Bolivian Minister Not Afraid To Tell The Truth

Instead of taking action to stop global climate change (commonly called global warming), politicians across the globe have instead used the environmental crisis to play politics -- either for their own benefit, or for the benefits of corporate powers. Even the politicians who do believe global climate change is a serious issue seem to be just playing games by trying to introduce such ideas as "cap and trade" -- ideas that fall far short of the action that is needed. But there is one politician who is not willing to play games with this serious issue, and he has spoken out plainly and without regard for any consequences.

The politician is Jose Antonio Zamora Gutierrez, Minister of Environment and Water for the nation of Bolivia. He is pictured above (on the right) with Evo Morales, the president of Bolivia. I just wish we had some politicians in the U.S. who were as brave and forthright in telling the truth. Here is some of what he had to say at the UN Climate Change Conference in Qatar:

"A wasteful, consumerist, exclusionary, greedy civilization generating wealth in some hands and poverty everywhere, has produced pollution and climate crisis. We did not come here to negotiate climate. We did not come here to turn the climate into a business, or to protect businesses of them who want to continue aggravating the climate crisis, destroying Mother Earth.". . . 

"The causes of the climate crisis are directly related to the accumulation and concentration of wealth in few countries and in small social groups, excessive and wasteful mass consumption, under the belief that having more is living better, polluting production and disposable goods to enrich wealth increasing the ecological footprint, as well as the excessive and unsustainable use of renewable and non-renewable natural resources at a high environmental cost for extractive activities for production.". . .

"We denounce to the whole world the pressure from some countries for the approval of new carbon market mechanisms, although these have shown to be ineffective in the fight against climate change, and that only represent business opportunities. This is a climate change conference, not a conference for carbon business. We did not come here to do business with the death of Mother Earth betting on the power of markets as a solution. We are here to protect our Mother Earth,we came here to protect the future of humanity. The planet is not for sale, nor is our life.". . .

"Let's be careful of the intentions of some developed parties to make us feel resigned in front of this terrible reality, and admit the inertia and inaction of those countries that are historically responsible of global warming, sending us a message that is better to have a “pragmatic” attitude, which of course will condemn to cook planet and the extinction of the humanity."