Slashdot Mirror
Facing Oblivion, Island Nation Makes Big Sacrifice
Damien1972 writes "Kiribati, a small nation consisting of 33 Pacific island atolls, is forecast to be among the first countries swamped by rising sea levels. Nevertheless, the country recently made an astounding commitment: it closed over 150,000 square miles of its territory to fishing, an activity that accounts for nearly half the government's tax revenue. What moved the tiny country to take this monumental action? President Anote Tong, says Kiribati is sending a message to the world: 'We need to make sacrifices to provide a future for our children and grandchildren.'"
How does this protect their children and grandchildren?
When you're afraid to download music illegally in your own home, then the terrorists have won!
What do you expect from a bunch of island savages?
No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
Is this slashdot or digg? From the articles I can't tell anymore. I used to like the news when it wasn't slanted towards any particular angle, but there are no good news sources anymore.
A government restricts the lives of ordinary, innocent citizens, making them poorer in the process, while the government officials continue on without changing their lifestyles at all. Or the government officials make a profit from the change by getting payments (or something else of value) from environmental special interest groups or from the fishermen who use the other, non-restricted territory and have fewer competitors selling fish.
Governments using unnecessary force against people is oppression, even when the rulers are The Good People and they are doing it for The Good Reasons.
Someone who cared about islanders would suggest they actually solve their problems (in the event those problems actually happen) by building some small seawalls or other simple structures to deal with a modest rise in sea levels. Whining and making ridiculous and destructive spectacles is useless and childish.
Republicans - gotta love 'em.
No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
Maybe if we by carbon credits from Al Gore's carbon trading firm, those islands will come back with unicorns and triple-rainbows.
Aside from the media, liberal politicians, and moonbats.... not everyone agrees on the AGW hypothesis.
Raise all the "awareness" you want, the sun's not listening.
http://stagevu.com/video/nhljdfsznpkc
THL phish sticks
@tverbeek I agree with @linus on this one. these #mudpeople need to die off and make room for the rest of us.
References. Please if you are going to make a blanket statement about sea levels rising then back it up. Otherwise I will take your statement with the same indifference I give to the anonymous coward. If it weren't for media blowing these pieces of research out of proportion I would be more receptive to believing facts as offered. As it is now, we have run out of oil several hundred times since the 70s, have overpopulated the earth to the point where we should all be dead by an order of magnitude from the 60s, we're living in a new ice age from global cooling, and we don't even have any birds left nor a viable ecosystem because of DDT from 1962. So let me say this in no uncertain terms: Either back up your claims with data beyond refute, or don't make end of the world predictions and expect me to jump.
>>>Like what? I'm not a fuel engineer so i'm not sure on the specifics, but there are methods for deriving hydrocarbon equivalents or good enough substitutes from organisms that are only recently dead, biofuels you know, I also have a distinct memory of hearing about some technique to turn CO2 into fuel, that of course is probably something we'll only bother with when the coal run out in a few hundred years.
Well, I stopped reading after this paragraph I quoted. You don't have to be a "fuel engineer" to understand you don't have a clue of what you're talking about. Please go learn some basic, non-high-level, layman's chemistry.