Katrina as a warning to ratify Kyoto? (cleppe)

The world has been shocked by Katrina destroying New Orleans and showing to the world certain weaknesses that exist in the US. What is just as shocking, but unfortunately less surprising, is the political exploitation of the disaster. Apart from the brainless America-bashing, Germany’s Environmental Minister Jürgen Trittin, member of the Greens, has found a different opportunity to exploit this disaster.

Citing Der Spiegel:

“The toughest commentary of the day comes from Germany's Environmental Minister, Jürgen Trittin, a Green Party member, who takes space in the Frankfurter Rundschau, a paper friendly with the Social Democrats, to bash US President George W. Bush's environmental laxity.

He begins by likening the photos and videos of the hurricane stricken areas to scenes from a Roland Emmerich sci-fi film and insists that global warming and climate change are making it ever more likely that storms and floods will plague America and Europe.

"There is only one possible route of action," he writes. "Greenhouse gases have to be radically reduced and it has to happen worldwide. Until now, the US has kept its eyes shut to this emergency. (Americans) make up a mere 4 percent of the population, but are responsible for close to a quarter of emissions."

He adds that the average American is responsible for double as much carbon dioxide as the average European. "The Bush government rejects international climate protection goals by insisting that imposing them would negatively impact the American economy. The American president is closing his eyes to the economic and human costs his land and the world economy are suffering under natural catastrophes like Katrina and because of neglected environmental policies."

As such, Trittin also calls for a reworking of the Kyoto Protocol -- dubbing it the uncreative title of "Kyoto 2" -- and insisting that the US be included.”

In a comment by George Taylor on Tech Central Station, such analyses are being destroyed. Scientific evidence shows Global warning hasn’t got anything to do with the busy hurricane year in the Atlantic. Changing land use, and not changing climate, is the cause of the problem.
It should be a warning for the German people that they are governed by this kind of people. The upcoming elections offer a nice opportunity to outvote these from power.