The cost of green tinkering is in famine and starvation

The Guardian ^ | April 16th, 2008 | Simon Jenkins

[The_Republican]

Farewell the age of reason, welcome the idiocracy. Only George Orwell could have invented - and named - the government's Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) that came into operation yesterday. It is the latest in a long line of measures intended to ease the conscience of the rich while keeping the poor miserable, in this case spectacularly so.

The consequences of the RTFO have been much trumpeted on these pages. It says enough that one car tank of bio petrol needs as much grain as it takes to feed an African for a year, or that a reported one-third of American grain production is now subsidised for conversion into biofuel. Jeremy Paxman pleaded the cause of this latest green wheeze on Monday's Newsnight, while the United Nations food expert, Jean Ziegler, screamed for it to stop: "Children are dying ... It is a crime."

The transport secretary, Ruth Kelly, said this week: "The government has consistently stressed that biofuels are only worth supporting if they deliver genuine environmental benefits." Yet she must know that, at present, the opposite is the case. Kelly pleaded that rescinding her policy might impede investment and "weaken our influence over the direction of EU policy". She did not mention biofuels' threat to rainforests, food self-sufficiency and global warming generally, through needing costly fertiliser and road transport. Nor did she mention the role in her decision of such lobbies as the British Association for Biofuels and Oils, and the National Farmers' Union.

[Brilliant]

It’s genocide.

[Dr. Ursus]

Maybe President Obama can investigate Al Gore for crimes against humanity?

[goldstategop]

The idea of modern environmentalism is to eliminate people of color. Maybe Jeremiah Wright can explain why environmentalists in general tend to be affluent white males.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[kingattax]

seems like a plan by the globalists to weed out and decrease the world population.

[Lurker]

Nor did she mention the role in her decision of such lobbies as the British Association for Biofuels and Oils, and the National Farmers' Union.

Always follow the money.

Always.

L

[steelyourfaith]

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !

[atomicweeder]

I became interested in biofuels about 3 years ago, when my liberal friends started bragging about growing their own corn and making fuel from it.

It took about 3 or 4 hours on the internet to track down enough scholarly articles (i.e. written by scientists and not politicians) to convince me that bio-fuels are a bad idea.

I tried to explain it to my liberal friends:
* rain forests being converted to sugar cane for fuel
* resources used to make food now diverted to fuel
* oil already exists in the ground in a useable form -- don't have to use Mother Earth's resouces to make oil

They had the standard liberal response to facts -- befuddled silence.

[The_Republican]

Great summary! Nice points! Thanks!

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

” ... through needing costly fertiliser ...”

Saskatchewan, Canada, has 85% of the world’s reserves of potash & produduces over 1/4 of the world’s supply. Prices have soared (over 225%) since biofuels became mandated in the U.S.

Thanks.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

produduces = produces (obviously)

[BubbaBasher]

It says enough that one car tank of bio petrol needs as much grain as it takes to feed an African for a year

Can we cut out the middle man and put Africans in our gas tank?

[thulldud]

Can we cut out the middle man and put Africans in our gas tank?

No, we are gonna make the Africans into Soylent Green.

And you, too, if you complain about it.

[teeman8r]

soylent green is purple. It’s PURPLE!

apologies to charleton heston RIP

t

[thulldud]

Next you'll be telling me that visual purple is pink.

Wait a minute....