The US '0' - Poor Countries '1'

I'm not an environmentalist, even by a long shot, but I laughed out loud tonight when the news came through that the US representatives in Bali had been howled down by members of the poorer nations of the world. They're all together for a general free-for-all bitch session on how they're going to save us from Mother Nature trying to evict us from planet Earth, and the US' Ms Paula Dorbriansky and her cronies remained defiant to the end until my new favourite person, Papua New Guinea's Kevin Conrad broke his silence ...

"When the delegate from Papua New Guinea, Kevin Conrad, asked to speak, opposition to the U.S. had reached a crescendo. "We seek your leadership," he said referring to the U.S. "But if for some reason you are not willing to lead, leave it to the rest of us. Please, get out of the way."

South Africa, Mali, Brazil, Jamaica, Uganda and Tanzania followed with statements supporting India's position or that of developing countries more generally.

None of America's traditional allies came to its defense."

For me, that last line is the clincher; you know you're stuffed when none of the other bullies come to your aid.