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Tim Murray Which of the world’s prominent green parties is the most foolish? In this opinion piece the author, a Canadian, surveys some promising candidates. But he also finds a winner for a different contest, the model of what a green party should be: the Green Party of New Zealand.
The deadline is fast approaching. Send in he maintains, and only ‘through-put’ your submissions now. The first annual matters. The party stands for Green taxes. contest to establish which indeed is the most Down with those antiquated fair and idiotic of the world’s Green Parties is upon progressive income and capital gains taxes. us. Many candidates were surveyed. The But some party officials like Eric Walton Swedes, the nutty Germans and Brits, the are waking up to the fact that low income hypocritical Canadians and Australians and Canadians aren’t buying it. He now favours even the Green Party of the United States a hybrid mix of progressive and green taxes along with some of its discordant constitu- so that the poor don’t pay the shot for ent parts. The competition for lunacy is punishing polluters and shifting to fierce. Here are but a few of the contest- renewable technologies. That’s the ants. Canadians.2 Let’s take a quick peek at other First, let me present as my personal Green hypocrites. favourites, Canada’s Greens. Their leader, The British Green Party, at first blush, Elizabeth May, argues that we should offers a radical departure in consciousness reduce our individual ecological footprint from its Canadian counterparts with this but at the same time import 300,000 more promise: ‘To promote debate on sustainable ‘footprints’ each year just to strengthen our population levels for the UK, to include ‘cultural diversity’. This ‘Great consideration of consumption and material Multicultural Project’ as she calls it, of comfort’.3 But then they say that: ‘Richer course takes precedence over any project regions and communities do not have the to protect biological diversity or constrain right to use migration controls to protect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which their privileges from others in the long her 300,000 incoming footprints will term’. Note that the first statement calls only increase. The Canadian Greens are a for a debate, as the population skyrockets, masterpiece of contradictions and because ‘the aim is to increase awareness confusion. Ontario leader Frank de Jong of the issues—not to set specific population told us privately that Canada is targets’. In their migration policy the UK overpopulated by a factor of ‘four to ten’. Greens acknowledge an impending human Yet he told others, including an Australian tsunami by saying that: ‘there is likely to audience, that ‘population is a red herring’. be mass migration of people escaping from Now recently, on 30 January 2008, he made the consequences of global warming, the incredible assertion that ‘a higher environmental degradation, resource population means a higher quality of life’.1 shortage and population increase’.4 So how Economic growth is no problem either. The do they propose to respond to this, besides size of the economy can increase ten fold, of course to work for a fairer world that
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 59 would lessen the urge to migrate? ‘We will a driver’s licence to operate a car within a progressively reduce UK immigration certain speed limit but you can go ahead controls’.5 and have five kids on the dole and have them They will do that in a multitude of ways. dump 100 metric tonnes of GHG per year ‘Families will not be divided by into the atmosphere because it’s your free deportation’.6 ‘We will abolish the “primary choice. Yet polluters would no doubt face purpose” rule under which partners are tough restrictions under a Green regime. refused entry if it is thought that the primary The Irish Greens similarly project an purpose of the relationship is for them to image not of an environmental party but of gain entry to the UK’.7 And ‘Migrants a party obsessed with human rights. Not illegally in the UK for over five years will once in their dense 13-page document on be allowed to remain unless they pose a immigration policy do they mention serious danger to public safety’.8 carrying capacity or the ecological impact The British Greens will also ‘resist all of all the asylum-seekers and immigrants attempts to introduce a “barrier around that they want Ireland to embrace.13 They Europe” shutting out non-Europeans or state that: ‘The Green Party opposes any giving them more restricted rights of common asylum policy for the European movement within Europe than European Union which results in more restrictions on nationals’.9 And finally they have this to say asylum-seeking or in reducing rights for about human trafficking: ‘The Government refugees … [and] We strongly condemn the should grant a temporary right to stay in trend whereby the European Union is the country to anyone who has been becoming a fortress on whose borders there trafficked or appears to have been trafficked. are people dying in the hands of It should also recognize the right of those traffickers’.14 The Greens denounced the who have been trafficked to apply for a Immigration Bill of 2004 as ‘flawed on longer term or permanent immigrant account of the negative tone of the language status’.10 With shameless invective, it labels used in