The blame game, part I

The German Environmental Minister blames the US policies on Global Warming for Katrina.

While much of the world has reacted with shock and sympathy to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, senior government leaders in Germany warned the United States to expect more natural catastrophes if it did not get serious about global warming.

Katrina was still spinning northward through the United States when Germany's environment minister, Juergen Trittin, penned a column for the Frankfurter Rundschau newspaper blaming President Bush's environmental policies for increasing the risk of deadly storms and floods around the world.

"The American president closes his eyes to the economic and human damages that are inflicted on his country and the world economy by natural disasters, like Katrina, through neglected climate protection," Trittin wrote in his opinion piece, which was published Tuesday.

"When reason finally reaches the headquarters of the climate polluters, the international community will need to be able to extend a hand with an elaborate proposal for the future of international climate protection. The German government stands ready for this," the piece said.