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Friday, March 28, 2008

Shouldn't Every Day be Earth Day??

Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realise we cannot eat money. ~Cree Indian Proverb


I actually don't like the term "global warming" and prefer Climate Change - but that is just semantics. I was surprised at how many still want to debate that something in our world is happening. " We don't know what temperature the Earth should be"...... " Scientists can't agree on whether Global warming is happening"..... " It isn't our fault..."

The fact of the matter is - SOMETHING IS HAPPENING. Weird weather patterns, strong storm development, strange sudden deaths of different species - we can put our head in the sand all we want, but something is happening. Let me ask you, when you have a personal problem in your life, do you ignore it until it goes away? Probably not, because like all problems, ignoring it won't fix it, but only make it bigger. The principal is the same here. Ignoring that climate change is happening - putting our head in the sand and yelling, "It's not our fault!" - these are just delaying tactics that are not only counter-factual but detrimental to dealing with the problem as well.

Let's review the things that we know - from just looking in the papers everyday - are happening.

* Throughout the world we are having heat waves and periods of unusually warm weather. For those of you about to say that we have cold weather too, that's right. Global climate change will affect weather patterns, so in addition to the warming, we also have droughts and fires, ( anyone see the huge fire that was burning in GA just recently?) and also heavy rain and snowfalls.....

* water temperatures are on the rise and so are water levels and the occurances of tidal flooding

*the glaciers are melting and both the Artic and the Antartic are warming

*In fact, Climate change is happening so rapidly it is making it difficult for species to adapt to the change and some are even in danger of extinction. ( Here's a link: Global Warming Killing Some Species )



Now, ,I know that some of you will say that I am a naysayer - a speaker of doom and even worse - an "Al Gore minion". None of these things are true. I am about facing problems and dealing with them. This is who I am. This isn't some little problem that we are talking about - this is our planet people - our home. Is it ok to live with our heads in the sand and leave our children and our children's children a dying world? I don't think so! I love my planet - it's a beautiful place and it is home to so many wonderful creatures. Does it matter to you if the polar bear - or other species- become extinct because we failed to stretch forth a saving hand while there was time? It matters to me! I don't want the only place my children can see a polar bear - a whale -a penguin - a tiger - and others ... to be in a zoo. Do you? And it isn't just the animals.... crops are dying too. Do I have your attention yet?

We weren't given this planet to be it's owners, but rather it's stewards. We were sent here to care for our planet and all it's creatures, not just to look after ourselves. Little changes can make a huge difference to the health of our planet.

1. Reduce, reuse, recycle....

2. Use less heat and air conditioning...

3.Change your lightbulbs to energy efficient ones....

4. Plan your errands - drive smart and drive less....

5.buy energy efficient products - like hybrids, and avoid products that come with excessive packaging, especially formed plastics.

6.use less hot water

7. Turn your lights, computers and appliances off when they are not in use.

8.plant a tree

9. have your house tested to see how energy efficient it is....most utility companies will do this for free.

10. Encourage others to conserve.



Today I am doing 7 out of 10 of the above mentioned things. I am working on improving that. What about you? Will you be a steward with me and protect our beautiful planet for our children, or will you continue to keep your head in the sand? The decision is yours.

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