Da jeg møtte James Hansen i går i New York var han akkurat tilbake fra Washington DC der han dagen før ble lagt i håndjern og arrestert sammen med over hundre unge mennesker som protesterte mot åpen kullgruvedrift i Appalakkene.
President Obama har kalt denne gruvedriften en ”miljøkatastrofe”, og Hansen som allerede i 1989 advarte kongressen mot global oppvarming, deltok i demonstrasjonen foran det hvite hus for å be president Obama følge rådet fra sine egne forskere og stanse kulldriften.
Før dette hadde James Hansen holdt appell på Freedom Plaza. Han mener regjeringer må saksøkes for den urettferdigheten de påfører neste generasjon gjennom klimaendringer. For å løse klimaproblemet foreslår Hansen å innføre en flat skatt på alt forbruk av olje, gass og kull globalt. Skatten må være så høy at produksjon av fornybar energi blir lønnsom. Denne skatten deles så ut igjen til innbyggerne for å kompensere for dyrere energi. Den sterke appellen han holdt gjengis i sin helhet her:
James E Hansen: Equal Protection of the Laws
We hold this truth to be self evident – all people are created equal. That truth is the basis for equal protection of the laws – a right guaranteed by our Constitution. “all people” includes young people, mountain people, poor people. Our government was instituted to protect the law of all people.
We are gathered here today to draw attention to the failure of our government to protect the rights of people, and failure to provide equal protection of the laws. People have suffered long train of abuses, invariably with the same objective – to enrich the few at the expense of many.
First, the government is failing to protect the future of young people, knowingly allowing and even subsidizing actions that benefit the few at the expense of the public and at the expense of all life sharing this earth.
Second ,the legislative and executive branches of government knowingly propose actions that demonstrably and utterly fail to preserve our climate, and the environment for life.
Third, our government allows and contributes to great hoax, perpetrated on the public by money interests, aimed at confusing the public about the reality of climate change.
We are in danger of becoming the land for the rich and home of the bribe. More than 200 years after the founding of our nation, we face great moral crisis. Human-made climate change pits the rich and powerful against the young and unborn, against the defenseless, and against nature. The moral issue is comparable to slavery and civil rights. Solution for civil rights was provided by the combination of people in the streets and the courts, which provided equal protection of the laws and ordered desegregation.
Brave people have been standing up in West Virginia, in Kentucky. In Tennessee, in Utah, in Australia, in United Kingdom and around the world. But now is the time to go on the offensive. We should not be begging courts to forgive the brave people who protest. We must ask the courts to order the government to present plans to phase down fossil fuel emissions at a pace dictated by science, a pace stabilizing climate, preserving nature and a future for young people, providing young people equal protection for the laws. We can bring that case. But we can win only if the public understands the situation, sees through the lies of the moneyed interests, sees what is needed to solve the problem.
As long as fossil fuels are the cheapest energy, we will not solve the addiction. There will be more mountain top removal, longwall mining, tar sands, deep ocean drilling, shale gas, seeking the last drop in the most pristine places. We must put a fee on carbon, collected from fossil fuel companies, with all proceeds distributed to the public. One hundred percent or fight!
Most people will get more in te monthly green check than they pay in increased energy prices. Our economy and innovations will be stimulated. We will move to clean energies. A coalition is building for a carbon fee with 100 percent distributed to the public in a monthly check. In October this coalition will launch a campaign, Million Letter March, gathering letters showing that the people insist on an honest equitable solution. Please join the march.
Let us resolve to have a rebirth – a rebirth of our nation, a rebirth of equality of opportunity, true equality – with a government of the people, by the people and for the people – all of the people.