Rise for Climate

Rise for Climate is a global event that occurred on September 8, 2018, where hundreds of thousands rallied and marched in hundreds of cities around the world.  The purpose was to demand that local leaders commit to building a fossil free world that puts people and justice before profits. The event is in advance of next week’s Global Climate Action Summit, where cities, states, businesses and civil society from around the world gather in California to affirm their commitment to a fossil-free society.

I am proud to say that Debbie and I took part. Whereas last year we marched on Washington as part of the People’s Climate March, this time we stayed local. The Cleveland chapter of the Sierra Club along with several other local organizations put together a unique ‘Environmental Justice Tour’ of the city.

There is no environmental justice without social justice. People's Climate Movement event will be Saturday September 8th and will be hosted by the Cleveland People's Climate Movement. This event will run from 10am to 2pm. This year we will be focusing on environmental justice in Cleveland. We will be taking a tour bus around the city to see the triumphs and shortcomings of Cleveland's current environmental state as well as speaking about the effects this has on resident's health. The tour will include stops such as the site of the Icebreaker Wind Project, East Cleveland Dump site, Chateau De Hough Wine Vineyard, Brooklyn Solar Farm, Rid-All Community Farm & CMHA Lakeview Terrace. After the tour, lunch will be provided and we will facilitate a community dialogue on climate change/clean energy. This is a free event open to the public. Please come learn with us on how we can convert Cleveland to a 100% sustainable city!

Compared with the hundreds of thousands at last year’s march, this event was small. Still, it was illuminating to naïve folks like us two. We live our comfortable lives in the suburbs, hardly even thinking about health and environmental concerns that our neighbors to the north have to deal with on a regular basis.

We began with a press conference at MetroHealth Park, where speakers included MetroHealth doctors who informed us of environmental effects on the health and well-being of Cleveland city residents. We also heard from members of various organizations, such as the Sierra Club, and their efforts to convince Cleveland to commit to becoming a 100% sustainable city.

The speeches were followed by a bus tour of some sites in Cleveland where the environment is front and center in its effects on people’s lives. The stops included:

The Lake Erie shoreline near Gordon Park: We heard the latest information about the Icebreaker Wind Project. If approved, eight large wind turbines will be installed several miles offshore, in the lake. It would be the first such freshwater site in the Americas and could lead to more and larger such projects. Although only one further approval is needed for the permit, there is still opposition. Two Bratenahl residents, financed by none other than Robert Murray, president of Murray Energy, the country’s largest privately held coal company are fighting the project to the end.

Chateau De Hough Wine Vineyard and Harry Boomer Garden: It was interesting to see a successful winery in an inner city neighborhood. Just around the corner is a peaceful flower garden.

East Cleveland Dumpsite: This was shocking to us. East Cleveland city officials sold land to a developer who promised to recycle materials in an environmentally clean manner. Instead, it became a toxic waste dump site where trash became piled up dozens of feet high. Residents were exposed to noxious fumes all hours of day and night. The combustible refuse eventually caught fire, placing local people in even more immediate danger. After several years of effort as well as harassment and provocation from the owners and truck drivers, the residents managed to prevail and convince the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to do its job and have the site cleaned. It was the first we’d heard of the entire incident.

The whole day left me, and I think Debbie, feeling like we must work harder to secure an environmentally clean future for our children and grandchildren. I promise to do more.

Call to Action

You say you care about the environment. You like clean air and water, and you don't attach a 'but' to that statement. You want to do your part to make this planet a better, not worse place to live. Mostly, you want to know what you can do that will be of the most help. This comes down to, what could you do, and what should you do. Your thoughts may vary, but in case you’re interested, here are mine.

You should reduce, reuse, and recycle. Yes, we’ve all heard this before, but it’s one of the most basic environmental actions. Especially, take note of the order of those verbs. It’s most important to simply use less. Use less food (side benefit: you’ll lose weight); use less packaging (buy things without it, and skip the bags); use less energy (walk more, and turn down – or up in summer – your thermostat); use less stuff in general (do you really need to buy even more clothing?). Reuse containers as well as clothing and anything else you can think of. And if you absolutely must buy that bottle of water or that can of soda, at least recycle the containers.

You could spread the word. Tell others how you feel. Better still: attend a march or some other form of protest aimed at protecting the planet. My wife and I have been doing this, and we at least feel like we’re making a difference.

