Tag: fossil of the day

Liberal hot air on climate change

Michael Ignatieff had the following to say about Stephen Harper in a speech to students at Laval University on the topic of climate change,

“Stephen Harper doesn’t understand the environment, either. He’s turned Canada into a veritable saboteur of international climate change negotiations.” — Michael Ignatieff

The “Fossil of the Day” award, sponsored by AVAAZ.org, is an award that “is given to countries that block progress at the United Nations Climate Change Negotations.”

While Michael Ignatieff is tut-tutting about Stephen Harper’s realistic targets of 20% reduction of GHGs by 2020, under (forgive the cliche) thirteen years of Liberal rule, how did Canada do on the GHG file? According to the Fossil of the Day, Canada “won” 89 awards, beating out the Saudis with 88.


Source

FLASHBACK: How does the media cover Canada’s environmental record (Conservative vs. Liberal)?

UPDATE: Michael Ignatieff agrees!

I’d like to thank Jane Taber!

Not only was Taber was solid on CTV’s MDL as she put the questions to the new Liberal leader Stephane Dion, she used my blog’s research on two separate stories last night. Here’s a transcript:

Jane: Okay. Now on the environmental issue you have said that is one of your three pillars of course. That’s what you campaigned on during the leadership. Yet you have been voted I think seven times in a row the fossil of the year. What do you say to that? Because people have said your environmental plan is not —

Stephane Dion: Seven times in a row?

Jane: Seven times in a year.

Stephane Dion: The Liberal government maybe or over 13 years. Not me. I have been — I have received once this prize.

Jane: We saw the buttons at the campaign.

Stephane Dion: Yes, because of the record of the record other the years. Not because of my own achievement. To the contrary —

Jane: You were part of that government.

Stephane Dion: To the contrary, remember, we brought the world together at the Montreal conference on climate change. You remember that.

Jane: M-hm.

Stephane Dion: We put 182 nations together last December, December, 2005 at the same Palais des Congres where we had the convention last weekend. And at that time, I have been celebrated as a hero, if you allow me to say so, because we saved Kyoto at that time. And I remember that last February for the anniversary of Kyoto, the European caucus of the green party and the Belgium caucus of the green party invited me to celebrate what I have done. And they thought this I was a great minister. One when they discovered I was a Liberal they were a bit disappoint bud they gave me recognition the anyway.

Jane: Why should Canadians trust you? You were part of that government where we did see the greenhouse gas emissions go up.

Stephane Dion: Because I have been a very successful minister of environment. Madam Elizabeth May give me a prize or recognition for what I have done. The —

Jane: She is, of course, the leader of the green party now.

Stephane Dion: yes and also what I have done for nature to protect the — our seabirds. I received a prize for. That I have been a minister of the environment well accepted by the environmental groups and they are not easy. And by the industry when they are ready to work with us, they said that I was really helpful to push environmental technologies in Canada as we should. But since then, the current government is doing nothing. They always blaming us for what we have done. And they are doing nothing. If they are right, they just have to do more than us and I will do much more because this is the issue of the century.

stephane-dion-button.jpg

Makes this whole blogging thing feel worthwhile when I can help shape the debate. (see my fossil of the year post here)

Taber also used my last post on Trudeau running in Outremont on the show.

Thanks Jane!