Want to take a guess at whose quotation this is? "Any harm we inflict on nature will eventually return to haunt us." No, it's not Barack Obama or Al Gore. And it certainly is not President Trump, who is too busy dismantling what those two have been able to do to slow down our contribution to climate change.
No, the quote above is the president of the country that is stepping into the gap left by Trump's policy. It's from a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping to the opening of the Communist Party congress in Beijing on Wednesday.
He told the group that China has taken a "driving seat in international cooperation to respond to climate change." And he continued:
"No country alone can address the many challenges facing mankind. No country can afford to retreat into self-isolation. Only by observing the laws of nature can mankind avoid costly blunders in its exploitation. Any harm we inflict on nature will eventually come back to haunt us. This is a reality we have to face."
President Xi is emerging as the world leader on climate change. China has already outstripped the U.S. in manufacture and use of solar panels. In contrast, President Trump has threatened to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement; and his EPA Director has overturned almost all of his predecessor's regulations.
Here's a typical Trump tweet from 2012: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive."
No, the quote above is the president of the country that is stepping into the gap left by Trump's policy. It's from a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping to the opening of the Communist Party congress in Beijing on Wednesday.
He told the group that China has taken a "driving seat in international cooperation to respond to climate change." And he continued:
"No country alone can address the many challenges facing mankind. No country can afford to retreat into self-isolation. Only by observing the laws of nature can mankind avoid costly blunders in its exploitation. Any harm we inflict on nature will eventually come back to haunt us. This is a reality we have to face."
President Xi is emerging as the world leader on climate change. China has already outstripped the U.S. in manufacture and use of solar panels. In contrast, President Trump has threatened to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement; and his EPA Director has overturned almost all of his predecessor's regulations.
Here's a typical Trump tweet from 2012: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive."
China has worse problems than we do, with brutal levels of air pollution and industrial carbon emissions. But at least they are taking a vigorous approach to make rapid progress in the right direction. They have pledged to cap carbon emissions by 2030 and invest $380 billion in renewable power generation by 2020. They have a plan to phase out vehicles that run on fossil fuels as soon as 2030.
Only a short time ago, Trump was still referring to climate change as a "hoax." And he opposes the "Clean Power" plan and endorses the actions of his EPA director.
"America First" is turning into "America Alone." Trump is leading us in a retreat from world leadership. Sad. Bad.
Ralph
"America First" is turning into "America Alone." Trump is leading us in a retreat from world leadership. Sad. Bad.
Ralph
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