It’s the best excuse for doing nothing. And it’s probably the most used one.
“I’m just one person, what difference will it make?” Yes, that one line is used to pretty much avoid responsibility for a lot of what happens around us. Whether it’s using more water than we should, buying crap from China, driving gas guzzlers or guzzling soda from plastic bottles. The" only one person" viewpoint has pretty much got us all into a huge mess.
Last week all the bigwigs got together in Paris to set some climate change goals. Well, at least they’re trying. And many folks kind of sat back and said, “Phewww .... something is being done.” Many of those saying that immediately went out for the after-after Black Friday sales to replace their big-screened TVs with even bigger-screen TVs. The better to watch global leaders explain why they won’t be able to meet the greenhouse gas emission rules next year if they can’t keep up with the other countries who are producing more stuff for us to buy.
To be sure, countries using tariffs and tax carrots can effect major change in ‘greening up’ their economies. But one only has to look at B.C. to see how hypocrisy and sleight of hand (or mouth) is applied on environmental change.
Premier Clark salutes the whole climate change thing, but former Premier Gordon Campbell’s carbon tax goals have already been undermined under Clark’s leadership.
And then there’s Port Metro Vancouver. This is the untouchable federal agency that puts all of those ‘green’ commercials on TV touting how big ships can now plug directly into shore power eliminating the need to keep their carbon spewing engines running. Of course that’s a good thing. But while they’re patting themselves on the back for that, they’re approving coal transportation facilities in Surrey, across from New Westminster. And where will that coal go to be burned? To China probably. Where - guess what - the Chinese government has pledged to voluntarily reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
If it wasn’t going to be a matter of life or death for future generations, it would almost be laughable.
