The dramatic photos shared by celebrities of the fires in Brazil weren’t what they appeared to be
WIKIPEDIA
The increase in fires burning in Brazil set off a storm of international outrage last week. Celebrities, environmentalists, and political leaders blame Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro, for destroying the world’s largest rainforest, the Amazon, which they say is the “lungs of the world.”
Singers and actors including Madonna and Jaden Smith shared photos on social media that were seen by tens of millions of people. “The lungs of the Earth are in flames,” said actor Leonardo DiCaprio. “The Amazon Rainforest produces more than 20% of the world’s oxygen,” tweeted soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo. “The Amazon rain forest — the lungs which produce 20% of our planet’s oxygen — is on fire,” tweeted French President Emanuel Macron.
And yet the photos weren’t actually of the fires and many weren’t…
View original post 1,654 more words
Exposing the Big Game 
Elevating economic interests over conservation, more than a lot like the Trump-GOP, encouraging ranching and farmers to clear and burn for farming and ranching is what is going on,msacrificing the environment, wildlife, indigenous peoples.
“The real reasons the Amazon is on fire:
Justifying deforestation? Trump similarity in South America? Economic interests trump conservation?
“Brazil’s strong agriculture sector has ratcheted up pressure on forests. Agriculture has been the strongest performing sector of Brazil’s economy in recent years, and the US-China trade war has positioned Brazil well to replace the US as the global leader in soybean exports. The demand for soybeans has created pressure to rapidly clear forests and plant. Jair Bolsonaro’s oldest son, Flávio Bolsonaro, a senator, has introduced a bill that would eliminate a requirement that rural properties in the Amazon maintain 80% of their native vegetation.”
“. Their goal, according to the outlet, was to show Bolsonaro they wanted to work, and burning down trees was the way to do that. In the following 48 hours, forest fires spread rapidly in the region. The New York Timesreports that farmers set the bulk of these fires, but that they targeted land already cleared for agriculture, not old-growth forest”
Cutrim says the Bolsonaro government is stoking passions with its rhetoric. “The message of the current government isn’t conciliatory. It’s a message of confrontation,” he says. This, Cutrim sustains, makes Bolsonaro’s supporters feel authorized to pursue their own interests, even if that means setting fire to one of the country’s treasures.”
https://time.com/5661162/why-the-amazon-is-on-fire/
Oh for God’s sake – nitpicking and can’t see the forest for the trees! The ‘lungs of the world’ is metaphorical, and the more we lose, the difference will no longer be ‘a wash’.