it and the basic lack of provisions as ‘racists of the far right’ all those persons for family re-unification for non- in the United Kingdom and Europe who nationals’.15 In this party’s opinion effective favour increased immigration controls. integration of immigrants and their families The population of the United Kingdom, is best promoted by granting them an island nation of 60 million acres, is citizenship. But why does Ireland need currently 61 million and rising rapidly. It is immigrants? obvious that under a Green Party Economic orthodoxy provides the administration, it would soon be 71 or 81 standard answer. In the words of an Irish million barring an international resource or Green Party policy statement: ‘The Central environmental crisis, in which event it Statistics Office, in their report for 2006– would be even higher. What consumption 36, suggests the State will continue to rely levels would Britons have to tumble down on strong inward migration to maintain to then to achieve sustainability? economic growth. It forecasts that the But let us save the best to last. After economy will need 45,000 immigrant spending much time talking about the need workers every year for the next 12 years to for family planning,11 they declare that: ‘The sustain economic growth’. And then the Green Party holds that the number of Irish Greens pull out the old chestnut that, children people have should be a matter of since those over 65 will in 2036 ‘comprise free choice’.12 That is brilliant. You need a one fifth of the population rather than one licence to catch a certain number of fish and tenth’, it is important that ‘a progressive [sic]
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 60 immigration policy will be in this country keeping Celtic culture alive. And yet, in the to ensure that the economy will be able to heart of Celtic culture, you have an Irish fund the necessary pension schemes, health government that has quickly allowed one and educational facilities into the future’.16 in seven of its residents to be from another The Irish Green Party, then, fully buys country and where at least one political into the gospel of economic growth and the party, the Greens, promotes the myth of immigration as a cure for an ageing fragmentation of that culture by its support population. Without debating the profound for multiculturalism and the economic vacuity of their ideology, it is best simply growth which drew immigrants in in the to refer them to authors Richard first place. One wonders why the Irish spent Douthwaite, Herman Daly and Phil Mullan. centuries spilling blood to get the British Case closed. In declaring that, ‘as a rapidly out only to invite the East Europeans in. So developing economy, Ireland needs migrant much for Sinn Fein: ‘Ourselves Alone’. workers to provide essential skills and Raised on Irish Nationalist folklore, you services’, the Greens concede the game can’t fathom my sense of betrayal. before it begins. They accept the necessity The Swedish and German Greens of a ‘rapidly developing economy’, not duplicate the same trademark idiocies of thinking that on-going economic growth their sister parties.18 Though one must admit will create labour shortages that, once filled, that the German Greens in the former will generate the growth that demands more coalition voting to shut down their nuclear immigrant labour. And this mad spiral will program so that they could turn around and degrade the quality of life and despoil the buy natural gas from Mr Putin displayed an environment—which is what a Green Party astonishing ignorance about the relative is supposed to be about, isn’t it? That is, risks of nuclear and natural gas relative to when it isn’t defending gay rights, migrant their impact on global warming. Once again, mothers’ rights, handicapped rights, a steady state economic model was not Ethiopian rights, in other words the full considered as an alternative to natural gas panoply of identity politics. consumption. The Irish Greens are also concerned that A look across the globe yields no immigrants ‘are not simply labeled as surprises. The Australians Greens, for economic entities, while denying them example, believe that ‘our environmental social and cultural rights’. The Irish public impact is not determined by population must be brainwashed into accepting the numbers alone, but by the way that people important role of immigration in Irish live’.19 Notice that they did not say, ‘our society, ‘on the changing nature of Irish environmental impact is not determined national identity’, and on a universal Green simply by the way people live, but by theme: ‘the value of cultural diversity’. population numbers’. The Aussies are to be Borrowing from the Canadian handbook on congratulated for being able to utter the social engineering, they advocate ‘cultural word ‘population’, but like their global sensitivity for public sector workers’.17 The comrades, it would kill them to put the stress concept that maybe immigrants should learn on it. Over-consumption is the name of the to be sensitive to the customs of the host game. And in constructing a population country is a theme universally absent from policy, should not ‘ecological sustainability’ Green thinking. be the governing factor, unmitigated by a One could find it ironic that all across series of other points like ‘multiculturalism’ Canada, particularly Atlantic Canada, there (shades of Elizabeth May) and are clubs and associations dedicated to ‘humanitarian migration’ which the Greens
