by Merle Wigeson

Created on: August 07, 2009

The world has been subject to climate shift from its very beginning. From the cataclysmic changes that killed the dinosaurs to the changes that precipitated our unwilling earliest ancestors into prominence, the earth's climate has changed - at times in radical fashion.

One wonders whether there were early Triceratopian politicians and economists who climbed on the bandwagon and exhorted their trusting constituents to curb their flatulence in the interests of controlling climate change? Was there a tax on excessive sulphur or methane gas production? Did neanderthals have to carry their forage home in environmentally friendly containers or face the scorn of their peers? ( Well, the hide bags and woven grasses probably were environmentally friendly, at the very least, but what about the animals and grasses that became extinct as a result?)

There is no doubt in the mind of any responsible, reasonably intelligent person, no matter what their level of education, that the profligate squandering of the Earth's natural resources is a bad thing. Oil in particular is not a readily replaceable commodity, and once the stores of oil and natural gas are exhausted they will be gone for good. We unfortunately do not have a ready supply of dinosaurs waiting to fall into Carboniferous swamps, nor do we have a few billion years to wait for the result. Drilling off shore is only delaying the inevitable - as well as polluting the sea and the atmosphere. Have you ever seen a "Gusher" ? - The piffling amount of hydrocarbon wasted by non-recyclable supermarket bags pales into justified insignificance by the sheer unavoidable waste of the whole process, not to mention the gargantuan scale.

Underground fires that burn for months or even years are also more common than we realise, nor are they readily admitted to by the countries and companies involved. The contribution to global warming by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions is also far more significant than we admit.

What is it therefore about "Global Warming" and "Climate Change" that has captured the heart and minds of the world at large, and particularly of our esteemed leaders?

The opportunity to climb on a global bandwagon, to make almost everyone feel guilty, and the possibility of huge profits are probably reason enough.

Let us delve in the political incorrectness inherent in the "Kyoto Protocol". Outdated, outmoded and ill-conceived it has nevertheless endured. Those who have had the unmitigated temerity to

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