Forthcoming Channel 4 documentary

[Paul Mobbs]

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On Tuesday 26 October 2010 00:50:43 Jim Roland wrote:
> Channel 4 are showing a documentary called 'What the 
> Green Movement Got Wrong' at 9pm on Thursday 4 
> November, followed by a live studio debate chaired by 
> Jon Snow at 10.20pm.

The web page is here --
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/what-the-green-movement-got-wrong

First episode summary here --
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/what-the-green-movement-got-wrong/episode-
guide/series-1/episode-1

Here's their trail --
"A group of environmentalists across the world believe that, in order to save 
the planet, humanity must embrace the very science and technology they once so 
stridently opposed. In this film, these life-long diehard greens advocate 
radical solutions to climate change, which include GM crops and nuclear 
energy. They argue that by clinging to an ideology formed more than 40 years 
ago, the traditional green lobby has failed in its aims and is ultimately 
harming its own environmental cause. As author and environmentalist Mark Lynas 
says, 'Being an environmentalist was part of my identity and most of my 
friends were environmentalists. We were involved in the whole movement 
together. It took me years to actually begin to question those core, cherished 
beliefs. 'It was so challenging it was almost like going over to the dark 
side. It was a like a horrible dark secret you couldn't share with anyone.'"


Also, if Mark Lynas is a representative of the entire green movement then I'm 
obviously working well beyond its boundaries (and in fact I don't use the 
label "green" any more because people like this have devalued it so much). 
It's interesting that the media are adept at highlighting the pro-status quo 
environmentalists, but don't dare start looking at the people working on the 
other end of the green spectrum who have, in the light of recent research, an 
even stronger technical case against the present economic system (now that 
really is the 'dark side' -- they don't have many lights ;-p ).


In any case, are the "Green Movement" infallible?

Personally I think they've got a lot of things wrong over the last decade or 
so, primarily related to the leadership of the largest campaign groups 
compromising over consumption and growth. The people who've held fast to the 
original ideas, and gone on to do small-scale permaculture, low impact 
development and the like are doing pretty well. Unfortunately they're largely 
ignored whilst FoE, Greenpeace et. al. vacillate over distractions like 
electric cars, feed-in tariffs and -- most importantly -- relate every issue 
back to a value of carbon rather than back to a viable general baseline for 
human ecology.

There is no "problem" of carbon emissions; it's a symptom of present economic 
and social relationships that have culturally evolved over the last three 
hundred years of industrialisation in the developed states. We could cut 
carbon emissions by 95% and it would make little difference by the middle of 
this century because that doesn't check the equally dire state of water, land, 
phosphate, energy depletion, mineral depletion, etc. The human system is 
heading for a crash irrespective of what we do about carbon because it's our 
ecological footprint that's the issue, not carbon [ e.g. 
http://www.csiro.au/resources/SEEDPaper19.html ].

We need to return to the original and practical ideas that spawned the 
movement, based around 'Limits to Growth' and ecological principles, not 
promote "green consumerism" and "sustainable consumption" that keep an elite 
of affluent people with inflamed consciences delusionally happy whilst the human 
ecosystem continues to degrade around them.

Irrespective of what the compromised green elite might say about nuclear or 
GM, as the well grounded Mr. Scott used to point out at moments of high drama, 
"you c'anna break the laws of physics captain!".


P.

- -- 

"We are not for names, nor men, nor titles of Government,
nor are we for this party nor against the other but we are
for justice and mercy and truth and peace and true freedom,
that these may be exalted in our nation, and that goodness,
righteousness, meekness, temperance, peace and unity with
God, and with one another, that these things may abound."
(Edward Burrough, 1659 - from 'Quaker Faith and Practice')

Paul's book, "Energy Beyond Oil", is out now!
For details see http://www.fraw.org.uk/ebo/

Read my message board, "Ecolonomics", at:
http://www.fraw.org.uk/mei/ecolonomics/

Paul Mobbs, Mobbs' Environmental Investigations
3 Grosvenor Road, Banbury OX16 5HN, England
tel./fax (+44/0)1295 261864
email - mobbsey at gn.apc.org
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public key - http://www.fraw.org.uk/mei/mobbsey-2010.asc
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