Very low spirits at breakfast today.  There are always several fellow participants to join at the beginning of the day, to plan the sessions to attend.  But this morning things were in slow motion.  Then there was the added news of the failure of health-care reform to wake up to.  So now I understand any form of governmental involvement is finally obliterated, and that insurance companies will have to accept all comers and not bump anybody off their coverage for getting sick.  The added costs will be passed on to policy-holders (employers and individuals), and health care will continue on its way to reaching 37% of GDP.   But that's irrelevant to the climate conference.

In fact, the schedule of offerings today - meetings and conferences - was meager.  The work by the environmentalists was pretty much finished.  For 10 days they had advised, coaxed and presented their messages to the governmental representatives of all the countries (said to be 193) - and anyone else who would listen, anticipating the arrival of the heads-of-state (said to be 110 or more) and higher level politicians today and tomorrow.  There was one important gathering, hosted by the Blue Green Alliance ("blue" for blue-collar and "green" for environmental).  The premise here is that organized labor and a clean environment are mutually supportive and economicly advantageous.  This was attended by a great number of high-ranking democrats who have come to town for tomorrow's finale.  Nancy Pelosi, Henry Waxman and Ed Markey (the name of the climate change and energy bill before the house), Charles Rangel, and others.   So the big boys and girls have come to town, and the high-level negotiations are closed to NGO's.  The multitude of displays of hope and promise have been seen and re-seen.  I pass by those globes two or three times a day.  The little guys do the dirty work and heavy lifting, and the generals strut in and make nice or make a scene.  

I just realized that I have forgotten to say that through-out this conference, there has been intense hope that Waxman/Markey be passed.  The position of the US as a leader has been vastly reduced by its inability to present to the world that it has adopted a strong, national energy policy.  I think this has been in part a very good thing because the rest of the world has had to go it alone without good old Uncle Sam.  And it has.  We don't have the stature we once had and other nations have taken the lead in correcting their environmental policies well beyond what the US has done, especially China and Brazil.  

One theme which has unexpectedly emerged is that of social justice - the concerns of poor, developing nations.  This seems to have become inextricably joined to the over all settlement.   I understand that in previous conferences, the undeveloped countries have generally limited their participation to insisting that the developed countries bear the burden of rectifying climate change and should fix the problem because they caused it.  And compensate the developing countries for the damage done to the planet.  This issue has never been resolved, and generally passed over.  But in Copenhagen, the "Group of 77", the poorest nations again have requested financial support, but many or most have also declared specific contributions they will make to green house gas reduction.  This means that any international agreement will have to account for and provide benefits to poor countries as stated in the past, but also will require poor nations to participate in resolving the  problem.  And they are now saying they will.  Many senior ministers, such as Mary Robinson (former President of Ireland), Helen Carter (former Prime Minister of New Zealand), and Gro Harlem Brundtland (former Prime Minister of Norway) have gone so far to say that any successful climate change agreement must fully address and include these issues of poor nations.  The amused over-view is that, for the first time, "guys in white suits" have gathered in agreement to help the poor.  

Then suddenly late morning the twitter space erupted from the Bella Center with news that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who came yesterday, proposed that the US would participate in a $100 billion annual financing to help developing countries starting in 2020.   The US has also agreed to contribute to the $10 billion fast-start fund by 2012.  $100 billion is a more realistic number, certainly moving in the right direction.  And folks on the ground suddenly became more hopeful.  Then there were rumors that  China would essentially not participate, rumors then denied by Wen Jiabao, the Premier, who is here in Copenhagen. So really things continue in limbo.  President Obama is due to speak tomorrow morning and of course there is the thought that he will fix everything. The wheels grind slow and fine.  More tomorrow.