You should teach your children well. They have to inherit this mess; they may as well know what we’ve done, what we may be trying to do, and what needs to be done. They’ll be stuck with whatever comes next. Most importantly, children need to be raised to have a healthy respect for knowledge, facts, and science. Yes, they should be critical and question everything, but more importantly, they need to learn the basic facts about how the universe works.

Most importantly, you should vote. Vote for those who will pass and uphold laws that protect our planet. Those who say they like clean air and water, but who also want to remove regulations, are not friends of the environment. Those who say the science isn’t ‘complete’ or that they are otherwise skeptical about climate science, do not have our earth’s (or even it’s people’s) best interest in mind. Vote for the other guy or gal, the one who truly cares, instead.

You and Me, and Everyone We Know

“Some people deny climate change, but there are no ocean plastic deniers. The problem’s in plain sight.” ~ Susan Goldberg

“Where could it be coming from? ... It must be third-world countries dumping trash into the ocean.” ~ a co-worker, answering his own question regarding the Texas-sized floating bed of plastic in the Pacific Ocean

I tried to explain to my co-worker friend that every time he obtains a plastic bag, buys food in a plastic container, buys water or soda in a plastic bottle, or uses a plastic straw, there is some chance that the resulting trash will wind up someplace other than a recycle bin for proper disposal. This chance exists regardless of how much or how little we first-worlders try to do the right thing. But of course it’s then a matter of degree; we still need to at least try to recycle. Using less is still far better, no matter what. That straw may find itself on a street, in a sewer, down a stream, in a river, and eventually in the ocean.

Unfortunately, he was not listening. He was too intent on placing the blame elsewhere.

Is any of the blame attributable to the third world? Sure. How much? Who knows. But there are two things to keep in mind: a) they (the third world) learned it from us, and b) they (the third world) largely pollute and waste because of us.

Ultimately, it’s on us to do the right thing: use less, and recycle. And vote for people who will do the right thing as well. 

You and me and everyone we know.

Check out this National Geographic article on the subject.

Let's Try It

It has come to light that the reason President Trump reduced the size of Bears Ears National Monument was to make it possible for his cronies to drill for oil on these lands. This comes as a huge surprise to some.

When we elected Donald Trump, we collectively made a choice to move our government from one where ethics were paramount to one in which the opposite is true. Corruption is the word of the day now, and any ethics or morality that our country had has gone by the wayside.

Our previous president and even the ones prior to that did everything in their power to ensure that not only they, but everyone in their administrations adhered to the highest ethical behavior. When one is as corrupt as our current president, the environment suffers as much as personal integrity.

The connection is straightforward. If you have no morals, then what could possibly be wrong with giving federal lands to private parties who wish to exploit them for personal gain? Who cares about the planet when there's money to be made?

I think we collectively looked at the ethical behavior of past presidents and decided that we ought to try something different. Enough ethics. Let's try some corruption, we said. I and most others are sorry that we did, and I think that all the rest of us will be as well when the sun is just a bright spot in the nighttime.

It's a Trap Take 2

In 2016, I posted a little diddy called, It’s a Trap. This post will be from a slightly different perspective. I gave a Toastmasters speech on the subject a couple of weeks ago. This time, I have more pictures!!

With all of the hysteria, all of the fear, all of the phony science, could it be that man-made global warming is the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people? James Inhofe, Republican Senator from Oklahoma.

Sen. Inhofe on the Senate floor, demonstrating with a snowball that global warming is a hoax

The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive. Donald J Trump, President.

Our President, who believes that it's the Chinese who created the hoax

It’s a Trap! Admiral Akbar, squid-like Star Wars character (he wasn’t technically discussing climate change, but I do like the way he said it).

Admiral Akbar of the Rebel Alliance

Since these important people believe climate change is a hoax, I thought I should do some research; check the facts. 

First of all, what are we talking about here? By definition, a hoax is something intended to deceive or defraud. I like conspiracy theories every bit as much as hoaxes. There is very little difference between a hoax and a conspiracy theory. By my definition, if you believe it, it’s a hoax. If someone else believes it, but you don’t or are not sure, it’s a conspiracy theory. The word, conspiracy also implies that several people colluded to deceive.

There are three principles of conspiracy theories: nothing happens by accident, nothing is as it seems, and everything is connected. They are unfalsifiable, and therefore a matter of faith rather than proof. A few of the most prominent ones are the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the Apollo moon landings, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Some others include vaccinations and a suppressed cure for cancer.

You may or may not believe these or any other conspiracy theories, but in the case of global warming, also known as climate change, it has to be a hoax. Why am I so sure about this? Our President said so!

