Urban heat waves, melting icecaps, forest fires, rising sea levels, coral reef damage, deforested kelp fields, endangered species of many kinds, the increased threat of pandemics -- the era when we could debate whether global climate change was real is long past.
It's now our daily reality. Joe Biden, for one, seems to get that.
For policy makers, mitigation is the only option left, since prevention is no longer possible. A rapid transition to carbon-neutral infrastructure systems therefore is vital. That renders the current debate over the cost of Biden's proposed initiatives almost irrelevant.
Whatever price tag lawmakers eventually place on it simply won't be enough to address the underlying issues. So it feels like a waste of time to compare the Democratic version v. the Republican version because for both parties this issue is just another political football.
They are arguing for short passes or quarterback sneaks, when what they should be doing is looking downfield for a "Hail Mary."
Besides, what they actually care about is which party will win control of the House of Representatives next year; that's their motivation, not getting serious about climate change.
Meanwhile, the ship of state is heading straight for an iceberg, and even though it's melting, that iceberg will certainly swamp the ship.
Which is why as much as I loved the recent SNL riff on the iceberg that sank the Titanic <https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/weekend-update-the-iceberg-on-the-sinking-of-the-titanic/4342375>, my tears of laughter were mixed with the other kind while watching it.
Environmentalists -- much maligned as a group by way too many people for way too long -- have been raising the warnings about what we're doing to the earth since the 1950s. For decades, nobody in power listened. Now, as the UN and various political leaders including Biden begin to act, it must be difficult for environmental activists to remain patient.
Because there no longer is any time to lose. What's at stake, straight up, is whether we will leave a viably habitable planet to our descendants.
Our grandchildren's children will not judge as for being Republicans or Democrats, or socialists or capitalists or being good debaters or bad ones.
They will judge us for despoiling their planet.
***
Even as I contemplate these dire circumstances, on a personal level I am happy, because for a few days I am back in the city I love. Such are the contradictions of life in the short term. San Francisco's air always has a certain freshness to it, even when it leaves you shivering when everywhere it's hot.
When the fog rolls in here, depending which microclimate you're located in, it can feel like rain.
The city is kicking itself back to life after the long pandemic hibernation. The signs are everywhere. When it comes to climate change, this city has been at the forefront of mitigation measures for decades.
And now, in late spring, before the fire season has started, the hills are green and the sky is blue. Hope is riding in on that moist breeze from the Pacific.
I'm getting to hang out with my two youngest grandchildren, Bettina (2.5) and Oscar (0.25). Believe me, like all people, they are way more than numbers. There is nothing like being with babies to refresh the soul.
Maybe, just maybe, we're going to find a way to be alright after all.
***
The news:
* Climate Change Is Making Big Problems Bigger -- New data compiled by the E.P.A. shows how global warming is making life harder for Americans in myriad ways that threaten their health, safety and homes. (NYT)
* "To want to solve a problem, you first have to know there is one... most Americans don’t know how much of a crisis we truly face, nor how little time we have left to solve it." -- Joe Biden (The Hill/Twitter)
* Mass shooting insurance in high demand as U.S. emerges from lockdown (Reuters)
* Hamas launches more rockets, Israeli jets strike Gaza as casualties mount (WP)
* As Gaza War Escalates, New Front Opens in Israeli Cities -- Rioting and mob violence between Arabs and Jews tore through towns and cities across Israel. Rockets from Gaza and Israeli airstrikes continued to kill civilians. (NYT)
* Global airlines cancel flights to Israel as violence escalates (CNN)
* Newly released footage of the Capitol riot shows a mob descending on D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone. They beat him with a flagpole and attacked him with a stun gun. The riot resulted in five deaths and more than 100 injured police officers. [HuffPost]
* A sprawling investigation: What we know so far about the hundreds of Capitol riot suspects (WP)
* Car makers have cut production of 1.2 million vehicles in North America because of a shortage of computer chips, losing sales amid high demand. (WSJ)
* Amazon to hire 75,000 workers, offers $100 extra for vaccination proof (Reuters)
* Rep. Greene accosts Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, prompting N.Y. lawmaker to raise security concerns (WP)
* University Of South Carolina President Resigns After Plagiarizing Commencement Speech (NPR)
* Gaetz associate signals he will plead guilty in federal case, a worrisome development for the congressman (WP)
* Mysterious Ailments Are Said to Be More Widespread Among U.S. Personnel -- The Biden administration has begun more aggressively investigating episodes that left spies, diplomats, soldiers and others with brain injuries. (NYT)
* McDonald's-owned U.S. restaurants boost pay to lure new workers (Reuters)
* White supremacy is the greatest domestic terrorism threat facing the U.S., Attorney General Merrick Garland and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said. Republicans on the Senate Appropriations Committee rejected Garland's argument. [HuffPost]
* Chief of teachers union is ‘all in’ on full fall reopening (AP)
* Amateur sleuths traced stolen Cortés papers to U.S. auctions. Mexico wants them back (Reuters)
* Biden unveiled his latest batch of judicial nominees, and it included Lauren J. King, who would be one of the nation's few Native American federal judges. If confirmed, King would be one of just three Native American judges out of nearly 900 federal judgeships. Biden is moving fast to fill federal judgeships and is making diversity a driving factor. [HuffPost]
* The Joy of Black Hair -- At the end of the last century, advances in weaves, wigs and other innovations allowed for a new degree of autonomy — and fun. (NYT)
* Elon Musk Unveils New Clean Energy Luxury Car Pulled By 8 Tesla Employees (The Onion)
***
"Song for a Dying Planet"
by Joe Walsh
Is anyone out there?
Does anybody listen or care anymore?
We are living on a dying planet,
We're killing everything that's alive,
And anyone who tries to deny it
Wears a tie
And gets paid to lie
So I wrote these songs for a dying planet,
I'm sorry but I'm telling the truth,
And for everybody trying to save it
These songs are for you, too.
Is anyone out there?
-30-
No comments:
Post a Comment