Wednesday, December 08, 2010

GREAT APES AND GREAT PROFITS

Capitalist governments are fond of flaunting their concern for the environment and the protection of endangered species but when it comes to making profits all such concerns are forgotten. "An African country (Democratic Republic of Congo) pleading for aid to protect its rainforests has granted licenses to two British-based companies to explore for oil in the forest home of endangered mountain gorillas. ...Soco International and Dominion Petroleum have been given permission to drill for oil inside the park. A UN report said that Virunga had the "greatest biological diversity of any park in Africa". More than half the world population of about 700 mountain gorillas is there." (Times, 4 December) When it comes to a choice between biological diversity and money-making oil there is only one winner as far as the capitalist class is concerned.RD

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