I am not a scientist; I am, however, one who relies heavily on reason and common sense. Blanket statements without rational, reasonable and provable backup don’t pass muster with me. Of course, you can have your own opinion about anything, but that cannot be confused with or held out as fact. Notwithstanding miracles and faith-building matters, which I fully embrace, all other assertions must have common sense or provable evidence. Enter, climate change.
Firstly, we must be clear about what it is. Climate change is a change in global or regional climate patterns. Any thinking person who has lived some three or four decades can personally see that the climate changes, and often the weather goes with it. A few conversations with our seasoned citizens and a little research would reveal even more proof of the changes throughout the centuries. So, is anyone denying the ongoing changes in the climate throughout history? I don’t believe anyone is saying climate change doesn’t exist; however, there is a vast difference between acknowledging climate change and deeming it a problem.
Ahhh, now this is where the hysteria comes in. It’s kinda like if your kid starts smoking cigarettes, You tell him it’s bad for him and it will kill him. Of course, he thinks you are overreacting because he feels fine. The truth is, his lifespan and quality of life is affected by his smoking in direct relation to the volume, frequency, and duration of his smoking. The body has an amazing ability to heal itself if given the chance. Should he dabble in smoking for a time and then quit and begin taking care of his body, the damage he potentially brought on himself by smoking may be reduced and perhaps eliminated.
Think about the many species that have teetered on the brink of extinction, yet have rebounded. In some cases, changes were made to affect their survival rate and avert what had before seemed inevitable.
It seems arrogant of man to believe him significant enough and powerful enough to undo all that the Supreme Creator has set in place. With almost 7.5 billion people on earth, humans only make up 1/100 of 1% of all living things on the planet, including plants, insects, and creatures. Can man really believe he is the only deciding factor that affects the climate?
Did I mention that Earth has gone through traumatic changes before man could possibly be held accountable; from ice ages, species extinctions, droughts, floods, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, and extreme weather events including hurricanes, tsunami’s, tornadoes, and catastrophic storms? Could those millions of years without the presence of man and the more recent century with man’s limited population really be held accountable for those events?
Like an uber amped-up version of the human body, the planet is self-healing. With its complex systems of life supporting life, both before and after man has been included, it will morph and change with the ever-shifting circle of life within it.
Our job as humans is to gratefully live in awe of all Earth provides for our well being and ability to survive. We must responsibly clean up after ourselves, limit waste, monitor our impact on the environment, make necessary adjustments, and keep it moving.
We have shown ourselves to have the desire and means to change the trajectory of impact our existence has on our planet. Throughout our history, we have done things, realized its negative impact, formulated a plan to deal with it, and then we worked the plan. By doing so, we have seen positive results as the planet showed its awesome power to rebound.
By planting trees to replace those harvested, shifting farm lands to allow soils to replenish, campaigns to educate the public about litter, forest fires, beach and ocean debris, limiting emissions, monitoring factory output, and more, man has successfully cared for the planet. These changes have made significant improvements in our world.
So, speaking of the potential dangers of human irresponsibility, waste, and disrespect for our great resources is needed and welcome. The drama, sensationalism, hyperbole, and exaggerated emotional alarmist rhetoric … not so much. I’m not sure why climate change is such the extreme, emotion-laden topic that it is, except that there must be gobs of money available, hidden, squandered, and tied up in and around it. Isn’t that always the case?
It seems to me that a simple, powerful, and well put together public education campaign and the consistent enforcement of many of the rules and regulations already in place would do the job. People want to keep alive the planet that keeps us alive, and have proved that again and again with the responses to previous campaigns.
Instead of the hysterical Chicken Little response, lawmakers and advocates can choose to use their influence, clean money, and a clear, level-headed message to tell us what we can do differently – in measurable increments – to cherish and improve our planet. Then give us periodic updates on our progress so we can tweak our behaviors and celebrate the victories.
Is that simple enough for you?
#notAfraidToThink #respectOurPlanet
EmmSix 