Countries actually agree on something!

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The article, "With Compromises, a Global Accord to Fight Climate Change Is in Sight", relates the recent event of 196 countries coming close to reaching an agreement concerning fossil fuel emissions. This is currently happening at a global climate summit in Lima, Peru. The treaty contains achievable goals as each country must publically enact policies that best fit their own situation. However, this brings up the major drawback of this trearty, the standards will be set by each country instead of using global standards. This is supposed to lead to a global deal to be signed in Paris next year with each country bringing its own pledge including the United States.

My opinion on this event is quite positive. It is about time some action was taken to stop the slide of global warming before it becomes a catastrophe beyond repair. It will be hard for the necessary legislation to be passed in the United States because there are still some government officials who do not accept global warming for the fact that it is. Over a decade of scientific research has show that the planet is undergoing an abnormal change in temperature. This is the consensus among the scientific community, and some scientists even consider us to living in the midst of the sixth great extinction in the history of the Earth. The current die off of species is due to gloabl warming and its effect on the environment. All in all, I am glad this legislation has been so that the human race will force itself to advance to more sustainable forms of energy.

Cyberattack with Larger Implications

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The article "Everything We Know About the Massive Sony Hack" describes how the massive technology corporation Sony has been under heavy cyber attack in the past few weeks. The Sony Movie division has been specifically targeted with upcoming movies being leaked, communication systems being shut down, and twitter accounts being taken over. This is really bad news for the company since box office totals significantly drop if the movie is leaked online before the release date. There is suspicion that North Korea is behind the attack because of The Interview, an upcoming movie where Kim Jong-un is portrayed as a target for assassination. North Korea has stated its disgust with this movie and its producer, Sony. The FBI and several United States government agencies are looking into this hack and treating North Korean involvement very seriously. This whole event may lead to even icier relations between North Korea and the United States.

In my opinion, North Korea needs to learn how to take a joke. The movie is a clear comedy that has no deeper, political meaning behind it. I doubt that James Franco and Seth Rogen are high international experts who purposely put subversive political agendas inside a generic, modern comedy. What it really boils down to is another situation where North Korea is going to whine until it gets what it wants from the outside world.