IPCC Official: “Climate Policy Is Redistributing The World’s Wealth. This one’s a bit out of order, but Anthony Watts’ world government paranoia is just to classic to pass up. Anthony has received instructions from the Global Warming Policy Foundation, a denialist lobby group, that he should suggest to his readers that an IPCC official has admitted that Climate Change policies are really just a way for environmentalists and their cronies to steal money from decent Americans.
But what did Ottmar Edenhofer really say (italics mine)?
Basically it’s a big mistake to discuss climate policy separately from the major themes of globalization. The climate summit in Cancun at the end of the month is not a climate conference, but one of the largest economic conferences since the Second World War.
First of all, developed countries have basically expropriated the atmosphere of the world community. But one must say clearly that we redistribute de facto the world’s wealth by climate policy. Obviously, the owners of coal and oil will not be enthusiastic about this. One has to free oneself from the illusion that international climate policy is environmental policy. This has almost nothing to do with environmental policy anymore, with problems such as deforestation or the ozone hole.
That sounds like commie talk to me! Or, maybe, it sounds like rationality. There are serious economic implications to attaching the real costs of carbon emissions to the industries and products that generate them. And the transfer he is talking about is from carbon-intensive industries to… humanity. Read some intelligent comments about this at Rabett Run.
Wott's Up With That? 
Indeed, I just came from Rabbet Run where much more of what Ottmar Edenhofer said is quoted. For the Watts and his ilk to twist it into another conspiracy link is just absurd.
Watts just keeps grasping at straws.
Actually, if you dig just a bit deeper, you will find that they translated that key sentence a bit backwards.
I found a link to the interview, and noticed something very important.:
This translates to “we distribute climate policy de… facto (in practice) by the worlds wealth.” Pointing out the fact that this is how governments work, economically. The sneaks at GWPF reversed this sentence when translating it, to read “But one must say clearly that we redistribute de facto the world’s wealth by climate policy.”
Perhaps. What about
Is that also reversed? I think this message is not distorted, as many IPCC and UN leaders have echoed it. Perhaps it’s hard for you to accept, but the battle is not over the environment, it’s over the government (and therefore consists of continual argument over rights, duties, punishment and reward) of the global populace.
[Oh, the denialist argument has always boiled down to “you’re not the boss of me!”. Similarly, ‘First World’ capitalists have always shifted the costs and consequences of their energy greed on to others. – Ben]
This is pure spin from you. A poor effort.
[OMG, your supporting arguments are indisputable! – Ben]