David Suzuki - I'm absolutely embarrassed as a Canadian.

[Hux]

Below is a transcript of David Suzuki's appearance on CBC's "The Hour" on Wednesday. Excellent rebuke of the current Govt's environmental "approach", by no means an endorsement of the previous Gov't, but for those who insist the Liberal Party and the CPC are the same (the bane of my existence and the source of constant contact between my head and the nearest wall) I'll add this one to my long list of evidence to the contrary:

"This government is very different." - David Suzuki

Which I think he demonstrates.

Great read, I wish there was video available, he was visibly angry. Now how do we get Suzuki to run for the Liberal leadershp...hmmmm...

David Suzuki's interview

Newsworld Closed Captioning

May 16, 2006

George Stroumboulopoulos: Now, when you as a Canadian were being pitched Kyoto did anybody tell you you had to take all the cars off the road? That's what the government thinks you have to do. The Conservatives say their plan is to reduce pollution more effectively than the targets set under Kyoto. But aside from that they're not saying much and hardly mentioned the environment in the Budget. So are the Conservatives anti-environment or just being realistic with another plan? You want to talk about the world certainly you go to this guy here David Suzuki. How are things, man?

David Suzuki: Good. Great day today.

GS: What do you think about what happened today. What's going on with the Conservatives in relation to Kyoto?

DS: I'm absolutely embarrassed as a Canadian. I can't understand why Ms. Ambrose doesn't just resign. She's making a mockery of our position at the conferences that are going on now. You know, canada signed the Kyoto protocol. We ratified it. Despite enormous opposition from the united states. And when Mr. Putin ratified Kyoto, it became international law. I thought Canadians regarded ourselves as international good guys. And certainly, last fall, in november and december, as we watched the government negotiating the cop 11 meetings about the Kyoto agreement, I was very, very proud of my country because we took the lead, despite all of the efforts of the Americans to essentially blind side the Kyoto process. We hung in there with the rest of the world and banged out an agreement. We took the leadership. We were chairing that conference. And I felt that Canada played a very important role, which now Ms. Ambrose by going and immediately throwing up her hands and saying we want special consideration. It doesn't make make any sense. It's absolutely humiliating as a Canadian to have our minister there claim to go chair the next meeting.

GS: When the Canadian house ratified Kyoto it was non-binding but it was overwhelming. And presumably smart women and men were part of the negotiations for Kyoto. But Canada and England have now come out and said they can't meet the requirements. So my question to you were they lying and misleading us about that? Or were they just stupid and got it wrong?

DS: I think the truth is before the current one talked a good line. And really started a few things that were good. But wasn't serious enough about actually implementing the demand for reduction in greenhouse gas emission by becoming more efficient, by looking for alternative non-polluting sources of energy. There wasn't enough pressure put on. But I think that government was fully committed to trying to meet the target by 2012. This government is very different. I talked to Mr. Harper before he was even leader of the current Conservative party. And he told me then, he didn't believe the Kyoto target could be met. And he didn't believe in the process anyway. So this is something that goes long back before the current government is in power.

GS: You were right. You said the Liberals talked a good line. And they did at the end. And that's one of the legacy things. For a long time they talk and did little about it. So there's a lot of people who look at Kyoto and saying the Conservatives are being practical about what they expect from Canada.

DS: Why would it be practical to dismantle every single one of the programs that the previous government had implemented to try to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?

GS: Is it just part of the politics?

DS: You mention Energuide. Why would we do that, when this is a system that works very, very well, especially for low income families, this is a way to reduce their energy bill, so they'll save money. And it's good for the environment. Why would the government gut everything? I mean, this doesn't make any sense at all. Especially when I would have expected that there would have been an alternative, right up there, and he would be told what it is, before they gut the programs that are already in.

GS: It's interesting because you look at the way the Liberals run, the NDP haven't been in power and they were the ones that helped bring the government down so there was no hope for Kyoto to take hold in any way on both their parts. Brian Mulroney was recently named the greenest Prime Minister and Stephen Harper says there's a made in Canada plan. What do you think the made in canada plan could be that could be better than Kyoto?

DS: I have no idea because a lot of the Kyoto process was a made in Canada plan. You know, there were a lot of us in the environmental movement in Kyoto that did not want trading emissions. You know, a loophole like this. There were the delegation from Alberta that were pushing like mad for all these kinds of loop holes that would weaken the protocol. Once that was in place. Everybody will now objects to that but that was a part of what Canadians were pushing for. So I don't know what a made in Canada plan is. Every country has the ability to do the reductions in whatever way that they can. But the point is, this is an international law. Are we going to be bound by it, or are we not? The United States and Australia by declaring they don't want a part of the Kyoto process is saying that they're opting out of what the vast majority of countries have agreed to as a process for reducing our greenhouse gas emissions. I thought Canada was a good guy. I thought that's what our record showed. That we wanted to be a part of this international agreement. Now the Harper government seems to be saying, no, this is not what they want.

GS: You're on this book tour now. You have your autobiography saying you've done your part. Do you feel like you're leaving that movement in good hands?

DS: Well, I feel very, very frustrated now. Because the reason why Brian Mulroney was the greenest Prime Minister was because in 1988 when he was re-elected, the public concern was at its absolute height. That's when George Bush ran for President and said if you elect me, I'll be an environmental President. That's the year that Margaret Thatcher was filmed saying I'm a greeny too. Everybody was green then. Because the public demanded it. Now I feel this government has taken us way back in what it's brought down in the Budget. We know that Mr. Harper has only one priority, and that's get re-elected. Anybody in his position would have that as their priority. We know the five promises he's commited to. Do not include the environment. The only way to get that environment back on the agenda is for us as a general public, to say, look, as the economy is doing fine. Don't use the economy as the excuse now. For avoiding what is a very serious problem. Even Minister Ambrose says climate change is affecting the north of Canada. We're going to be disproportionately affected by climate change. Surely it's in our best interests to be leaders in reducing green house gasee emissions for our own sake. We're a northern country. We're a country that relies on agriculture, forestry fisheries. We're a country that relies on ecotourism for our parks. All of those are going to be impacted by climate change.

GS: They say they have a plan. We'll see what happens when that plan comes up. David thanks for your time.

DS: It better be soon.

GS: We asked the environment minister to come on the program tonight. We have invited her before. Her office says she was not available. But our invitation still stands.

[AD]

that's a great read, thanks for posting it.

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[Biggest Fan]

I was reading that within 40 years we could be out of gasoline anyways. There'll 'probably' be a few polar bears left at that point.

[timouse]

Great read, I wish there was video available, he was visibly angry. Now how do we get Suzuki to run for the Liberal leadershp...hmmmm...

hux, i think you have given yourself a mission

niffer and i saw ds speak in hamilton a few weeks ago, and i kept thinking about the conversation we had in your kitchen just before i spilled red wine everywhere if the libs could get someone like david suzuki to run for PM, i would be 100% behind them.

of course, it would be a hard sell now given that one of his best friends, Elizabeth May, is taking over the greens...

*cough* coalition *cough*

[bouche]

I love how the initials GS look in an interview with Suzuki.

GS=Geoff Smith

[Hux]

I just got two DVD's of Suzuki's appearance from CBC, maybe someone could help me upload them somewhere...somehow...

[cANDYmAN]

i'd love to see'em.