Among the most blatant examples of hypocrisy are the recent cries emanating from environmentalists.
We gradually are recognizing the need to protect our environment. Nowadays we are thinking less about conquering nature and instead how to work with nature, realizing our interdependence with the rest of globe. We have been confronted time and time again with graphic images that are entailed if we fail to protect our surroundings.
We are beginning to take steps to control and limit damaging emissions that are injurious to our domain. Despite our efforts in this regard, many have decided to focus on our tar sands industry, disregarding what others are doing elsewhere.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa has taken out a full-page in Toronto’s Globe and Mail berating the tar sands production. He simply proposes to ignore the more serious problem caused by coal fired-plants. The latter are commonplace in his own nation, plus India, and China. They cause much more serious hurt than our tar sands. Inasmuch as Canada is less significant than the major countries, we appear to be more vulnerable to criticism, subject to outrageous complaints while the principal culprits polluting the earth never are mentioned.
Canada is opting out of the Kyoto Accord developed to limit harmful emissions to our environment. The treaty is not realistic. If we accepted the principles outlined there, our economy would suffer drastically. In fact, no nation could meet the standards suggested in that agreement. Otherwise world economies would be very damaged.
Hence, why is no one not pointing the finger at nations that really are responsible for so much pollution? Many of the environmental zealots appear to be anxious to be politically correct while ignoring the more serious offenders.
It should be noted that those involved in tar sands development are taking important steps to limit their destructive effects. Observers point out that Canada is doing far more in this respect than, for example, China where the pollution overhanging cities is literally-suffocating.
Hence, it is about time that we stop feeling guilty about our tar sands extraction. There is a religious injunction that we should not criticize but not our own failings.
Then comments “by do-gooders” quite properly would cease.