Mandeville Weekly Online

Between 40,000 and 60,000 people are scheduled to gather in Johannesburg, South Africa from August 26 to September 4 to tackle the earth’s worsening environmental problems and to address the plight of the world’s poor.

You will be reminded that 10 years ago a similar circus was staged ostensibly called the Earth Summit on Sustainable Development in Rio De Janeiro, where despite an array of agreements to stave off climate change, preserving biodiversity and curbing pollutants, none of these accords have been implemented.

Why? The Kyoto Protocol on global warning, the most important of all the agreements, four years of extensive negotiation, is not even worth the paper it is written on as the United States, the worst carbon polluter on earth has opted out and there is nothing that the United Nations or the rest of the planet earth can do about it and that is not all.

Ten years ago in Rio, rich countries pledged 0.7% of the Gross National Product (GNP) in development aid, what’s the reality; the European Union’s share is 1/2, 0.33% while the USA is a mere 0.11%, now while the rich countries continue to throw nickels and dimes into the fund they spend six times more on farming subsidies, now do you understand the plan, makes you want to puke!