"THE sickening champagne and caviar lifestyle being enjoyed by Earth Summit delegates was exposed yesterday. They are gorging on mountains of lobster, oysters and fillet steak at the Johannesburg conference — aimed at ending FAMINE. As the summit began yesterday, desperate kids in nearby shanty towns queued for water at standpipes.... ...Friends of the Earth called the extravagance “deplorable”... ...While people are going hungry at shanty towns just a couple of miles away, Mr Morgan told how he had stocked up with an extraordinary array of delicacies and fine wines. It includes 5,000 oysters, more than 1,000lbs of lobster and other shellfish, buckets of caviar and piles of pâté de foie gras. He has also got in more than 4,400lbs of fillet steak and chicken breasts, 450lbs of salmon, 220lbs of a tasty South African fish called kingclip — and more than 1,000lbs of bacon and sausages. The huge bill is paid for by taxpayers of participating nations... ...Vintage champagne, fine wines, spirits and liqueurs have been flown in from around the globe so the VIPs can wash down their meals in style... ...Yet close by, families scratch a desperate existence in the sprawling shanty town of Alexandra. They live in corrugated shacks. Hungry children play among piles of rubbish and queue for water at standpipes... ...The 60,000 summit delegates from 182 countries are expected to drink 80,000 bottles of mineral water during the conference. Yet each day 6,000 African children die from diseases caused by contaminated water... ...Several other environmental issues will be discussed at the ten-day summit, organised by the United Nations. But in another ironic twist, hundreds of trees have been felled around the conference centre so fleets of limousines will have unhindered access... "...How can delegates sleep soundly in their beds knowing such suffering is just down the road?..." ...“I’m sure nothing will be achieved at the meeting except for photo opportunities allowing politicians to say how great they are....” http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2002391624,00.html
Oh, brother. Let's do the math: 5,000 oysters / 60,000 delegates = 1 oyster for every 12 delegates 1,000 lbs. of lobster / 60,000 delegates = 1/4 of an ounce of lobster per delegate 4,400lbs. of steak / 60,000 delegates = a little over an ounce of steak per delegate 450 lbs. of salmon / 60,000 delegates = 1/8 of an ounce of salmon per delegate 220 lbs. of kingclip / 60,000 delegates = 1/16 of an ounce of kiingclip per delegate 1,000 lbs. of bacon & sausage = 1/4 of an ounce of bacon & sausages per delegate To me, it doesn't sound like they are "gorging" themselves. If you have a disagreement with the politics of the convention, then say it. But don't create this silly Bill O'Reilly strawman that doesn't even hold water. Murf
Remember, people are starving to death because their governments have issues with genetically altered food. We could give you this food but it could have side effects, so we'll let you starve to death instead.