February 02, 2004
GREENWAR
Greenpeace co-founder Patrick Moore writes:
The environmentalists' campaign against biotechnology in general, and genetic engineering in particular, has clearly exposed their intellectual and moral bankruptcy. By adopting a zero tolerance policy toward a technology with so many potential benefits for humankind and the environment, they have lived up to Schwartz's predictions. They have alienated themselves from scientists, intellectuals, and internationalists. It seems inevitable that the media and the public will, in time, see the insanity of their position. As my friend Klaus Ammann likes to hope, "maybe biotech will be the Waterloo for Greenpeace and their allies." Then again, maybe that's just wishful thinking.
Wishful thinking indeed. Especially about the media.
Posted by Tim Blair at February 2, 2004 11:36 PMYou up late posting tonight Tim ...
Among other things the media has ignored is John Dalys death.
A big loss to the global warming skeptics, a boon to promoters.
Posted by: Robert Blair at February 2, 2004 at 11:44 PMGreen power/ environmentalism is killing more birds than a hundred gas- or oil-fired plants. And a lot more violently, too:
http://medvedfans.blog-city.com
Anymore, I am starting to believe that environmentalism is becoming more of a religion than it is any sort of political entity, as is evidenced by their growing fanaticism.
Posted by: Vexorg at February 3, 2004 at 05:44 AMRobert Blair,
Sad news indeed about John Daly. Where did you hear that news?
GM may well be done with the best intentions, but so was introducing the fox, the rabbit, the cane toad, salvation jane/patterson's curse, starlings, mynahs, carp &c to Australia.
And, there are always unintended consequences.
And like the blind squirrel who finds an acorn, sometimes the greenies are right.
Peggy, banning of DDT was done with the best of intentions coupled with later wilfull lies told by Green activists. This Green "best intention" has killed 100,000 people in tropical countries due to malaria, (as documented by Amil Attaran and other in high profile professional journals), if not millions, for little gain.
But the tide in now starting to turn thanks to Micheal Crighton, Chris Pearson, Ted lapkin, Moore and others. Soon the crimes against humanity of key lobby groups who oppose sensible use DDT with be common knowledge.
They'll have to break the monolithic anti-DDT mindset the general public has to do anything. I was at Border's tonight and Rachel Carson's Silent Spring was on prominent display on it's own display shelf next to the gardening books. Remember, it's okay if human (ick) kiddies die from malaria as long as a the birdies are protected! By the way, I read somewhere -- I forget where -- about a study that showed that the bird groups most affected by DDT were certain raptor groups, like hawks and whatnot. Now I like hawks, but they hardly fit the ideal of the delicate little songbird, feet up in the air, it's sweet music slienced forever by Evil Mankind...
Posted by: Andrea Harris at February 3, 2004 at 01:35 PMUgh, that should be "its own display shelf..." Don't blog under the influence, or at least, don't blog and expect to be able to spell.
Posted by: Andrea Harris at February 3, 2004 at 01:35 PMI live on the fringe of a state forest, where I often ramble. It's not pristine, it resembles nothing that a pre-settlement aborigine would want to inhabit, it's just a state forest. My neighbours, who all live in clearings made in the forest, and who all use local timbers for a variety of purposes, invariably express their disgust at any logging performed by anyone else.
Further east, those with homes and businesses near beaches can be relied upon to be "passionate" in their opposition to coastal development, ie. the construction of homes and businesses near beaches.
These people tend see their superior point of view as the result of some kind of "education", and all opposition is put down to a lack thereof.
If Rachel Carson and Paul Ehrlich make for education, you can give me a chain-saw and spray-pack and put me in a corner with the dunces.
Posted by: rob at February 3, 2004 at 06:38 PM