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 61 say Australia has ‘an obligation to accept, continue to respect the potential including climate change refugees?’20 contributions and rights of other new If so, then, how many? Ten million? 20? immigrants’.24 30? Your country is a lifeboat and The Iowa Green Party goes further. metaphorically speaking it has a carrying They argue for ‘an authentic free-trade zone capacity of 20 people. Period. Whether you where people are free to travel for work’, think you have a moral obligation to haul and invoke Cesar Chavez, as many soft another 20 refugees on board because they greens and liberals do, as an advocate of are righteous, their cause is just, or they this position.25 In fact Chavez, a Mexican- would afford your lifeboat more diversity American farm worker and civil rights is immaterial to the laws of physics, which activist, was a strident advocate of state that your craft will sink under that immigration restriction in defence of the weight. working conditions of Mexican-Americans The trouble with the Australian Green and stood on the border to guard against Party is that, like the others, it cannot decide illegal entrants. The foundation of the Iowa if it is an environmentalist party or a human party’s attitude on immigration is found in rights party. Its policy statement on a statement that could have been lifted from population and immigration should be the policy book of virtually any Green party shortened by 13 points to read concisely: in the world: ‘Those living in the ‘Australia’s population policy should be industrialized world must end the habits of determined by its commitment to ecological waste and over-consumption that place as sustainability’. The environment before much as stress on the environment as does people. The boat before its passengers. population growth in developing nations’. The Green Party of the United States Consumption, consumption, consumption. places the same priority on human rights as Bring on the immigrant millions. After all, do other Green parties.21 A Californian ‘we are all the same people, and need to Green Party policy direction document break down those psychological barriers, states bluntly that: ‘immigration policies not re-enforce them’. We are the same, yes, should be based strongly on human rights’.22 but we are also ‘diverse’ at the same time Not on carrying capacity or sustainability and this diversity must be celebrated and or peak oil or climate change or biodiversity amplified, like it or not. The host culture is collapse but human rights. The rights of of little account in Greendom. wildlife in the United States to survive The best way to celebrate diversity of runaway immigrant-driven population course is to offer tantamount support to an growth for this anthropocentric ‘Green’ 80 per cent immigrant-driven population Party is given no mention. Instead, in a press growth rate in California which is growing release of 23 May 2007 the Green Party of at two per cent per year, nearly twice the the United States called on Congress to national rate of 1.1 per cent. If unchecked enact immigration legislation that will the state’s population will double to 64 protect human rights and ‘facilitate the path million by 2035 and another 32 per cent of to citizenship’ of the 25 to 35 million its 100 million acres will have to be devoted undocumented immigrants in the country, to urbanization and highways. If the who must of course be given amnesty,23 the population continues to grow, per capita universal theme song of the Green agricultural land will be reduced to movement. The Greens of New Mexico approximately half of what it is today, and harmonize with that position in their in 33 years about half of California’s immigration policy document: ‘We must cropland will be unavailable. Currently the
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 62 state must build 250,000 housing units lets examine the Green parties that were yearly and one school per day just to keep disqualified from the contest on the grounds pace with growth and it is already 40 per of sanity. cent more densely populated than Europe. The Green Party of Missouri states that: This is the state which, under the leadership ‘Because human impact is now beyond a of Governor Arnold Schwartzeneger, sustainable level, we must take immediate Canadians believe is so environmentally action to reduce population growth. Our progressive because of his initiatives to goal is zero population growth in our reduce GHG. There is not one jurisdiction country as soon as possible’.28 The Green in the world that has accomplished that in Party of Minnesota: ‘We support efforts the context of rapid, unchecked population toward zero or negative human population growth. growth. Overpopulation combined with the In the face of these facts all the resource demands and waste production of California Green Party can do is issue a modern lifestyles are root causes of statement referring to those who favour environmental degradation’.29 The Green greater restrictions on immigration as being Party of Hawaii says flatly: ‘Population ‘xenophobic’ and ‘reactionary’. (Let us growth must cease. We need carrying hope they choke on that statement when capacity studies for all counties to they are paying 50 per cent of their income determine