Life in the Atomic Age

Reality is a cruel, cruel mistress.

Ottawa — As greenhouse gas emission levels in Canada climb, Environment Minister Rona Ambrose says it’s time for the federal government to scrap its Kyoto plan and think about something new.

“We’re looking at all options,” she said yesterday, making it clear the Conservatives think it will take a lot longer to clean up the air than the deadlines adopted by the previous Liberal government.

High-level discussions among officials in the Departments of Environment and Natural Resources since the Conservatives took office in February conclude “that it is impossible, impossible for Canada to reach its Kyoto target,” Ms. Ambrose said.

But surely the cruelest cut of all:

The United States, which reneged on the original Kyoto deal, actually has a better track record cutting greenhouse gases than does Canada, Ms. Ambrose said.

Or, why I left academia.

“Today’s youth don’t have dreams, they have illusions. To dream is to want to accomplish something difficult that is a challenge. Instead youngsters believe they have a right to everything and if things don’t go the way they want it’s someone else’s fault.”

Laugh all you want about the “lazy” French youths - this sentence describes my experiences in academia dealing with American students. The sense of entitlement is overpowering, and most students only want to be spoon fed information. They don’t want to learn - they want to memorize. There is a difference between these 2 things - a huge difference.