The Climate Killers - Part One
ByRolling Stone magazine has never been one to mince words whether it is about the latest CD or taking a political stand, so it should be no surprise when their political columnist Tim Dickinson penned the list entitled “The Climate Killers: Meet the 17 polluters and deniers who are derailing efforts to curb global warming”. Let us take an ecofriendly multi part look at the list and weigh public perception vs. his finding.
The very first offender marked by the list is noted philanthropist Warren Buffett, the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Buffett is known for two things of late one being this extreme generosity, he decided to give away a reported 85% of his stock in Berkshire to a number of charities the most well known being the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The second is being a top advisor to United States President Barack Obama during the latest finical crisis. Dickinson claims that Buffett is standing in the way of an ecofriendly future for a host of reasons, the first being his critique of Obama’s climate bill, the article states that “Buffett says, the [climate bill] would mean “very poor people are going to pay a lot more money for their electricity.” Never mind that the bill, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, would actually save Americans with the lowest incomes about $40 a year.”
An ecofriendly way to make up for this would be a commitment to the environment though corporate social responsibility, that would entail investing in green technologies etc… This is sadly not the case for Mr. Buffett or Berkshire Hathaway as “Berkshire Hathaway, has added 1.28 million shares of America’s biggest climate polluter, Exxon Mobil, to its balance sheet. And in November, Berkshire placed a huge wager on the future of coal pollution, purchasing the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad for $26 billion — the largest acquisition of Buffett’s storied career.” This is shocking information as the idea of his billions bringing forth a brighter tomorrow for many has been floating in the ether for about four years now, but what is a better tomorrow without a planet to live on?
Taking an ecofriendly look at someone can really change one’s perception of him or her. Let’s hope that this list serves as warning for those like Mr. Buffett. So, that’s part one of our look into this controversial list, stay tuned.
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