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ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER HAS called for an end to “doom and gloom” environmentalism as he hosted the first conference of his new green movement fostering action by local governments and individuals.
“If we want to inspire the world, it is time for us to forget about the old way of talking about climate change, where we crush people, where we overwhelm people with data,” the former California governor, bodybuilder and film star said.
“There is a new way, a more sexy, a more hip way. Instead of using doom and gloom and telling people what they can’t do, we should make them part of our movement and tell them what they can do,” he said.
“I mean I still drive my Hummers but now they are all on hydrogen and biofuel … We need to send a message that we can live the same life, just with cleaner technology.”
Following his success implementing environmental legislation in California ahead of federal US action, Schwarzenegger created the R20 Regions of Climate Action movement in 2010.
It is aimed at getting other regions, states and cities to follow the Golden State’s example in the absence of effective national and international agreements on reducing carbon emissions widely blamed for the Earth’s climate becoming more volatile in recent decades.
“The old way was to wait for the capitals, or an international agreement to create a sustainable energy future, is over,” Schwarzenegger, 65, told the conference of around 800 people in his native Austria.
“We believe in a new way, in moving forward at a subnational level. We can’t be paralysed, waiting for an international agreement or federal action or anything else,” Schwarzenegger said.
“I believe we should move forward at a subnational level, in the states, in the provinces, in the cities, in the private sector, in the academic sector and in the non-profits. These should be defined by our momentum, not our hesitation.”
Attendees in Vienna included Jose Manuel Barroso, European Commission president, but absent were green pressure groups such as Greenpeace or WWF, who complained last week that the event risked being “elitist” and “Greenwashing”.
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I like Arnold. I think that he has some good ideas.
Arnold is correct. At the moment when ‘go green’ gets pushed down my throat I immediately think its overpriced, inefficient and unpractical. I would buy a green car if it gives me the same buzz and competes performance wise as my 3.2L gass guzzler unfortunately that doesnt seem to be a reality just yet.
Soon be cutting turf on my lovely sexy high bog! ;)
Anthropological global warming (Now completely disproven and ridiculed) is a myth designed as a tax collection vehicle to further enrich the London Banksters and the Hitler admiring Schwarzeneggars of this world, who serve these banksters and will always find useful idiots by buy the myths. Stop buying your own slavery.
Arnie is looking for a kudos vehicle. The green religion thing is more than tiresome. Climate changes. That is what it does. That is what it has always been doing long before we walked out of Africa and will continue to do after all fossil fuels are expended. The idea of us controlling the shapes of polar caps is laughable. Greenland seas were warm and made the place habitable back in the middle ages. Not so now. If the Arctic ice is shrinking again so be it. If you could timelapse the planet over millenia you would see that caps pulsate in cycles. That said, it is ethically preferable to minimise our trace. Plastics in particular are a curse.
Environmentalism isn’t just about climate change. I’m pretty sure the planet wasn’t covered in rubbish before we came out of Africa.
All for effective rubbish management Gearóid. My gripe is about when they try to make basic stuff such as cleaning up after you into an ethos, and in turn use that ethos to try to present themselves as righteous or hip.
Pat kenny is hip and sexy he is the chuck Norris of talk shows
What the hell has that got to deal with the report ???????????????
Arnie must been sent back from the future to drive around in his hydrogen powered hummer???
Anyway hydrogen and biofuels are a waste of money and food its electric all the way.
Get to da choppa!
Its not a tuuuumor
Environmentalism is for hippies.
Who in their right mind takes this fella seriously.Who would and why and dont say because he has power and he’s rich he made his money from killing 1000′s of people in his ridiculous films.Piss off you nutter.
You know when he killed all those people in the movies, that was just pretend
I knee quite well he was only lettin on
Environmentalism is for jobless whiney hippys, its not hip or cool, V8 trucks , 6 litre bmw’s , escalades – they’re cool
Stephen you being a capitalist to the core i find your comment suprising considering all the big bucks these days is in carbon tax like putting a tax on one of the four elements of life biiiiiiig bucks that’s why you see the mighty Al Gore championing a cause he knows there is money in.Very suprised .Ya drive your escelades you’l pay dear for it if your hero’s have their way.
You said carbon tax, tax is more a socialist thing, capitalism is about freedom to do , own and drive whatever you can afford, socialism is about taxing people who disagree with the majority into a hole
Well then your heroes have used capitalism to achieve communism .
We havent had capitalism for a long long time.
They killed it cant have competition sure .Innovative creative ideas cant be the winners anymore now the system is designed for the few who win even when they loose leading to stagnation.I think Capitalism is the way forward and i vote S.F .Do you think FG have support capitalism or do you think like me they are moving us into a Totalatarian system where only the few are allowed make money and the rest of us fund the state.
The definition of a good Socialist………….
Someone who has nothing and wants to share it with everyone
But all you need is lovvveeee!
What is McBain waffling on about now?!
And what type of Gas Guzzling Car or Truck is Arnie driving these days?
Ossie, did you not read what he said about the vehicles he drives!?
It’s funny when people try to be clever without reading the articles they’re commenting on!
Tool!
hes a head like a melted wellie.
Al Gore made $100 million dollars US over the last decade speaking on climate change, all the while jetting arpund in his private jet, and being driven in big SUVs. The climate change economy is more about selling doom and gloom, and research/government dollars than it is about an honest scientific debate aboit the actual known and unknown facts.
Yes, there are practical things every individual can to about the environment, just as there are as many things that no matter what you accomplish, will do nothing to stave off the inevitable.
You can’t control nature, which can worsen the problem (solar flar) or fix it (a volcanic eruption) on it’s own. Nor can you save every species bound to go extinct as climates do change (which will occur naturally with or without our help).
There’s a single power plant in Taiwan that emits more polution than the entire Alberta Oil Sands developmeny annually, where are the protests there about the environment.
Oh, that’s right, the freedoms to free speach and political/social/environmental activism that are enjoyed in Western Countries aren’t tolerated where the real environmental threats are.
Give me a his money and ill be any colour ya like .
have your say