Change is coming

The forces of darkness and the voices of doom on both extremes of the climate change debate are always quick to say how little is being done to reduce emissions,  or little can be achieved in the current economic climate, or renewable energy will never replace fossil fuels or whatever other convenient excuse springs to mind. The truth, however, as usual is far more interesting and of course complex. There is an enormous amount of work being done by governments all over the world to reduce emissions. France has just outlawed fracking, Germany is phasing out nuclear power, Japan has decided to investigate geothermal energy to replace its nuclear energy in the wake of the Fukushima disaster. China is the world's largest producer of renewable energy technology, but other countries are not so far behind. Let's not forget of course that Australia has just announced it will have a price on carbon as of next year 1 July 2012.

Still all we hear, day after day, is climate change denial, whining about electricity prices, prophesies of armageddon for small business, demands for more baksheesh (cough) compensation from heavy industry and general carping about minutely small details, personal gossip about politicians' hissy fits and general foolishness of the highest order all round when this is the one thing we should be having a grown up discussion about!

Sadly, because the media is controlled by that mouthpiece of global corporatization run amok, Rupert Murdoch, and/or can't deal with the complexities of actual real world policy-making, and/or don't care because they're easily distracted by Charlie Sheen's antics (or all of the above) most people don't get to hear about all the good stuff that's actually going on.

Even in the USA, where the President has to fight a hostile upper house since the Republicans increased their majority in the mid-term elections, the Republican Party,who have fought every single attempt at legislative reform, emissions reduction targets, the clean air act, prop 23, the list goes on and on.... Even in the USA where the economic situation at the moment is so dire that the President has no choice but to focus a lot of his time and attention trying to deal with systemic domestic economic issues, like jobs, the credit limit, trying to jump start the economy and so on... Even there while all this is going on, things are happening on a State by State basis.

The US electorate, suffering high unemployment and a stalling economy, is in no mood and the US government is in no position financially to embark upon any ambitions economic restructuring, such as putting in a carbon price as we're doing in Australia. Although change is sorely needed and long overdue, nothing dramatic on a national scale is going to happen until after the next election - if ever. A lot will depend on who wins, of course. Even so, with all these difficulties and obstacles, even in the USA stuff is happening.

There's still hope. There's always hope. There's got to be.