Why Copenhagen will fail like Kyoto

This is one clear reason why nothing will happen at Copenhagen come December.

Rich nations should fund RP rehabilitation - GMA
By Paolo Romero (The Philippine Star) Updated October 15, 2009 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines - President Arroyo called on rich countries yesterday to provide the bulk of funds for rehabilitating areas ravaged by tropical storm “Ondoy” and typhoon “Pepeng,” saying the country had been a victim of climate change.

Mrs. Arroyo said the Philippines would need much more money to fund relief and reconstruction efforts following the recent record rains brought by the two weather disturbances that left more than 710 people dead and caused billions of pesos in damage.

Speaking at the Mid-Year Economic Briefing at the Shangri-La Hotel in Makati City, Mrs. Arroyo said that in seeking foreign help, the country will stress that it is “not a culprit of climate change.”

“We are a victim. We are not a climate maker but we certainly are a climate taker,” she said.

While I believe that we need funds to help us rise from the devastation brought about by the typhoons of the past weeks ( and if the global warming zealots are to be believed, we will have more of these), even from foreign governments, I do not think that the victim-of-climate-change rhetoric is good. We seem to be washing our hands off the responsibility of failing to mitigate the effects of environmental disasters through our lack of infrastructure and environmental management.

Rich countries, the geese that lay the golden eggs, will not give us what we so badly need if we blame them for our miseries. Richer countries, the US in particular, did not want to sign up for Kyoto, because Kyoto wanted the US to pay for global warming mitigation that "vulnerable" countries needed, but exempting some "very polluting" countries, China and India, for example, from any accountability.

Don't count on the UN for help either. Even if the UN thinks that climate change is the most urgent problem our beloved world faces. Or, precisely because it thinks that climate change is the most urgent.

Meanwhile, some more enterprising people are earning a whole lot from carbon credits without helping cut so-called dangerous, anthropogenic greenhouse gases or world temperatures.

Why not ask Al Gore-bal warming for funds?