Dear Mr. President,
I know many things are going on in the world today. However, this does not justify the American government’s ignorance of global warming. Of course it appears that you are concerned with “climate change”, as the Environmental Protection Agency acknowledges it, but what has America really done to help solve this huge problem?
I have just recently moved from Alaska, my birthplace, to Arizona this summer. In no other place are the effects of global warming more apparent than in Alaska. I remember as a child I could hike on Portage Glacier almost from the highway. Now, only a decade or so later, hiking is out of the question and I can’t even see the glacier from the highway (you can see it if you take a boat ride). Our summers have been extremely hot (in Alaska!), oyster farms have closed because the water temperatures have been too warm, the Iditarod’s starting point has had to move even more north due to less snow, polar bears are drowning…the list could go on and on. And although I know the Earth has warmer periods, just like ice ages, I know the majority of this is not due to the Earth’s natural cycles. This is not natural, and it’s common sense if you think about it.
I moved down to Arizona recently, just after the huge floods that affected Tucson and surrounding areas occurred. The road just down from my new house has debris everywhere and I just heard that the county is now qualified for federal aid. With the progression of global warming, floods, droughts, and wildfires, along with other types of storms and disasters, will worsen. This seems to me like it will hurt the government’s budget and the nation’s economy (things you are concerned with).
Although there has been lack of leadership from this administration when it comes to the issue of global warming, the general public has really started taking matters into their own hands. From a historian’s point of view, isn’t it kind of embarrassing to a leader when the people have to start leading the leader (especially on a matter as big as global warming)? It is very difficult for a whole culture and way of life to change without the help of a strong leader, and sadly, that’s what America needs right now if she wants to stop being the world’s biggest consumer and carbon emitter. I think you underestimate the American people and what they think of global warming. I know the American public underestimates itself, as many Americans think other Americans don’t care about global warming, when really they do.
If this administration really is trying to overcome this issue, please let me and the rest of America know, because right now it appears to us that this issue is being ignored. All I see or hear about is the Middle East, especially because of the recent Lebanon and Israel Conflict. My love and prayers go out to Israel and all the innocent in the conflict, but our media can focus on more than one issue. Why isn’t global warming being covered like crazy on the news? I haven’t seen any press conferences pertaining to global warming from the White House for a long time. And I’m not saying if I see a press conference about global warming I will be happy; I want our government to actually do things to solve this problem.
I know the American government is very busy right now, but is it busy with exactly the right things? Does it have its priorities right? I don’t know, so I have to trust you that it is and that you represent the American people well, and with an issue like global warming, the rest of the world as well. Global warming is unlike any other issue, not only in the history of society, but the history of the world. I demand that it be studied more, contemplated more, and focused on more. And not before it is too late, we must work on it immediately.
Sincerely,
A concerned citizen who misses her childhood glaciers,
I know many things are going on in the world today. However, this does not justify the American government’s ignorance of global warming. Of course it appears that you are concerned with “climate change”, as the Environmental Protection Agency acknowledges it, but what has America really done to help solve this huge problem?
I have just recently moved from Alaska, my birthplace, to Arizona this summer. In no other place are the effects of global warming more apparent than in Alaska. I remember as a child I could hike on Portage Glacier almost from the highway. Now, only a decade or so later, hiking is out of the question and I can’t even see the glacier from the highway (you can see it if you take a boat ride). Our summers have been extremely hot (in Alaska!), oyster farms have closed because the water temperatures have been too warm, the Iditarod’s starting point has had to move even more north due to less snow, polar bears are drowning…the list could go on and on. And although I know the Earth has warmer periods, just like ice ages, I know the majority of this is not due to the Earth’s natural cycles. This is not natural, and it’s common sense if you think about it.
I moved down to Arizona recently, just after the huge floods that affected Tucson and surrounding areas occurred. The road just down from my new house has debris everywhere and I just heard that the county is now qualified for federal aid. With the progression of global warming, floods, droughts, and wildfires, along with other types of storms and disasters, will worsen. This seems to me like it will hurt the government’s budget and the nation’s economy (things you are concerned with).
Although there has been lack of leadership from this administration when it comes to the issue of global warming, the general public has really started taking matters into their own hands. From a historian’s point of view, isn’t it kind of embarrassing to a leader when the people have to start leading the leader (especially on a matter as big as global warming)? It is very difficult for a whole culture and way of life to change without the help of a strong leader, and sadly, that’s what America needs right now if she wants to stop being the world’s biggest consumer and carbon emitter. I think you underestimate the American people and what they think of global warming. I know the American public underestimates itself, as many Americans think other Americans don’t care about global warming, when really they do.
If this administration really is trying to overcome this issue, please let me and the rest of America know, because right now it appears to us that this issue is being ignored. All I see or hear about is the Middle East, especially because of the recent Lebanon and Israel Conflict. My love and prayers go out to Israel and all the innocent in the conflict, but our media can focus on more than one issue. Why isn’t global warming being covered like crazy on the news? I haven’t seen any press conferences pertaining to global warming from the White House for a long time. And I’m not saying if I see a press conference about global warming I will be happy; I want our government to actually do things to solve this problem.
I know the American government is very busy right now, but is it busy with exactly the right things? Does it have its priorities right? I don’t know, so I have to trust you that it is and that you represent the American people well, and with an issue like global warming, the rest of the world as well. Global warming is unlike any other issue, not only in the history of society, but the history of the world. I demand that it be studied more, contemplated more, and focused on more. And not before it is too late, we must work on it immediately.
Sincerely,
A concerned citizen who misses her childhood glaciers,
For the latest news on climate change check out this link...
Amazon River drought, courtesy of National Geographic
No comments:
Post a Comment