Monday, June 19, 2006

Lately with the release of Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth there’s a bit of chatter in the media about global warming. So let me get in my two cents worth.

First, no matter what people like John Stossel try and sell you global warming is very real. The planet’s average temperature is rising as is it’s oceans’ temperature. We are clearly in the midst of a trend. There is no denying it.

Now there are those who will debate as to why the Earth is getting warmer. Maybe there are other factors. I know the Sun is getting more energetic. I know the Earth’s magnetic field is weakening and soon will reverse poles. I know the Earth has endured some pretty brutal climate changes before. However the scientific consensus is that people are a significant portion of the problem. Meaning if we weren’t burning fossil fuels like madmen the problem would be substantially less.

I know why fossil fuels have remained popular. They have remained in favor because a bunch of greedy bastards got rich off of them. They then went and bought some politicians and the fossil fuels kept our vehicles running and electricity generating. So because some gaggle of greedy little men had to get greedier and more gluttonous we now have a planet increasingly hostile to our existence. This is why greed and gluttony are among the seven deadly sins.

How anyone could put self-interest ahead of the condition of this precious blue and green ball is bewildering. This greatest gift we could ever be given. This wonderful world is teeming with nourishment and remedies and awe-inspiring beauty. Yet we treat it like an unwanted birthday gift. We ignore it and pile our crap on it and forget that it was even a gift at all. If we forget what a precious gift this planet and forget what precious gifts this planet has given us then this planet will forget us.

This planet is in no danger. This planet will survive all our greed and excess. We won’t survive it, but Earth will. So if all out pollution makes the planet inhospitable to people, then we will go away forever. Earth will simply put pennies on our eyes just like she did to the dinosaurs and dodos. Earth does not need us. We are totally dependant on it.

This glorious third blue-green rock from the Sun is the only home we have. It is the only place we know where we can survive. We must not forget how much we need planet Earth. We are not the demigods we imagine ourselves to be, capable of conquering any foe. We are but small helpless children sheltered in Mother Earth’s warm embrace.

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