Memo to Obama
Thank you, Barack Obama, for giving all of us new hope for a changed America.
We're non-partisan here at Greenpeace. We don't have any permanent allies or enemies. We support policies, not politicians. We endorse deeds, not words. So even while a lot of us (in our personal capacity as human beings and not Greenpeace employees) are jumping up and down this morning with glee, we want to take a moment to remind you of the promises you made in your election campaign.
It's delivering on these promises, or bettering them, that will be the true mark of your leadership. As you yourself said
This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.
When the oil company sharks and the coal industry crooks and the nuclear energy shisters begin to gather at your door, please remember what you promised us in this election. Please remember the reasons you gave us to hope:
You've promised us 80 percent reductions in global warming pollution by 2050.
(Obama-Biden New Energy for America Plan)
You promised to use executive action to regulate global warming pollution, if necessary. (Bloomberg News, October 16)
You promised to re-engage with the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC)—the main international forum dedicated to addressing the climate problem.” (Obama-Biden New Energy for American
plan)
You committed to attend or send a personal representative to the next UN climate talks in Poland this December. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_TD4OL-15U)
You committed to helping create five million new green jobs by investing $150 billion in clean energy over the next ten years, requiring that we get 10 percent of our electricity from clean sources by 2012, and putting at least a million ultra-efficient plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road. (Obama-Biden New Energy for America Plan)
Don't betray the hope.
Don't sell out the future.
Don't break our hearts.
They're brimming.
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Comments
Thanks Brian, ...and all those at Greenpeace. ...and I'm jumping up and down with glee too, and hope that change has truly come to America, and the true 'axis of evil' has been defeated. I couldn't have expressed it better:
Don't betray the hope.
Don't sell out the future.
Don't break our hearts.
They're brimming.
Love to you all, for the significant contribution you all have made to make this happen. You are the Warriors of the Rainbow. ...GC
Posted by: Grateful Child | November 5, 2008 2:18 PM
changes
Posted by: kiki malik | November 5, 2008 2:57 PM
I personally have great faith in him, but he has to receive the pressure from our side or it will be more difficult to withstand the assaults from all those other nefarious, greedy and insane interests. We should let him know, too, that nuclear DOES NOT COUNT AS A RENEWABLE, and it POLLUTES THE PLANET INDEFINITELY INTO THE FUTURE. At least we are spared the 45 reactors McCain insanely had in mind. We should KEEP UP URGENT MESSAGES ABOUT THE DEATH BY ASPHYXIATION OF THE OCEANS, for example; the DESTRUCTION OF OUR LAST GOOD SOILS WITHIN FEASIBLE CLIMATES FOR AGRICULTURE; THE THEFT OF SEEDS AND CONTROL OVER THE FOOD SUPPLY -- HE SHOULD ATTACK MONSANTO asap. And so on.... My views.
Posted by: Carol Elizabeth Karamessines | November 5, 2008 5:36 PM
Fabulous post, Brian. I'm sitting here, reading this through the lens of a champagne hangover.
Here in the US, us Democrats celebrated quite a bit last night ;-)
When I was at the Democratic National Convention in August, I interviewed the founder of the Rainforest Action Network, Randy Hayes. He put it very simply: Obama will listen, and is willing to learn.
Let's hope we see lots of good examples of that. Obama will have a giant mess on his hands: two wars, a floundering economy, and an environment in peril, among other things.
I'd personally like to see those solar panels go back up on the White House (pdf), but let's take one thing at a time ;-)
Posted by: Page van der Linden | November 5, 2008 5:42 PM
Great post Brian, great post.
Posted by: Nick | November 5, 2008 10:20 PM
Obama The Best!
Posted by: Kaiser_Vaxs | November 6, 2008 3:25 AM
im very happy, por que el senador OBAMA gano las elecciones solo espero que no firme el tlc con Colombia POR QUE si lo hiciera solo traeria hambre y acabaria con los bosques y los recursos naturales y los bosques que aun quedan para sembrar comida, pero no para el pueblo sinocomida para hacer biodisel, comida para los carros. Deseo de todo corazon que a su presidente le vaya bien y que acabe con laguerra que pueda gobernar bien que sea honesto que no se deje deslumbrar por el poder, y que no sea tan confiado, parece increible pero para mas de una nacion es El la esperanza para que el mundo tenga por fin la tan anhelada paz que el mundo se merece.muchas saludes a todos los que trabajan en greenpeace y muchos exitos en los trabajos y campañas en favor del medio ambiente y de nuestro futuro by chang
Posted by: maritzachang | November 6, 2008 8:14 AM
Brilliant, thank you. Now we only need to visit greenpeace.org and checkup on our man in white house.
HOWEVER, our man can't do this alone, he needs us.
Furthermore, it's not just what it's also how.
Preserving recourse while people starve and fight will not achieve anything.
Posted by: Lloyd Apter | November 6, 2008 7:17 PM
I was right before giving up hope and being disappointed after the wishy washy talks of President Obama during his visit of Hu Jinato in China and taking him in and pulling back on their greenhouse gas emission targets. So it's high time that you, Leaders of Greenpeace, remind the Nobel Peace laureate on his responsibility on his own words about a change - we can, so should he !!
Posted by: Hartmut Rast | December 9, 2009 3:57 PM