April 18, 2008
... Bush's credibility on climate change is close to zero. He began his presidency reneging on a promise to limit carbon dioxide emissions and disavowing the Kyoto protocol on climate change. He has insisted that the United States would rely on voluntary reductions of emissions that cause global warming, all the while casting doubt on the reality of climate change itself.
Denying climate change is no longer tenable for him, so now he admits its importance while looking for ways to resist actions that might prove costly to American economic interests. The truculent tone of his comments suggests that he remains wedded above all to the idea that the interests of American companies must come before all other interests, such as the welfare of the planet.
It is a narrow view. American companies do business on the planet. A planet in chaos because of environmental stresses will not be good for business, except for that brand of business coming to be known as disaster capitalism. That is the sort of capitalism on view in New Orleans and Iraq, where disasters, manmade or natural, are seen by business as opportunities to exploit ...
http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080418/OPINION/804180302/1038/OPINION01