Hundreds of thousands of people around the world turned out for last Saturday's International Day of Climate Action organized by http://350.org. In Seattle, Climate SOS co-founder Duff Badgley joined One Earth activists to protest cap-and-trade bills on National Climate Action Day at the Seattle Federal Building. Wearing a polar bear costume, he risked arrest three times while holding an SOS banner along 2nd Avenue declaring:
CAP-AND-TRADE = “TEMPLE OF DOOM”
The police escorted Badgley to the curb before surrounding him on the sidewalk and taking his anti-Cap-And-Trade the banner from him. Although police officers threatened to arrest Badgley, he was not arrested during the action.
Badgley was the 2008 Green Party of Washington State candidate for governor. His Climate Manifesto called for outlawing carbon trading. In March, Badgley made a citizen's arrest of Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels during this year's Seattle Greenfest, accusing Seattle's self-appointed "Green" mayor of biofuels crimes against humanity and biofuels crimes against the planet. Six weeks after the direct action, the city of Seattle stopped using a million gallons a year of biofuels for city vehicles.
“We’re ready to risk prison to salvage our Earth,” he said. “But we’re always peaceful.”
The purpose of the annual planetary day of action is to inspire everyone in the world to rise to the challenge of the climate crisis as well as to create a new sense of urgency and of possibility for change.
The 350 campaign uses the number 350 because it is the parts per million that scientists have identified as the safe upper limit for CO2 in our atmosphere. In December, world leaders will meet in Copenhagen, Denmark to craft a new global treaty on cutting emissions. The problem is, the treaty currently on the table doesn't meet the severity of the climate crisis—it doesn't pass the 350 test.
Badgley is critical of some of the 350 campaign founders. "Bill McKibben organized the International Day of Climate Action on Saturday," Badgley said,"He gave people around the world hope in our struggle with the Climate Crisis. But it was false hope. McKibben refused to publicly oppose cap-and-trade." Badgley believes that when McKibben said that he supported cap-and-trade as "the best we can get", he was caving into political pressure.
If this is true, he is not alone. World leaders have been ignoring the science surrounding global warming. Warming is increasing because of the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Many of the activities we do every day, such as turning on the lights, cooking food, or heating our homes, rely on energy sources like coal and oil that emit carbon dioxide --the most common greeenhouse gas -- as well as other heat-trapping gases. The release of these gases trigger global warming which, in turn, destabilizes the delicate balance that makes life on this planet possible. Just a few degrees in temperature can completely change the world as we know it, and threaten the lives of millions of people around the world.
“If we are going to have a Livable Planet,” Badgley told Seattle Indymedia, “Business as usual must stop in every sector---government, industry, personal."
Badgley believes that street theatre and direct action work better than panel discussions.
"Polite conversations in panel conference rooms," Badgley said, " Will never challenge the status quo. Frederick Douglas told us, 'Power concedes nothing without a demand.' I have a stake. I have a personal stake with my children and grandchildren that there is a Livable Planet to support them. Right now that Livable Planet is looking very jeopardized. "
Click here if you are unable to play the video above.
Despite the interference by the Seattle police, Badgley brought the issue of global warming to people in the downtown area. "The time is now to show senators Cantwell and Murray, and all federal lawmakers, we are in climate emergency" he said "Emergency response is demanded—or we will doom ourselves."
"The people who support cap-and-trade have caved to political expediency", he added, "They are denying the climate reality that ecosystems are in collapse and we are all of us in mortal peril from our climate crisis. They choose to accept narrow limits of what is politically possible. This goes for Obama. It goes for Sustainable Ballard. It goes for[Governor] Chris Gregoire."
Washington Senator Maria Cantwell is promoting a cap-and-trade bill that permits 450-700ppm of atmospheric CO2 as a target for climate stability. She calls carbon trading “toxic” but is willing to risk a climate catastrophe by permitting 450ppm of atmospheric CO2.
The world’s pre-eminent climate scientist, Jim Hansen, has called cap-and-trade the “Temple of Doom”. Hansen has personally endorsed the Climate SOS campaign against it."Cap-and-trade perpetuates business-as-usual,” Badgley said. The current plans for the treaty are much too weak to get the planet back into the safety zone. Rich countries such as the U.S. aren't willing to compromise much, and many poor countries want the flexibility to grow.
The U.S. has been producing more CO2 than any other country, and it leads the industrialized world in per capita emissions. Perhaps because of this, the U.S. has blocked meaningful international action for many years. It now seems ready to back cap-and-trade, a plan that permits rich nations to buy carbon credits rather than developing carbon-neutral industries. Many, like Hansen, think cap-and-trade is worse than nothing because it locks world governments into a failed strategy, losing the opportunity -- and incentive -- to develop alternatives. Hansen says, “I’d rather climate talks fail than we agree to a bad deal”.
According to Badgley, the current cap-and-trade bills will:
Eventually, Badgley was ready to hang up his polar bear suit. “Fatigue got to me,” Badgley said. “After two-and-half hours in the bear costume standing on concrete, I took my head off. That was it for today.”
With or without the polar bear costume, Duff Bagdley continues to campaign against global warming and for a Livable Planet. "The climate news is relentlessly terrifying. But I refuse to be paralyzed by it," he said, "I refuse to be crippled by the obscene inaction and corrupt actions of our politicians from Obama on down. I choose to give hope and be active against the greatest threat human civilization has ever faced -- our Climate Crisis."
Also, in Los Angeles, a large banner was seen being held up over the 134 Freeway near the San Rafael exit, and on Tuesday October 27 a banner was still hanging over the Ventura Freeway in the San Fernando Valley.
In Eagle Rock, the 350 demonstration and public outreach had a turnout of at least 40 people. Some were from the community, many belonged to the Converging Storms Action Network, and others were with the Northeast LA Radical Neighbors (NELA-RAD), which hosted the event.
Story and photos: International Day of Climate Action in Eagle Rock (part 1) | (Photo set 2) by R of the Northeast LA Radical Neighbors ("bad-asses who care")
|
Nov. 20-22 Mass Mobilization to Close the SOA
11 hours 27 min ago
Anonymous
|
|
The Shortwave Report 11/06/09 Listen Globally
1 day 8 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
War Criminals and their agent control 344 Members of Congress.
1 day 23 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
Zhibin Gu: Chinese multinationals vs global financial crisis: finance, trade, politics and management
3 days 1 hour ago
Anonymous
|
|
Reject Corporate Options for Health Care
3 days 3 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
Venezuela: The error of being Lusbi Portillo
3 days 18 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
FERNANDO LUGO SE ALINEA CON ALVARO URIBE
3 days 23 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
A Science of Intuition
4 days 6 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
CUBANUESTRA.FERNANDO LUGO, DEL FASCISMO AL CHONGUISMO
4 days 22 hours ago
Anonymous
|
|
The Untold Story of the Cuban 5
6 days 8 hours ago
Anonymous
|