COP30 – Capitalism is Killing our Planet

COP30. The United Nations convened the 30^th Annual

“Conference of the Parties” in Belem, Brazil

Capitalism is Killing our Planet

It’s Time to Kill Capitalism

COP30

If you are hanging on to a branch as your house floats down the river, if you are looking out the window as a massive tornado comes at you, if you are boarding up you home and business as a “once in a life time” hurricane takes aim at your city, if you are sweating in unbearable heat, then you already know that the earth’s climate has changed and that we are paying for it.

COP30. The United Nations convened the 30^th Annual “Conference of the Parties” (COP30) in Belem, Brazil as heavy rain and flooding threatened Southern California¹, and millions globally are desperately at-risk from deadly heat waves, drought, famine, and violent storms.²

Who is at COP30. Almost 200 countries have sent delegation to Belem including government officials, scientists, business leaders and activists. One in every 25 delegates are fossil fuel lobbyists bringing the total to 7,000 oil, gas and coal affiliated participants over the past five years.³

Indigenous peoples are not at COP30. Armed security forces have been sent to the COP30 venue to stop peaceful protests and block the entry of Indigenous people to the meeting.

“We can’t eat money,” said Gilmar, an Indigenous leader from the Tupinamba community near the lower reaches of the Tapajos River in Brazil, referring to the emphasis on climate finance at many of the meetings during the ongoing summit. “We want our lands free from agribusiness, oil exploration, illegal miners and illegal loggers.”⁴

The U.S. government is not at COP30. World leaders gathered in Brazil to discuss plans for fighting climate change, and the U.S. government boycotted the meeting. This surprised no one because U.S. government policy is “drill baby drill.” Trump has ridiculed climate change as a scam and withdrawn from the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement that sought to limit Earth’s warming.⁵

China showed up at COP30 to display its world leadership in renewable energy production.⁶ Wind, solar other non-fossil energy sources are cheaper and more efficient than fossils. The U.S. government doesn’t care because it’s been captured by the fossil fuel capitalists who want to keep making money even at the cost of destroying our beautiful planet.

The world is in danger. The breathable airspace covering the planet is a thin bubble that is merely four miles thick. Every day industry pumps toxic chemicals and heat trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the only known place in the universe for human habitation. Capitalism earns profit on every ton of fossils burned, on all the petro chemicals polluting our land, air and water.

Capitalism is killing our planet; it’s time to kill capitalism. It’s kill or be killed. We must do this because we have a beautiful world to win, if we come together to fight for the common good.

“Our country and the world stand at a crossroads. Humanity has the potential for economic security and abundance. A community of the people, by the people, and for the people, where children can grow in peace, is possible as never before. Or–if we do nothing—we face increasingly unlivable conditions caused by private ownership of the wealth that human labor has created.⁷

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