. Whoever it is, they'll need the support of the President and they'll need to be ready for a non-stop barrage of attacks from the chemical, industrial and fossil fuel industries and their allies in Congress.

“After 17 years of Earthjustice litigation it was Lisa Jackson who finally regulated mercury and other toxic pollutants coming from power plants. After a decade of litigation from Earthjustice and others, it was Lisa Jackson who supported and implemented regulations aimed at curbing greenhouse gases. After more than a decade of Earthjustice litigation it was Lisa Jackson who finally implemented the first regulation of mercury from cement kilns all over the country.”

http://earthjustice.org/news/press/2012/lisa-jackson-to-leave-epa-earthjustice-statement

Environment and Energy.

He fast-tracked regulations to allow states to enact federal fuel efficiency standards that were above federal standards. http://nyti.ms/e8e94x

He fast-tracked increased fuel economy standards for vehicles beginning with the 2011 model year. It was the first time such standards had been increased in a decade. http://politi.co/hiaPKM

He oversaw the establishment of an Energy Partnership for the Americas, which creates more markets for American-made biofuels and green energy technologies. http://bit.ly/lZp73y

His EPA reversed a Bush-era decision to allow the largest mountaintop removal project in US history. http://bit.ly/lP3yEL

He ordered the Department of Energy to implement more aggressive efficiency standards for common household appliances. http://1.usa.gov/g3MTbu

He ordered energy plants to prepare to produce at least 15% of all energy through renewable resources like wind and solar, by 2021. http://reut.rs/fV155p (As you can see, Republicans are trying hard to kill it.)

He oversaw the creation of an initiative that converts old factories and manufacturing centers into new clean technology centers. http://bit.ly/mjnq2R

Obama bypassed Republican opposition in Congress and ordered EPA to begin regulating and measuring carbon emissions. http://bit.ly/froaP5

His EPA ruled that CO2 is a pollutant. http://bit.ly/iQTSNN

He doubled federal spending on clean energy research. http://bit.ly/iN0sCE

He pushed through a tax credit to help people buy plug-in hybrid cars. http://bit.ly/j8UP5Y

He created a program to develop renewable energy projects on the waters of our Outer Continental Shelf that will produce electricity from wind, wave, and ocean currents. http://1.usa.gov/fgfRWq

Obama reengaged in the climate change and greenhouse gas emissions agreements talks, and even proposed one himself. He also addressed the U.N. Climate Change Conference, officially reversing the Bush-era stance that climate change was a “hoax.” http://bit.ly/dX6Vj3 http://bit.ly/fE2PxK http://nyti.ms/hfeqvv

He fully supported the initial phase of the creation of a legally binding treaty to reduce mercury emissions worldwide. http://bit.ly/eJ6QOO

He required states to provide incentives to utilities to reduce their energy consumption. http://bit.ly/lBhk7P

Following Bush’s eight year reign, he reengaged in a number of treaties and agreements designed to protect the Antarctic. http://bit.ly/fzQUFO

Created tax write-offs for purchases of hybrid automobiles, and later he and Democrats morphed that program into one that includes electric cars. http://bit.ly/glCukV

Mandated that federal government fleet purchases be for fuel-efficient American vehicles, and encouraged that federal agencies support experimental, fuel-efficient vehicles. http://bit.ly/h5KZqy http://1.usa.gov/fLWq5c http://1.usa.gov/hmUSbk

Obama oversaw and pushed through an amendment to the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 authorizing advances from Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. http://1.usa.gov/yTRYVo

He also actively tried to amend the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to eliminate the liability limits for those companies responsible for large oil spills. http://nyti.ms/bxjDi3

He initiated Criminal and Civil inquiries into the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. http://nyti.ms/bVuB7a

Through Obama’s EPA, he asserted federal legal supremacy, and barred Texas from authorizing new refinery permits on its own. http://bit.ly/ww8eMd

He strengthened the Endangered Species Act. http://bit.ly/hscjsH

His EPA improved boiler safety standards to improve air quality, and save 6500 lives per year. http://bit.ly/jYH7nt

Through the EPA, he took steps to severely limit the use of antibiotics in livestock feed, to increase their efficacy in humans. http://bit.ly/fBuWd2

Obama increased funding for National Parks and Forests by 10% http://bit.ly/fbJPjY

He announced greatly improved commercial fuel efficiency standards. http://1.usa.gov/oQiC1K

He announced the development of a huge increase in average fuel economy standards from 27.5mpg to 35.5mpg starting in 2016 and 54.5 starting in 2025 http://1.usa.gov/qtghsW

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/02/15/a-long-list-of-president-obamas-accomplishments-with-citations/

[ProSense]

12. Kick! n/t

[ProSense]

13. Another. n/t

[ProSense]

14. 350.org tweet

350 dot orgVerified account‏@350·
.@JohnKerry: strong on climate science.

