SP

er.. I like the band. I also have a PhD in the environmental area. I teach at a major research university. Never send spam. As I said, this is an issue of credibility and social justice, just as much as doing work to support fair trade, etc. The science of warming is, let me tell you, really scary. Live Earth concerts were not great on emissions, by the way. Loads of people flew in.

Some of you guys are missing the point. Whether you are famous or not, flying unnecessarily is not cool. Thsi is not an atack on celebs. It is rapidly becoing a social justice issue, just like fair trade and other campaigns that Coldplay support. In other words; fly a lot and your net contribution to human misery, in the shape of increased global CO2, is increased. It translates directly into net risk of the West Antarctic ice sheet melting (in which case many of us are dead), and the already-apparent temperature changes and sea level changes that adversely affect (mainly) poor people in developing countries. After raising this issue for the first time in 'Heat", Monbiot appeared in a videoconference to Melbourne from his home in the UK. Yes, we consumed electricity to make this presentation, but a millionth of the emissions were spent compared to bringing him here by plane. His point: this is a global crisis we can combat. But if we don't reduce net emissions of CO2 to zero by c.2030, we are going to see untold changes, almost all of them negative. Here is the science paper that currently has the world buzzing - and very, very seriously worried. Hansen et al predict once the ice starts melting it will do so exponentially. Many estuaries, tropical islands, and most of the major cities would be well underwater by the end of this century. Carbon rationing for all of us will be a reality within 10-15 years. Thus if you fly, you may not be able to heat your home for a couple of years, as equitable compensation. Welcome to the brave new world. http://pubs.giss.nasa.gov/docs/2007/2007_Hansen_etal_2.pdf And for the person who considers none of this proven: read this article, and if you don't understand it, find someone who can. Peer - reviewed papers have become the only reliable source (certainly not webpages produced by thinktanks, like those that reckon CO2 must be good because plants need it). This is because all the information therein is rigorously checked by others.

It is a pretty serious issue. As Monbiot says, flying has some terrible impacts (so do cows, but that's for another discussion). Flying to start and end a tour across the Atlantic may be hard to avoid, but what about the unecessary flying in-country and back home on a weekly basis, using thousands of gallons of fuel for a jet with a small number of people in it? And what is wrong with a tour bus? Justice for oppressed people should, I assure you, include respect for their vulnerability to clmate change, which weshoudl not be exacerbating in the West by our actions. Make your feelings known; boycott Coldplay gigs; lobby.

Guardian journalist and professor, George Monbiot, author of "Heat" (2007) has exposed Chris Martin's vast greenhouse gas emissions, largely as a result of FLYING everywhere, frequently and often unecessarily, by private jet (and by owning and crashing a gas-guzzling BMW X5). See the Greenwash page at http://www.turnuptheheat.org - a site dedicated to exploring the issues raised in the book. Before you ask, Monbiot is not a subscriber to junk science, nor is he out to get particular individuals. He is an environmental campaigner. I call on all readers to lobby Chis for more environmentally appropriate modes of travel, and a little less hypocrisy in his support of good causes. A LearJet, for goodness sake, at a time when the while world is looking to unified action on climate change, and alternatives.