Comments on: Bush-like doubletalk from Chinese foreign minister

By: Jörg Haas

Jörg Haas — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 14:24:01 +0000

Hi,
I really enjoy reading your blog and I quite often link to ist from my German blog. But I think in this case, you are overreacting. I know, Chinas growth is mindboggling if you look at the skyscrapers of Shanghai. But this is only a small part of this country, which is at the same time struggling with massive poverty. And you know quite well that climate change ist not an issue of actual (yearly) emissions, but of the cumulative emissions. And in this respect, the US and other developed countries will still for very many years bear the main responsibility for climate change.
I think the right approach for a fair burden sharing is one based on responsibility and capability, principles enshrined in the Framework Convention on Climate Change. A very interesting implementation of these principles was now proposed by EcoEquity in their paper “The right to development in a carbon constrained world” http://www.ecoequity.org/GDRs/
I consider this approach ethically absolutely justifiable, even if its results are hard to swallow for the North. I would be curious to learn about your opinion on this.

By: David B. Benson

David B. Benson — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 16:14:31 +0000

I prefer the Biopact approach:

http://biopact.com/

By: Shannon

Shannon — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 18:52:37 +0000

The Chinese seem to be heading 100 miles per hour in opposite directions. But that is an improvement in just heading 100 mph in the direction of coal. Though I agree with you that I have not seen anything concrete to make me optimistic about China, I have been reading reports from the delegates of the UN Convention, CGI, and the Bush Climate Summit that indicate that they were much more optimistic about China this go-round. So maybe there were positive signals that did not make it to the sound bytes.

By: Olin C.

Olin C. — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 11:59:07 +0000

Dear Jorg,

Thanks for commenting and welcome aboard!

By: Joe

Joe — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 15:51:04 +0000

Jorg — thanks for the comment. Obviously, as an American, I have no moral authority to criticize any other country’s climate policy. I thought of putting that caveat in this post, but then I’d really have to put that caveat in every post. Maybe I will do a separate post on this.

Certainly, the United States must completely reverse its climate policy before it can ask countries like China to reverse theirs.

That said, China’s development strategy is bordering on rapacious and irresponsible. They must know their explosive growth in coal consumption is unsustainable, just from the perspective of urban air pollution. And global warming will hit their country hard — maybe even harder than it hits the US. So their policy is ultimately self-destructive — as is America’s.

I have a chapter in my book that sums up my view — “The U.S.-China suicide pact on climate.” Our two countries could well ruin this planet for everyone else if we continue on our current paths.

By: yy

yy — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:37:13 +0000

I just don’t know what you are complaining about while most american are driving SUVs but Chinese are riding bicycles, while Americans are living in big three-level houses with air conditioners all year long but most Chinese families are living in apartments.
I think what you are dreaming of may be the american continent at indian times,400 hundred years ago. I really want to share your view on development and climate change and also the right to live a better life.