Nearly 200 countries reached consensus in Paris on what President Obama has called an “historic agreement” to combat man-made climate change. Their host, French President Francois Hollande, extolled the work of the negotiators. He said “you will be able to say that on the twelfth of December you were in Paris for the agreement on the climate. And you will be able to be proud to stand before your children and your grandchildren."
On a superficial level, the agreement, which is to take effect in 2020, appears ambitious in terms of the goals it sets and its universal participation. In reality, however, what emerged from Paris was the folly of a massive give-away to bribe the so-called developing nations to participate.