It makes no difference that Senator Inhofe and President Trump have numerous friends in the fossil fuel industry, and that they receive large donations from them. That is not a factor. It also makes no difference that 97 percent of climate scientists agree that the climate is changing due to human activity. What do scientists really know anyway?

Those who believe that global warming is a hoax are known as climate science deniers. They have waged a campaign to undermine the public trust in climate science, hindering efforts to prevent further climate change and adapt to a warming planet. They have used the same tactics as the tobacco industry to spread doubt about climate science.

Climate science denial is funded by the fossil fuel industry, including oil and coal companies and trade organizations. Their ultimate goal is to drastically reduce regulation of the fossil fuel industry, making the government friendlier towards them. I say, good for them! If the government isn’t here to help large companies profitably pollute air, land, and water, what good is it?

President Trump once again proved his genius when he withdrew the United States from the Paris climate accord last June. Every other nation on Planet Earth is wrong, and our President is absolutely right. How do we know this? He said so. So does Fox News, Breitbart News, and the National Review.

Did you know that there is a Flat Earth Society? They are science deniers too. Last year both Kyrie Irving and Shaquille O’Neil each affirmed their belief that the world is flat. (They later claimed to be joking about the whole thing, but we know better.) Now we must decide: is it the “scientists” who claim the earth is round that are perpetuating the hoax, or is it the people who believe the planet is flat? I think it’s the former. These are the same people who claim that burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and causes climate change. Ha ha.

Logo of the Flat Earth Society

I am convinced that global warming is a hoax. I even have a possible motive. The “scientists” are trying to trick us into polluting less and making the earth a cleaner and better place for our children. Don’t listen to them. It’s a trap.

More Damage

Bears Ears

More damage to the environment was done today. Our President decided to reduce the sizeof two National Monuments by two million acres. This action will make Trump’s friends, including the Koch Brothers and other fossil fuel interests very happy. Human beings, including the same Native Americans that Trump recently insulted, animals, plants and the atmosphere, not so much. Mining and drilling will begin as soon as this item clears the Republican courts.

At this time, it appears that the Republican Tax Increase and National Debt Explosion will provide the Trump administration his first legislative victory. The only other thing he’s been at all successful at is decimating the environment. This is just another step in the ecological train wreck that America has become.

In a previous post, I expressed the hope that the end of Trump will come sooner rather than later. Although the Russia investigation provides some hope for an end to the Trump administration, it can’t happen soon enough.

Shame

Photo credit: Institute of Physics

It wasn’t unexpected. But it was deeply disturbing nonetheless. A New York Times Editorial called President Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord ‘stupid and reckless’; the nation’s dumbest action since starting the Iraq War. I would add the word ‘shameful’ to the list of adjectives.

The Paris Agreement was a triumph of the human condition and spirit. We human beings are facing the greatest threat to our existence since the possibility of global nuclear war, and prior to that, since we came out of caves for the first time. Global warming is something that we caused, and yet we have the knowledge and resources to correct it. The fix is entirely a matter of collective will.

That will is the only difficult part. But the hard part was already done. All America had to do was to stay the course. And that course was undoubtedly in the right direction. Trump has shamefully perpetuated the myth that climate change is a hoax; that this accord, and other regulations hurt the American economy and jobs. In fact, the exact opposite is true.

Paris wasn’t a panacea. It was merely a turn-around; the first step towards correcting our course. It was necessarily complicated, as any agreement among 195 nations would be. Only two countries, Syria and Nicaragua, failed to sign. Now we can add the United States of America to that shameful list.

Trump’s decision is blatantly political. Yes, it was a campaign promise. Trump has kept some, and he’s broken many. Never mind that many, though not all Republicans favored this direction, some even writing a letter to Trump to urge him to dump the accord. This was about appealing to his base. Steve Bannon, Vlad Putin, and many who voted for Trump in hopes that he would ‘put America first’, especially American jobs, will be happy. Human beings of the near future (read: our kids and grand-kids) who need to breathe the air, drink the water, and live off planet earth’s bounty, not so much.

In the near term, America’s already eroded world leadership is now much further diminished. Our economy, jobs, security and of course our environment will suffer.

We can only hope that Trump will be impeached sooner rather than later. His treason and obstruction of justice are coming to light more than ever. Even the Republican party, try as they might, will not be able to stop the carnage. The problem is that with this and other actions, he’s already done tremendous long-term damage to our environment. And he’s brought shame, more than ever before – and that’s saying something – on his, and our country.