Greta Thunberg, a parent’s nightmare

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

Greta Thunberg, Swedish teenage climate change activist, has come to America bringing a dozen-plus of her child-age comrades to lecture the world on the perils of weather patterns, petition the United Nations for change, immediate change, and demand, via a formal complaint, five countries follow her Chicken Little leadership down a path of zero-production, zero growth. All in the name of good earth stewardship.

And the left is simply buzzing with admiration over this child.

But then again, they don’t have to live with her.

Thunberg, bless her heart, must be a real saint to live with — and yes, that’s the Southern meaning of “bless her heart.” This is how kids act when they aren’t given solid parental guidance, proper education and a humble sense of who they are in God. They think they’re entitled to speak on issues of which they’re completely uninformed, and that the world, simply because they feel sad, or angry — or simply because they feel something at all — owes them a listen. And a serious response.

Thunberg, along with 15 of friends, ranging in ages from 8 to 17, filed a complaint with the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child accusing Brazil, Argentina, Turkey, Germany and France of failing to keep their climate change obligations. Nary a word about China. But plenty of finger-wagging and scolding and high falutin’-ism over her rights as a child of the world being violated, as per the United Nations’ very own Convention on the Rights of the Child.

“Change needs to happen now,” Thunberg said in a widely reported statement. “The climate crisis is not just the weather. It means also lack of food and lack of water, places that are unlivable and refugees because of it. It is scary.”

That’s tame compared to what she said at the United Nations.

“Right here, right now is where we draw the line,” Thunberg said. “The world is waking up. And change is coming, whether you like it or not.”

Another excerpt?

“We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is the money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth,” she said. “How dare you. … How dare you …”

How dare you.

How dare you.

You know, it’s one thing for teenagers to take an interest in the world of politics and current events. It’s another thing entirely to pretend, as a teen, to possess the wisdom and knowledge to lead the world. One is laudable; the other is pretentious and obnoxious. The other is a tool of the left.

In another day, a better time, Thunberg’s parents would’ve taught her the difference. And she wouldn’t have gotten away with standing atop the global stage and lecturing the adults on how to behave.

• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter, @ckchumley.

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