<...>

https://twitter.com/350/statuses/435467464672288768

[freshwest]

15. Youth can't afford knee jerk cynicism. And the world is getting younger as the USA population ages.

Tbis is about them, not the ones who are lost to the past.

What choices they will make, how will they survive?

We don't know. All we can do is work to make it work for them, or go cry in a corner.

The latter is what some people are doing, or else they leave reality and indulge in fantasies that change nothing.

Good links and I am glad Kerry is bringing this up - it's been known to the military for decades that this was coming, the inevitable disruptons.

So there is a knowledge base there that can do some good. But it's largely up to us as individuals.

[El_Johns]

16. Oil and gas industry holdings are some of the most popular investments among lawmakers

and their spouses, and in recent years have grown in value, according to a study by the Center for Responsive Politics.

Notably, a handful of lawmakers were consistently responsible for the largest portion of the overall congressional portfolio.

These members of Congress are: Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Reps. Robin Hayes (R-N.C.), Kenny Marchant (R-Texas), Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), Wally Herger (R-Calif.), John Carter (R-Texas), Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.), Jeb Bradley (R-N.H.) and James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.)...

One member of Congress says his oil and gas holdings do not influence his political decisions.

"Sen. Kerry has been the Senate's best environmental champion for more than 25 years and has written and urged legislation to end our dependence on foreign oil. Inherited holdings in family trusts he has no control over whatsoever clearly have no impact on his fight for a green economy and a clean environment," Kerry spokesperson Whitney Smith told OpenSecrets Blog, echoing what his office said in June when we inquired specifically about his small holding in BP stock.

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/otherdata.php?cycle=2010&cid=N00000245&type=I

[ProSense]

17. Thanks for

"Sen. Kerry has been the Senate's best environmental champion for more than 25 years and has written and urged legislation to end our dependence on foreign oil. Inherited holdings in family trusts he has no control over whatsoever clearly have no impact on his fight for a green economy and a clean environment," Kerry spokesperson Whitney Smith told OpenSecrets Blog, echoing what his office said in June when we inquired specifically about his small holding in BP stock.

http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2010/08/congressmen-maintain-massive-portfolio.html

...posting that.

I think the biggest travesty occurred in 2009 when the kill the bill types sabotaged Kerry's climate bill.

July 2009: Disillusioned Environmentalists Turn on Obama as Compromiser

<...>

In a statement, Representative Henry A. Waxman, Democrat of California and an architect of the bill, defended the legislation. “We worked hard to craft legislation that would achieve our environmental goals while addressing the regional concerns of members of Congress,” he said. Politicians are not the only targets of dejected environmentalists.

<...>

That's six months into the Presidency.

July 2009: House passes landmark climate change bill

September 2009: Boxer, Kerry Set to Introduce Climate Bill in Senate

October 2009: Kerry-Boxer clean energy bill: Chairman’s mark and EPA analysis released

November 2009: Boxer Statement on Committee Passage of S. 1733 – The Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act

Unfortunately, by the time the bill got to the full Senate, it was attacked from all sides. Close = no bill.

No bill equals progressives won?

There is a difference between fighting for change and standing in the way of it.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x725008

[Earth_First]

18. While simultaneously carrying water for TPP...

The irony is especially delicious on this one.

[ProSense]

19. Yeah,

"While simultaneously carrying water for TPP..."

...STFU Kerry: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024517848

[Earth_First]

20. Well that's the rub...

The Trans-Pacific-Partnership *IS* the climate policy that the Administration is pushing for.

The "whatever it is" in your linked OP *is* the TPP.

...and they are quietly implementing it.

[ProSense]

21. No

"The Trans-Pacific-Partnership *IS* the climate policy that the Administration is pushing for. "

...the TPP isn't the singular fucking policy of the U.S. Every fucking post, whether about raising the minimum wage or any other issue, is met with...but the TPP.

"...and they are quietly implementing it."

Negotiating an agreement that needs to be passed by Congress isn't friggin "implementing it."