Join Now
Join ePHOTOzine, the friendliest photography community.
Upload photos, chat with photographers, win prizes and much more for free!
Personally this whole climate change is a load of old pants. The planet has and always will go through climate change and on an average cycle of 10,000 - 11,000 years. And would you know, the planet is at the tail end of a cycle.
Anyway, back to the money grabbing tax the government are talking about bringing in on pollution.
Why should we pay? Bare with me.
You see there are technologies out there that are green but the oil companies have either suppressed them or totally underfunded the research. So I say the oil companies should have to give up there profits which where gained at a cost to the planet.
on a side note, peak oil is a myth, designed to allow the oil barons to increase the price of oil.
discuss.
Its the old old story ... well 9yrs old anyway ... no carrot but a big stick to achieve what they want (or claim to want). Shame they don't use the stick when it comes to crime & disorder. It seems we could see the governement offering tax incentives to house builders and home owners to install solar panels, update boilers, convert their cars to LPG etc etc but none of it (I am sure we would all be happy to be involved in this) .. instead they see an opportunity to tax us into greenness. Why would they do this when we contribute approx. only 2% to world pollution and China's increases in pollution output alone would cover our total conversion to carbon neutrality in only 13 months and in the real world the planet is naturally going through a warming cycle that is massively more seriously affected by cows and volcanoes than any ford mondeo or chelsea tractor ... the answer is because it is another stealth tax ... another money maker to fund their ideals and to top up their (MP's) pension pot again .. £100,000,000 at a time :0)
Quote: on a side note, peak oil is a myth, designed to allow the oil barons to increase the price of oil.
So do you think it will last forever?
Quote: The planet has and always will go through climate change and on an average cycle of 10,000 - 11,000 years. And would you know, the planet is at the tail end of a cycle
Yup, but the next part of the cycle should be another ice age, but it is now almost certain that the opposite is happening, and no one can convince me that pumping millions of tons of CO2 and other greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere can do anything but harm.
OK I'll bite 
Quote: Personally this whole climate change is a load of old pants.
You are correct in what you say there have always been cycles of climate change, however what is of more concern is the rate of change. We are seeing changes happen in centuries that have taken millenia in the past, and the rate of change is increasing. If you subscribe to the Gaia view then too rapid a rate of change could well endanger the fragile ecosystem on this planet. Sort of like trying to implement a control system with positive feedback!
Yeah, we are going to be hit with a tax, and just like any government they are taxing the wrong thing. Penalise manufacturers that make appliances with a standby mode! How about My Pace Cable box that uses as much power on standby as when its on . . . and no it can't be switched off. How about car makers that don't make a proper alternative car, rather than letting them get away with it, stick them with a big bill. Why not Tax incentives for people committing to green alternatives. I cycle to work most days after walking my youngest to school, my eldest walks to school, my wife cycles to work and has done for 19 years!
So where is my Tax rebate!!
Why are we not planting more young trees they assimilate much more CO2 than mature ones, In actual fact I believe that plants such as Maize can absorb phenomenal amounts of CO2 per unit of mass, and they grow better in areas of high sunlight. There are plenty of things that can be done to slow down the rate of change but its going to take all the western countires to work together to really make a difference, and I'm not keen on paying a tax just to ensure that US industry doesn't experience an economic slowdown!
Hi Britman,
I like your style :O) When I first read your post I thought you were 'defending the indefensible', like they do on 'fighting talk' every Saturday morning on 5Live ...
I was a bit confused when your first paragraph started saying that climate change was a load of pants and then did a massive about-turn by saying we were at the end of a cycle, ie that change is happening, unless I read you wrong ...
We are all in deep deep sh!t as far as I can see. We've got GWB in denial, TB/GB seeing it as a money-making opportunity, and God only knows what the Chinese think about it, but if the West were in their position they wouldn't let a little global warming dent their drive for economic parity and all the good things in life.
I can't see a way out, personally, and the saddest thing for me is that I may only catch the beginning of the end but my kids are going to cop it big time :O(
Abel
Britman - your argument is not really valid.
First, it doesn;t matter what the planet goes through every 10-11,000 years - when the oil runs out, it runs out.
