Maybe The Demagogue With Bad Hair Pulled Out Of The #ParisAccords To Avoid Counting The Pentagon's Carbon Emissions

"#Boston City Hall is lit green tonight, for our planet, and the #ParisAccords" tweet by Joyce Linehan

The outpouring of righteous indignation at the demogague with bad hair withdrawing from the international agreement known as the Paris accords may be missing the point. The amazing spew of carbon pollution generated by the Pentagon was not counted under the previous Kyoto accords, an agreement which the U.S. never ratified after working hard to gain the military exemption. The Paris accords removed this exemption.

As Oil Change International's director told The Guardian:

"The atmosphere certainly counts the carbon from the military, therefore we must as well."

But what are the corporate media reporting about the Pentagon and the Paris accords? Headline: [Demagogue with bad hair] breaks with Pentagon on climate change (CNN). 

Because if you google "Pentagon" and "carbon pollution" you will find scores of articles about how deeply concerned the top brass are about the national security threat posed by climate change.

Climate action on the Potomac  Photo credit: Ellen Barfield

Setting carbon reduction goals while ignoring the biggest obstacle to their achievement is like pretending to reform health care while ignoring the biggest obstacle to providing care.

Insurance companies who profit from not providing health care received a bonanza with mandated purchasing under the Affordable [sic] Care Act. It was typical neoliberal nonsense to pretend that the ACA solved the U.S. health care crisis.

Just as it is typical liberal nonsense to pretend that you can reduce carbon emissions to 350 ppm without holding the military accountable.

What's a radical to do?

Consider joining other concerned citizens in taking the Natural Guard pledge.

I pledge to speak out about the effects of militarism on our environment, because the commons we all share that sustain life are valuable to me. 

In discussions about security and safety, I will remind others of the need to count in the cost in pollution and fuel consumption of waging wars all around the planet.

In discussions about acting soon to protect our loved ones from the effects of climate chaos, I will remind others of the need to examine the role of the Pentagon and its many contractors in contributing to planetary warming.