
Emotion: Greta Thunberg was fighting back tears when she spoke at the UN Climate Change summit – because she knew many people would try to undermine her simple, common sense message?
Who would have thought a teenager who isn’t in showbusiness could have such an impact on the world?
This is a really strong speech:
Admittedly, Greta Thunberg has yet to persuade financiers and business leaders to stop the climate change-related harm they are doing to our environment, but this is probably because she has hit such resistance from the false-equivalence brigade.
For example:
'16 year old Greta Thunberg is too young to make her own mind up and has been groomed' scream people who said that Shamima Begum knew at 15 exactly what she was doing and should be treated as an adult.
Weird, almost like they have an agenda.
— 🅳🅾🆁🅻🅸🅽🅶 (@Dorling83) September 23, 2019
Who are these people? I, for one, face no such contradiction in my thinking as I said Ms Begum did know what she was doing when she ran off to join IS at the age of 15. I argued that she should be treated as an adult now because she is an adult now.
That is an argument about Ms Begum, rather than Ms Thunberg. It also ties in with this:
“If climate change is bad, then sex trafficking must be good.” pic.twitter.com/hn4PQYd8H3
— Ash Sarkar (@AyoCaesar) September 25, 2019
There is a huge difference between these two subjects, of course: Epstein was alleged to be exploiting teenagers – Ms Thunberg is expressing her own opinions.
And haven’t we been encouraging our young people to develop opinions on such subjects?
This Writer can remember television programmes going back to the 80s, at least, in which young people were canvassed for their views on political matters – and young viewers were encouraged to think about them.
And what about William Hague?
He was the poster boy of the Conservative conference in 1979 when he made a speech… at the ripe old age of 16.
Had he been exploited? Or was he perfectly capable of forming his own opinion? If the latter, then serious questions will have to be asked about political parties that have any kind of youth wing at all.
And that should not happen, because they are perfectly capable of thinking and acting properly at the age from which they may become members of such organisations.
The matter of sex is different because younger people are not always equipped to deal with the consequences of it. Legally, they are not considered capable of consenting to sex. Practically, they may be unable to access contraception, meaning pregnancy is more possible – with financial and social consequences. There is the huge issue of sexual exploitation. And not everybody is the same; some are mature enough to behave responsibly about such matters, and some are not.
Consider this: If a young teenager were to become pregnant, would she (and her partner, of course) have the maturity to understand that they are bringing a person into the world, with needs just like their own?
Answer: Some would, and some wouldn’t. The law is there to minimise tragic consequences, as much as it is there to prevent unwanted demands on medical and social services.
Turning to Ms Thunberg’s arguments: It is incredible that people are trying to marginalise them by saying she isn’t mature enough, or that she is being groomed, when they are the same arguments being used by adults across the world.
Look at Harrison Ford:
He used the same “house on fire” metaphor as Ms Thunberg. Are her critics suggesting that he has been groomed?
The fact is that this young lady has come to a mature conclusion about the consequences of business decisions across the world and has struck a chord with young people around the world – as well as adults.
People attacking her are in fact revealing their own inadequacies.
And who are these people?
None of them ever seem to be named.
I want to know who’s messing up the future for us all – don’t you?
Who are the businesspeople whose decisions are clagging up our air with carbon dioxide?
Who are the financiers who are funding them?
Who are the government ministers – worldwide, not just in the UK – who are helping them to vandalise our environment?
If they are named, they can be watched, criticised… ultimately prosecuted.
If not, they will get away with murder – billions of times over. And Ms Thunberg’s critics are their cynical little helpers.
EXTRA – October 15: I’ve just received this tweet:
@MidWalesMike Just reflecting on a silly tweet of mine that got a lot of traction and notice that it's cropped up in an article you wrote. You seem to have misinterpreted it as an attack on Greta Thunberg. I'd just like you to know, it was not. At all.https://t.co/0vl7jgSGhZ
— 🅳🅾🆁🅻🅸🅽🅶 (@Dorling83) October 15, 2019
Do you think that’s true?
Have YOU donated to my crowdfunding appeal, raising funds to fight false libel claims by TV celebrities who should know better? These court cases cost a lot of money so every penny will help ensure that wealth doesn’t beat justice.
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