SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
UN declares access to a clean environment a human right:
GENEVA, Oct 8 (Reuters) - The U.N. Human Rights Council on Friday recognised access to a clean and healthy environment as a fundamental right, formally adding its weight to the global fight against climate change and its devastating consequences.
The vote passed with overwhelming support, despite criticism in the lead-up from some countries, notably the United States and Britain. read more
The resolution, first discussed in the 1990s, is not legally binding but has the potential to shape global standards. Lawyers involved in climate litigation say it could help them build arguments in cases involving the environment and human rights.
"This has life-changing potential in a world where the global environmental crisis causes more than nine million premature deaths every year," said David Boyd, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights and the environment, who called the decision a "historic breakthrough".
The text, proposed by Costa Rica, the Maldives, Morocco, Slovenia and Switzerland, was passed with 43 votes in favour and 4 abstentions from Russia, India, China and Japan, prompting a rare burst of applause in the Geneva forum.
[...] Critics had raised various objections, saying the Council was not the appropriate forum and citing legal concerns.
Environmental defenders had said Britain's earlier critical stance was undermining its pledges ahead of the global climate conference it is hosting in Glasgow next month.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Monday October 18 2021, @05:56AM (4 children)
With a positive right, these can get quite expensive and force society to drain resources from more important needs. And keep in mind that the worst environmental problems will be in the poorest parts of the world.
And it provides an avenue to compromise my other rights - breaking rights against rights. There's already a bad history here in the US, such as the ex post facto nature of the Superfund program or violating due process by claiming [wikipedia.org] that someone can't contest an EPA fine until they pay the EPA fine. And of course, a variety of dumbass mandates on conservation of various cheap resources (toilets that don't flush, overpriced lightbulbs, two hour long dishwashers, plastic straw rules, etc). This will be ridiculously abused because it already has been - for decades.
A dumbass right, that has to be upheld no matter the cost, just makes more poor people who make more pollution and more people. That's the problem that people keep ignoring.
So that's why I keep posting over and over. I hate a legal fiction that makes me less free, that doesn't do what it claims it'll do, that doesn't even know what repercussions would be, and that will make the world a shittier place. We can do better.
As I've already noted, the developed world has this figured out. Instead of creating artificial problems, the solution as I see it is to make the entire world part of the developed world. Sure, it'll require more resources. But we have those resources. It's time to do what works rather than gripe over the impacts it'll have on environment and climate.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 18 2021, @06:53AM (3 children)
We get it, you're a typical libertarian moron. At least you lot value freedom, but you're too lazy to actually comprehend what it is or how to keep it. Kind of like all the cop shooting stories where conservative leaning people insist the murdered person deserved to be murdered, and then we get some like runaway who later talks about how police have too much power and murder innocents.
When the issues are compartmentalized your brains work OK, but when you encounter data that runs counter to the CAPITALISM IS BEST or REAL PATRIOTS narratives you are magically incapable of using your brain. Short circuit to emotional control to keep you afraid of DUHR WORR ON XMAS!
Sadly your pretense of being a fact driven logical d00d works way too well on people that don't know better. Personally I hoped SN would have more such people, but turns out the alt-right likes to pretend at being such in order to push their bigoted and greedy agendas. Probably some good overlap with good ol' Christian bible morality. I guess at least you don't spew racism, but people like you are way too comfortable around and defending racists.
I hope you are capable of expanding your awareness and entertaining the idea that you could be wrong. Not holding my breath though, people already wasted years trying to educate you.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday October 18 2021, @03:19PM (2 children)
Your post boils down to this red herring. I notice that you don't mention the subject of this discussion even once. I am indeed capable. But you have to present a rational argument not some dreary ad hominem that isn't even slightly on topic.
I'm not alt-right, BTW, that's just your fantasy talking.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 18 2021, @06:08PM (1 child)
Sadly khallow fails reading comprehension, poor little shill.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday October 18 2021, @07:58PM