NEITHER TERRORISTS NOR CLIMATE CHANGE CAN BE IGNORED BY All AMERICANS

…The Senate Majority Leader that refuses to respond to climate change questions.

 

 

Both of these major issues require attention from all of us.

 

People today do not seem to realize that since 1970, the oceans around the world have risen over 7 inches.  The reason for this is that as the global climate temperatures increase, water expands.  With all of the carbon that has gone into the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels around the world, the world’s temperatures have been increasing every year.  Yes, it’s only been a miniscule amount of expansion, but when you apply that to all of the vast oceans, eventually it begins to show as all of the ocean’s levels continue to rise.

 

If the world’s people keep adding carbon and greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, the average sea level around the world by the end of this century could be anywhere from another 7 to 23 inches higher than it was in 1990. Sea level could rise even more if the big ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica melt faster than anticipated.

 

However, today’s Republicans, such as Donald Trump, the leading GOP presidential candidate now says, “I don’t believe in climate change.”  Republican Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) says, “Climate change is not science, it’s religion.” Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) has acknowledged that climate change might be real, but he opposes any action for dealing with it.

 

The Republican Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, when asked if he believed in climate change, McConnell only slammed President Obama’s policies, saying they harmed the middle class.  While failing to describe exactly how they harmed Americans, he has also refused to make comments on his position on climate change.

 

One of the writers at the The Post, Fred Hiatt, said it best when he stated about the Republican candidates: “Trump revels in his stupidities, and most of the presidential candidates are appealing to the right-most wing of their primary electorate at the moment.” But when asked what the grownups in the GOP such as Leader McConnell had to say, all Hiatt could admit to was that when asked, neither the senator, nor his staff got back to him on that question.

 

What is really interesting is that the largest oil and gas giant in the world, Exxon Petroleum, has stated that they believe in the science of climate change and have said so on their own web site. On their site, Exxon said that they believe climate change is real.  They also believe that governments should take action to combat it and that the most sensible action would be a revenue-neutral tax on carbon.  In other words, a tax on oil, gas and coal, with the proceeds returned to taxpayers for them to spend as they choose.

 

The Exxon experts also told The Post last week that they agree that the average ocean temperatures are likely to rise by a 5 to 7 degrees Celsius, and possibly even more.

 

But I must admit that not all conservatives are on the side of Trump and the other right-wing presidential candidates about climate change. 

 

Mr. Hiatt has also written that, “A genuine conservative, as Ronald Reagan’s secretary of state George P. Shultz has written, he would acknowledge uncertainties in climate science but looks for rational, market-based policies to lessen the risk without slowing economic growth. A revenue-neutral carbon tax, as in a bill Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) has introduced, fits the description precisely.”

 

Even the anti-tax increase preacher, Grover Norquist, had said that a carbon tax wouldn’t violate his no-tax-increase pledge if the proceeds were returned to the tax payers.  But he also made it clear that he didn’t like the idea.

 

The point of all of this is that the president has said that this concern of the consequences of climate change is one of the most important issues that mankind has to confront.  But he has been saying this while the free world is also trying to deal with a terrorist issue that always takes the headlines away from what is a long-term issue for the whole world.

 

It’s reasonable for us to say “Look, I know climate change is a big deal, but right now I’m hiding under my desk just to stay alive one more day.”

 

One must understand about what is guaranteed to occur if we don’t pay attention to both of these issues at the same time. 

 

Global climate change will threatens coastlines and the buildings and those cities located along them. Hundreds of millions of people around the world live in low–lying areas near the coast that would be flooded as the sea level rises. Rising sea levels will erode beaches and damage many coastal wetlands. Rising sea level and stronger storms caused by warmer oceans could completely wipe out certain beaches and whole islands.  (Some islands and coastal communities have already disappeared.)

 

(And none of this mentions what these rising temperatures will do to the basic ecology of the oceans and all of their living organisms.)

 

Climate change poses major risks for cities on or near the ocean. Places like Miami; New York City; New Orleans; Hong Kong; and Venice, Italy, could be totally flooded out of existence if the sea level continues to rise. If that happens, millions of people and the cities will lose their homes and their businesses.

 

The reality is that even the major oil companies like Exxon are starting to come to the table and are agreeing that something has to be done.  One must also remember that most all major oil refineries around the world are located on or near major rivers and oceans.  Therefore, they would all be flooded out if these predictions of the rising sea levels continue as quickly as they have over the last few years.

 

Now, these carbon pollution problems cannot be totally blamed on the oil companies.  Coal is another big issue, and one must remember that a big coal state is Senator Mitch Mc Connell’s state of Kentucky.  At least this give us the obvious explanation for his not answering the questions about his real feelings on climate change.  But there is little being done about the coal issue.

 

I have to say that the long-time Republican leader cannot continue to bury his head in the sand forever on this issue, and neither can the other right-wing conservatives. 

 

But if they all continue doing this, they’d better start wearing life jackets and breathing through very long snorkels.

 

Copyright G.Ater  2015