Second, there is no way the oil companies can be made to pay for gaining profits at the expense of the planet. It's the people using the fuel that are the cause of the problem (ie, us).
Lastly - "why should we pay" ? Well, I'd rather the tens of thousands of pounds I pay in tax every year went towards finding new clean and renewable energy than fighting illegal wars in foreign countries... for oil that we're never going to get.
i was always led to believe that 90% of a cars pollution comes from it manufacture and disposal, 5% from renewable parts and 5% from its fuel useage, so i like too drive me old beetle too sve the enviroment, so it seems we, yet again have to pay, i'm sure the air that comes out of catylatic(whatever its called) converter is cleaner than the air going into my engine in central london( thats when i drive me mazda!) and why pick on 4x4 drivers, apart from it being a class thing, my mazda does probably less mpg and its 16ft wheelbase certainly covers more roadspace than most 4x4s. and a last point is it not true that if you spill a few drops of petrol on the forecourt this will create more pollution than your cars exhaust over a year....
please tell me if i'm wrong
Quote: How about My Pace Cable box that uses as much power on standby as when its on . . . and no it can't be switched off.
According to the guy on the radio the other day, switching off all appliances that are on standby in the UK would be equal to one day of internal flights.
Quote: Why not Tax incentives for people committing to green alternatives. I cycle to work most days after walking my youngest to school, my eldest walks to school, my wife cycles to work and has done for 19 years!
So where is my Tax rebate!!
The answer here is that you are not paying tax on fuel (+VAT!), so that should be incentive enough I would have thought.
Was thinking about this yesterday with the talk about green taxes and slapping surcharges on cheap flights.
First off, in basic and logical terms, how does paying a tax reduce global emissions - apart from discouraging the poorer people from taking advantage of cheaper ways of doing things and thereby reducing the reliance on fossil fuelled transport (for instance).
Quite right about the oil issue - we needed to have reduced our reliance on fossil fuels a long time ago, and researched, developed and introduced renewable sources of energy. Did the politicians take a blind bit of notice? Ha. Of course, now that oil is a political weapon and they've messed up in the middle east big time, they're realising that they're going to have to scrabble around for energy alternatives which will not put them in an unfavourable bargaining position. So they're running around and bleating about environmental responsibiity and competing between parties as to who is the greenest of them all. Even Bush is changing his tune, but it's clear he doesn't give two stuffs about the environment. He's just mouthing platitudes.
As for whether the planet is going through a cycle of natural change again - it may be, but does that give us an excuse not to try and reverse the enormous damage we're doing? It comes down to maths in the end - how many people can an area of land support without their taking out of it more than is necessary to sustain life on a short, medium and long term basis.
Quote: how does paying a tax reduce global emissions
Often the greener alternatives contain a price premium. For example by precisely controlling the temperature of an engine in a vehicle you can take about 2% off its fuel consumption. But you need to pay for the more expensive engine. If you lighten it through the use of more expensive materials you can further improve its efficiency. Again at initial purchase cost penalty.
So if the fuel costs more people get interested in paying to save.
The problem is History teaches us that having a stalemate situation would appear to create a more peaceful way of living for humans. If one side thinks the other poses a threat, or is a good target, then history shows they will go for it.
And there are always sides, just look at the creation/evolution argument.
The problem with green taxes is that they are never set at a high enough level to discourage people from using less green products. A quick example is Richmond Council bringing in higher priced parking permits for larger sized engine cars and only making the difference between a small car and a range rover £200 over a year. Since when is this every going make someone who can afford a £50k car buy one that only costs £5k. Half the time these taxes are just an excuse to raise more money., if they meant them to do what they say they want them to then they would be much higher.
Add a Comment
ePHOTOzine, the web's friendliest photography community.
Upload photos, chat with photographers, win prizes and much more.
Join Our Free Newsletter
Awards
Current Competitions
Vanguard June 'Landscape' Competition - Win TIPA Awarded Gear!
1st June 2013 - 30th June 2013
This month, Vanguard are giving you the chance to get your hands on TIPA 2013 awarded gear in our 'Landscape' competition.Up for grabs are two ABEO Pro 2...
Featured e2 Photo
June's Photo Month
Check out ePHOTOzine's inspirational photo month calendar! Each day click on a window to unveil new photography tips, treats and techniques.
