There is nothing quite so grotesque as a 'LEADER' who is frothing at the mouth about its credentials.... that no one is following!

IDENTITY CRISIS?
Is it perhaps just a little bit of 'identity crisis' which fuels this "we, Australia, must be seen to be doing the right thing and influence other countries"?

MEGALOMANA?
or..perhaps Andrew Hewitt feels 'identity challenged' being part of a humble 20million population 'resources mine' for the serious industrial countries?
He wants to feel 'significant'... 'powerful'.. 'have an impact'

He over compensates by trying to project us as a 'leader'....but since when has an Ant led an Elephant?

MESSIANIC ASPIRATIONS?
Sorry Andrew, there was/is only one Messiah, and its neither you, nor Australia. But one thing is for sure, if we followed Him, in heart and deed, there would be no need for a Kyoto.. we would be exercising good sustainable stewardship of the world.

Why is science, an open and self-critical enterprise copping so much paranoia on this?
This topic has a history guys. The science has been thrashed around for many years now. There was actually a "global cooling" scare a few years back and the recent "greenhouse effect" worries really do have a lot of theory and facts that can be verified. Anyone who is prepared to get their minds dirty with lots and lots of detail can do this.
Now if it worries you that science occasionally changes it's mind when new evidence comes in, think of how more worrying it is that some folks DO NOT change their mind when new evidence come in. This is technically insanity, but because some religions are getting seriously undercut now (how could "my" God threaten our extinction?) the insanity is condoned.
Religious certainty does not exist in science for a very good reason: it is *always* found to be wrong eventually. The theory that man, via religion, has authority that overrides experimental evidence is dangerous and stupid.
The current spin doctoring on both sides just signifies that the two sides (dogma vs truth) have started yet another war.
I'll stick to the side that is confusing yet honest.
Liberty: your attitude is hilarious: Athiests causing paranoia? Ha!

Yes that's right: atheists causing paranoia. Christians are not the least bit interested in so-called "global warming", for they understand that God made the world far more robust than that which could be undone by puny little man with his pop-gun industriousness.

Acordingly, there is no scientific evidence for man-made global warming, nor is science able to accurately measure the temperature of the earth anyway. Science even has trouble measuring the length of a human leg from hip to foot. I'm afraid Mr Bill Gates and M/Soft have inflated the egos of the world so that we think we can do anything just because we can manipulate virtual realities on screen.

The global warming scare is simply designed to distract people so they don't use their idleness to create an ACTUAL havoc. This is particularly necessary now that the iron curtain has come down: it is one of life's great paradoxes that man needs tension to remain stable.
The intelligence agencies which recognise this and which therefore fuel the surrent scare-campaign utilise man's Environmental Hypochondria Syndrome (EHS): atheistic man is easily manipulated via EHS: he is generally insecure and prone to over-attention to detail, like a neurotic teenager worried about pimples.

Be assured all globe-trotters: there is no man-made global warming, any more than there exists a man who can pull himself off the ground by his own bootstraps. The earth's climate variation is caused by sun spots. So you can all keep driving your cars to work, and get a good night's sleep afterward. It is God's earth, and He'll decide when it will expire. In fact, He won't be allowing man the credit of making it expire: He'll be pulling in the mat when He's good and ready all on His ownsome, not before.

Riddle for the global warmers: "If the earth had been warmer from the beginning so that (playing along with your bogus data) it was as warm as you say we have made it before we had made it that way, would you have been worried about the temperature at that stage?"

Plerdsus,

Regardless of whether climate change is man-made or natural, you missed another vital ingredient we possess: Ample clean water to support our agriculture, industry and domestic needs, despite the drought. (Which this Christmas appears to be breaking across the nation).

Liberty,

I really do admire and envy your guts.

Andrew Hewitt,

Two points:

No doubt you’ll be ultra critical of Rudd’s behaviour at Bali. After ratifying Koyoto, he’s done exactly as Howard did in Sydney: Accepted aspirational goals with no targets or commitments to any.

I never once heard Rudd commit Australia to spending of S1.5 Billion per annum (neither US nor AUS) on supplying third world countries money for saving forests during the recent election campaign. Did you? (Just bear in mind our proposed tax cuts of $30 Billion are over 9 years or $3.3 billion per annum and they are suposedly inflationary).
As for this unrealistic proposal, I have six initial questions.

Will the annual $1.5 Billion commitment increase?

How long is the period of our annual $1.5 Billion commitment or
is the annual $1.5 Billion commitment similar to Howard’s Iraq commitment ie open-ended ?

What happens to our total annual $1.5 billion contribution once those third world countries cut down those or parts of those supposedly ‘saved’ forests?
Just how the hell is our annual $1.5 Billion contribution to be policed?
If those 'saved' forests or parts of those 'saved' forests are destroyed, in any way, will the total or pro rata of our $1.5 Billion annual commitments be refunded?

Where are those pigs in those electric cars?

Charting a new course for Australia

I was happy with the course we were on.

There is no where any socialist can take us which will not be a lie promoted with the faux compassion of the morally barren.

I guess I will "batten down the hatches" and "weather the storms" this new Course will take us to as we transverse the ocean of future uncertainty.