development limits’.30 Hawaii on food in 2035.) In response to questions suffered 2.4 per cent annual population about immigration, an activist for growth from 1970 to 1986 overwhelmingly Californians for Population Stabilization due to immigration. It is no wonder that (CAPS) replied: ‘We’re not concerned the state elected the first legislator on record about who is coming here, but simply the to openly declare support for a steady state number. It is not a matter of condemning economy, Senator David Hemmings. those people who have come here, but Now the best is left to last. The model looking at resources and asking how many of a what Green Party can and should be. people this land can support with what kind The Green Party of New Zealand. Their of lifestyle’. It appears that CAPS is the six-page Population Policy statement authentic ‘Green Party’ in California.26 takes the sensible approach.31 It begins And we don’t even have to worry about with an estimate of what population level developing countries either. The tonic for New Zealand can sustain, based on the overpopulation is, you guessed it, Ministry of Environment’s footprint ‘economic growth’. The California Greens analysis. In 1998 that figure was 5.7 conscript the old, discredited Theory of million, but the Green Party treats it with Demographic Transition to say that: caution, as ‘an indicative upper limit ‘Current global demographics demonstrate figure only’, for it recognises that that economic well-being promotes low unforeseen contingencies like the peak oil birthrates’.27 (No, but it does promote GHG crisis, climate change refugees, war or the emissions and habitat loss.) Its amazing that sudden return of 750,000 expatriate New this 72 year old theory still enjoys currency. Zealanders, for example, should make So there are the nominees for idiocy. government provide for ‘spare capacity’. The Canadians, the British, the Irish, the And ‘in order to maintain both spare Australians and the Americans. The list is capacity and a decent standard of living, by no means inclusive. You might provide the optimum population figure will be better examples of idiotic parties with significantly lower than the maximum outrageously contradictory policies. But carrying capacity of the land’.
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 63 So while Greens the world over feel 5. Growth can be rendered ecologically compelled to fill up the demographic tank benign if channeled, managed or right away and keep it full, New Zealand deflected. Greens evidence prudence and an 6. We share the consensus for the need for understanding of future calamity and economic growth, therefore we favour existing overshoot. Points 2 and 3 of their liberal immigration. There is always a ‘Key Principles’ state that: ‘A self- chronic labour shortage, isn’t there, and sustaining population cannot be increased oh, don’t undocumented migrants make beyond the carrying capacity of useable such a contribution to our society? land available’ and ‘The population cannot 7. Since we favour liberal immigration that be increased beyond its capacity to offset is non-discriminatory, then we favour its greenhouse emissions’. an aggressive multicultural strategy for Alas, the Greens of New Zealand, the integration of migrants. We reject Missouri, Minnesota and Hawaii are the the concept of a national culture. renegades of the movement, the 8. We place far greater emphasis on exceptions to the rule. In most cases, your climate change than biodiversity local ‘Green’ Party is a misnomer. It is a collapse even though more species will name designed to attract the be lost sooner to human overpopulation environmentalist constituency but its than to global warming, which is not as focus is not really on the environment, imminent or as catastrophic as the loss but on human rights. The rights of of biodiversity services. migrants take precedence over their 9. We will only acknowledge environmental impact, an impact which overpopulation as a problem in Greens won’t even acknowledge. developing countries. Migration of On the basis of this global tour of Green people to high-consumption societies is parties, a provisional international to be countered only be lowering the manifesto of generic Green-ness is hereby per capita consumption rates of those offered as a guide to their cosmology: societies. 10. Closed borders, immigration controls, INTERNATIONAL MANIFESTO OF or as we call the Bush fence, the ‘Wall GENERIC GREEN-NESS of Shame’, send out unfriendly signals 1. Over-consumption counts for to emigrant-countries whose everything. Over-population counts for cooperation we need to solve global nothing. Environmental degradation is environmental problems like one-dimensional. anthropogenic global warming. 2. Over-population is a global problem, so 11.Relieve the wealthy of progressive let’s not try to stabilize our own. income tax and capital gains tax and 3. Renewable technologies and greener introduce Green Taxes. Punish those at lifestyles will save the day. the bottom of the income scale for not 4. We are committed to sustainability— having the money to buy hybrid cars and growth—at the same time. and retro-fitted houses.
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 64 References 1 Personal correspondence with the author 2 The Canadian Green Party lists no official population policy on its website. See
People and Place, vol. 16, no. 1, 2008, page 65