Earth care and eco-extremists
Canada has always prided itself as being an international "good guy." While those nasty American, Russian, Chinese and other not-so-nice-guys were out scheming and intriguing with their wars and espionage, everyone could count on Johnny Canuck to be doing "peacekeeping" and making nice speeches about human rights.
So how is it that Canada is suddenly international public enemy number one when it comes to climate change and global warming? That's the question we have to ask after the debacle that was the climate change conference in Copenhagen this past December. Furthermore, what will our status as an environmental pariah mean for Canadian influence on other international issues such as the global economy and human rights?
It would be very easy and convenient to blame Canada's low standing on the environment on Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his Conservative government. The Harper government has never been comfortable prostrating itself at the shrine to the environment that the David Suzukis of the world insist all governments bow down to. And who can blame Harper?
Copenhagen demonstrated that the issue of climate change is no longer about science but about faith—faith by Mother Earth-worshipping environmentalists in a belief that humans are "killing" the planet.
The reaction of environmentalists and their supporters in government, academia, and media to the so-called "climategate" scandal was marked by the type of hysteria and dismissal one would expect from intolerant religious bigots rather than presumably rational human beings.
The controversy arose just before the Copenhagen conference over the leak of e-mail communications between top climate-change scientists that skeptics say cast doubt on the legitimacy of the science behind global warming.
I am always leery of anyone who simply dismisses another person who happens to have an opposing viewpoint. In our democratic Canadian tradition, respectful debate is the stick that stirs democracy. So seeing the climate change high priests demand "climate justice" in Copenhagen regardless of legitimate criticisms or concerns about what this "justice" will mean to Canada in terms of our economy and national sovereignty is a more than a little disturbing.
This is not to say that climate change issues shouldn't be deemed important. Environmental issues should be just as important in the development of public policies as other considerations such as economics, health care, or any other issue when governments make important decisions. But surely mob scenes of angry protesters screaming that Canada is a "corrupt petro-state" little better than Saudi Arabia won't help the environmental cause in Canada.
Whatever the outcome of Copenhagen in the long-term, the climate change issue does show the gap between the Harper government and Canadians in general. That the federal government endured its worst international beating in a very long time in the Danish capital won't go over well with squeamish Canadian voters who still cling to the myth of Canadians as international nice guys.
The Copenhagen dust-up also won't help Harper heal the federal-provincial divisions on the environment—with Alberta and Saskatchewan seeking to protect their resource-based economies while Ontario and Quebec argue for action to combat the alleged environmental damage specifically caused by the oil sands. It does raise questions about the prime minister's management of the federation.
A recent poll suggested 64 per cent of Canadians agree that rich nations like Canada should implement tougher targets for decreasing greenhouse gases than developing nations. Despite our image as an environmental rogue nation, Canadians seem desperate to accept the dogma of climate change. But are we really prepared to accept emission reduction targets that would severely damage if not outright kill off the oil sands in Western Canada (with massive job losses to boot)? Are we ready to pay billions of dollars to help fund poor countries in their efforts to contend with global warming? Are we ready to upset China (whose potential as a buyer of Canadian goods and services the Harper government is desperate to exploit) by insisting the notoriously secretive Chinese also open themselves to verification by international bodies?
As Christians, we operate on the concept that the Earth belongs to God and that we are to be stewards of the environment. Calvin B. DeWitt, professor of environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, succinctly outlines three principles for Christian stewardship of the environment:
1) the Earth-keeping principle: God's command for us to serve and keep the Earth (Genesis 2:25),
2) the Sabbath principle : ensuring we give the land a rest as God commands that we also rest (Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5), and
3) the fruitfulness principle: we are charged to enjoy by not destroy creation's fruitfulness (Ezekiel 34:18).
The "climate justice" that protesters in Copenhagen demanded is not based on stewardship, but on a warped ideology that sees human beings (at least in "developed" places like Canada) as little better than parasites on Mother Earth. People of faith should not align themselves with eco-extremists like these.
Dear Readers:
ChristianWeek relies on your generous support. please take a minute and donate to help give voice to stories that inform, encourage and inspire.
Donations of $20 or more will receive a charitable receipt.Thank you, from Christianweek.
