Man Of The People

June 9, 2015 – 10:06 pm

Here is the French Foreign Minister, Laurent Fabius:

M. Fabius seeks an international arrangement to impose strictures upon the sovereign nations of the world in an attempt to control the Earth’s climate. (That such an arrangement will also transfer aspects of that sovereignty to gentlemen such as himself and his professional colleagues is, I believe, what is called a “lagniappe”.)

Were we to ask him, I am sure that Monsieur Fabius would speak with approval about the spread of modern liberal democracy. I’m sure that he would agree, as would all educated and bien-pensant Westerners, that it has been a great blessing to the modern world, and that for any member of our enlightened community of nations to take up any other form of government would be a retreat into darkness.

I note with interest, however, this news item from a week or two ago:

FRENCH MINISTER: 2015 CLIMATE DEAL MUST AVOID US CONGRESS

I suspect that M. Fabius, along with the like-minded American President with whom he hopes to consummate his ambitions, attaches quite a different meaning to the word “democracy” than you or I might.

If, reader, you happen to be an American, by all means feel free to bristle a bit, if you like. Reflect also, perhaps, upon the stubbornness of hierarchy and inequality, and how they always find a way.

Posted by Malcolm on at 10:06 pm, filed under Politics, Foreign Affairs, Global Warming. RSS feed for this post. Trackbacks are closed, but you can post a comment.

7 Comments

  1. Kevin Kim says

    Un vrai salopard, celui-lÁ . Qu’il se fasse enculer par une licorne.

    Posted June 9, 2015 at 11:38 pm | Permalink
  2. Whitewall says

    I think it is time for Germany to invade France again. Then let them keep it.

    Posted June 10, 2015 at 7:48 am | Permalink
  3. Malcolm says

    Note also this chilling remark at the very end of the piece, directed at fossil-fuel companies:

    “In the long term, they have the wrong business model. And that’s something they have to acknowledge,” said Martin Kaiser, a Greenpeace climate policy expert.

    That is the sound of a man with God on his side, and a sword in his hand.

    Posted June 10, 2015 at 10:08 am | Permalink
  4. TheBigHenry says

    “Qui sÁ¨me le vent rÁ©colte la tempÁªte arome.”
    — Henri LeGrand

    Posted June 10, 2015 at 12:35 pm | Permalink
  5. JK says

    Unfortunately it’s not just the French.

    [L]ast fall, the Obama administration trumpeted a joint announcement with China to aggressively reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For its part, the United States committed to cutting net greenhouse gas emissions 26—28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. At the same time, President Xi Jinping of China announced targets to peak carbon-dioxide emissions around 2030, with the intention to try to peak early and to increase the nonfossil-­fuel share of all energy to around 20 percent by 2030.”©

    Following up on that announcement, last month President Barack Obama signed an executive order that will help the United States stay on track to fulfill the commitment it made in China. Specifically, in what the administration refers to as a “new sustainability plan for the next decade,” the order directs federal agencies to cut their greenhouse-gas emissions by 40 percent by 2025.”©

    http://www.ecmag.com/section/your-business/obama-administration-steps-fight-against-climate-change

    (There’s another *little bit* on efficiency standards for lightbulbs in May’s article but, as Malcolm’s fresh back I don’t want to take a chance on having a comment deleted for the third time.

    I know what is said about third times and charms.)

    Posted June 10, 2015 at 5:42 pm | Permalink
  6. JK says

    Of course this being Waka and we’ve all decided on and retreated to Alamo-Style we shout

    Sauve qui peut!

    Expecting … whatever.

    Posted June 10, 2015 at 9:43 pm | Permalink
  7. Whitewall says

    “and a sword in his hand”. A sword huh? Break his friggin’ hand and call him “comrade”.

    Posted June 11, 2015 at 7:42 am | Permalink

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