By Teresa Platt, executive director, Fur Commission USA

Oct. 21, 2009

The United Nations Climate Change Conference will be held in December in Copenhagen.

This week, India and China signed a cooperative agreement on climate change reaffirming the "principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, in particular that developed countries should take the lead in and continue to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and providing financial resources, technology transfer and capacity building support to developing countries”.

Meanwhile British Lord Christopher Monckton is in Washington, DC this week warning that the treaty to be signed in Copenhagen includes wording to establish (not elect) a global government . Lord Monckton states that Paragraphs 36 and 38 on page 18 of the treaty include wording establishing an unelected, unaccountable global government designed to transfer wealth to the developing countries, strengthened with enforcement powers. All is detailed in this in-depth interview with Lord Monckton (transcript). You'll also want to listen to his speech in Minnesota while viewing his slides. The last five sobering minutes of the speech are being circulated widely via the Internet - you'll want to view them - but do watch the entire presentation.

The climate change treaty is also generating tort dollars for lawyers. In the fall of 2009, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that five of the nation’s largest utility companies must stand trial for allegations that their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contributed to the "public nuisance" of global warming. Register for a 10/22 briefing on this subject.

Additionally, all UN treaties carry compliance costs. The climate change treaty requires developed countries to pay for the paperwork costs for the "developing" nations. This is handled via the UN's Global Environment Facility (GEF). A quick way to take a look at what you're paying for now is to go to www.gefonline.org and search  "Project Type" by "Enabling Activities" - that's paperwork. Every country has to file such paperwork every year. We in the US, since we live in a developed country, pay for the bulk of the costs associated with this paperwork for developing countries, including China and Russia, paperwork which can cost as much as $37,000 a page!

Treaties are big business, generating lots and lots of bureaucratic and number-crunching jobs - reportedly $79 billion has been spent in taxpayer dollars getting us to this point. And the meeting in December, according to Lord Monckton, will establish an unelected, unaccountable global government with enforcement powers. Citizens and elected officials seeking more info will find the Chamber of Commerce's special section on climate change policy an excellent starting point.

Further reading:

Hidden influences are shaping costly climate change restrictions and penalties. By Teresa Platt, Dec. 20, 2009.

The climate-change travesty. By George Will, Washington Post, Dec. 6, 2009.

None dare call it fraud. By Paul Driessen, Oct. 19, 2009.

Back to Climate / Home