Hampstead and Highgate Express - Brainwashd teenagers facing prison over stupid airport eco protest

TWO teenagers are facing Christmas with a prison sentence looming over them after admitting their part in an airport protest which led to the cancellation of more than 50 flights.

Joe Ryle, 18, from Hornsey and Oliver Robinson, 19, from Muswell Hill, were two of the youngest protesters in a group of eight at Harlow Magistrates Court last Thursday.

They will be sentenced on January 7 when they will face up to two months in prison and a £2,500 fine.

The group joined 49 other protesters from campaign group, Plane Stupid, who camped out on the runway at Stansted Airport in Essex on December 8. The protest, which began at 3.15am and ended at about 8am, caused the cancellation of 52 Ryanair flights and disrupted more than 50,000 people's journeys.

Joe, who lives in South View Road, Hornsey, is currently studying three A-levels at Highgate Wood School and plans to study geography or environmental sustainability at Leeds University next year.

He told Broadway: "The starting point was a couple of years ago when I watched Al Gore's film, An Inconvenient Truth, at school. I didn't know anything about it before then. It's worrying because there are millions of kids out there who know nothing about climate change.

"I knew it was an important issue but to see it being talked about made me realise we were in trouble. Then I went to a conference in Westminster where I met like-minded people and other young people.
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"Afterwards, most of my friends and family thought I was a hero. We discussed it in a geography class at school."

Mr Ryle and Mr Robinson have been released on bail with conditions, including staying away from an airport unless a "bona-fide airport passenger", until their next court appearance, joined by the other protesters.

A spokesman from Stansted said: "Any unlawful or irresponsible behaviour aimed at disrupting the smooth operation of the airport is unacceptable. People should engage in the relevant independent planning inquiries in an open, honest and safe way."

Mr Ryle has not been disheartened by his experiences and plans to attend a climate rush at Heathrow on January 12.

"There will be similar things next year," he said.

FOXNews.com - No Matter What Happens, Someone Will Blame Global Warming

Global warming was blamed for everything from beasts gone wild to anorexic whales to the complete breakdown of human society this year -- showing that no matter what it is and where it happens, scientists, explorers, politicians and those who track the Loch Ness Monster are comfortable scapegoating the weather.

FOXNews.com takes a look back at 10 things that global warming allegedly caused — or will no doubt soon be responsible for — as reported in the news around the world in 2008.

Global warming dissenters dash scientific 'consensus'

Andrew Dessler of the eco-publication Grist Magazine is quoted by the report as stating, "While some people claim there are lots of skeptical climate scientists out there, if you actually try to find one, you keep turning up the same two dozen or so. These skeptics are endlessly recycled by the denial machine, so someone not paying close attention might think there are lots of them out there – but that's not the case."

The ranking minority member of the Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee, Sen. Tom Inhofe, R-Okla., however, points to the growing list of scientists his office has accumulated and disagrees.

"The endless claims of a 'consensus' about man-made global warming," Inhofe said in announcing the minority report, "grow less and less credible every day."