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2. Global warming is an event that has led to many political, financial and ethical conflicts. Nations were trying to negotiate a climate treaty but agreed on different areas. They were concerned about the billions of dollars being redirected in order to completely adjust the economy into a low-carbon one. This means that the standard of living must change. For instance, Saudi Arabia, which is one of the richest countries, would have to turn their economy away from being petroleum based. This would be difficult since they are the world’s second biggest oil producer. In the event of trying to negotiate a climate treaty, the U.S decided to send out Wikilinks and gather information on other countries. They used this information to bully the countries into using the Copenhagen Accord. Other countries also found out that the United States was bribing other countries and trying to leave out certain countries that they feel cannot handle the financial “aid.” Beijing failed to reach a deal at Copenhagen, whereas the United States and many other countries – due to the United States’ influence – used the Copenhagen Accord. However, the Copenhagen accord cannot guarantee that the global greenhouse cuts needed to avoid dangerous warming will occur. The Copenhagen Accord was mainly pushed by the United States and was made to benefit the United States, one of the biggest polluters. Due to the Wikilinks, the United States succeeded in having 116 countries associate themselves with the Accord. Other countries oppose the Accord because it will negatively impact the extension of the Kyoto Protocol.

3. I feel that the U.S takes advantage of its power. It has an anthropocentric view. We have an issue with global warming and our bi-products are the cause of the issue. The methane and carbon dioxide that we produce are released into the air causing a trap for radiation in the troposphere. This is causing the Earth’s surface to warm but not the core. The United States is violating privacy by using Wikilinks and they’re using the information to fuel their own agenda. It does not seem that countries are actually taking into account the severity of the issue. They’re more interested in the financial and political benefits. This is a collective action problem because we must work together and actually solve the issue at hand. If we’re persuading other countries to join a proposal that is not made to actually change the economy, then nothing will change. I suppose it is good that we have access to this information because we can see the political and financial agenda behind things. However, I do not think it is necessarily right to practically hack into people’s conversations. Just because some people are making unethical choices does not give us the right to make them as well. It seems that the monetary funds are certainly an area of interest but not for the intended cause. If it were, then other countries, such as the island countries, would see this money also. By not attending to the problem, we are testing our Earth’s resilience. If we keep testing it, we will reach a state of instability.