Today I watched a film released three years ago entitled "The Age of Stupid". It was a documentary that pretended to look back at our current time from the year 2055 after climate change had fully accelerated and the massive upheavals that are predicted had taken place. Though it is 2011, the 2008 flick really hit home about how man-made global warming/climate change is happening and that now is the time for action. Their website is an ongoing production dedicated to that idea - we can, we must, change the course we are on.
There are people, and even businesses, that are not waiting for someone to make the first move when it comes to change. Over on treehugger.com, a post about how one of the production plants of the potato chip giant Frito-Lay is quite near to being off the grid and powered solely by renewable, clean energy methods. This is a heartening report to read. A major company, regardless of whether or not you like or agree with their product, has taken the initiative to start going green in amazing ways. I encourage them to get all of their plants converted in a similar manner. The more we have big production companies doing this, the less impact we have on the environment. The company is showing itself to be a leader instead of a follower of the "don't-rock-the-boat" trend of most corporations.
As great as that news is, and hopefully more is to come, there needs to be a fundamental change made elsewhere. That change, that difference, can only be made in the halls of the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. and reflected in the state governments. The change of which I speak is to the current tax code/budget policy and to the nation's energy policy. A few days ago, enviroblog.org posted a request as to what the super committee commissioned to decide how to get our country's deficit woes in control should do. The post pleaded with the committee to not cut programs and tax breaks to environment related issues. These items have come under the most attack in recent months as the Tea Party and the Republicans look to free themselves of these "inconvenient" regulations and programs.
The article goes one step further and requests that the committee actually do the hardest thing, which is very much the right thing, by ending the tax breaks and handouts to programs and corporations that are not beneficial to the environment. We need to cut the link between the government and the fossil fuel companies of oil, gas, coal, and other mining industries. We need to stop the beast dead in its tracks. Taxing it like the rest of American businesses, or even harsher, will start to reign in this monster industry - and maybe even get it thinking about investing in clean, renewable energy sources.
The fight against man-made climate change and destruction of the environment is moved along by individuals and businesses who get reality and are dedicated to making a difference. It will be slow, and it will be very hard, until our nation's government decides it too wants to make a difference and bring some good tidings to the Earth. We must all decide to make a difference in the best way we can, but we must also get our government to hear our voices and realize that the future generations of the human race are the majority and they are demanding cleaner air, cleaner water, and a much more stable climate than we are currently giving to them. Make a change, make a difference!
There are people, and even businesses, that are not waiting for someone to make the first move when it comes to change. Over on treehugger.com, a post about how one of the production plants of the potato chip giant Frito-Lay is quite near to being off the grid and powered solely by renewable, clean energy methods. This is a heartening report to read. A major company, regardless of whether or not you like or agree with their product, has taken the initiative to start going green in amazing ways. I encourage them to get all of their plants converted in a similar manner. The more we have big production companies doing this, the less impact we have on the environment. The company is showing itself to be a leader instead of a follower of the "don't-rock-the-boat" trend of most corporations.
As great as that news is, and hopefully more is to come, there needs to be a fundamental change made elsewhere. That change, that difference, can only be made in the halls of the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. and reflected in the state governments. The change of which I speak is to the current tax code/budget policy and to the nation's energy policy. A few days ago, enviroblog.org posted a request as to what the super committee commissioned to decide how to get our country's deficit woes in control should do. The post pleaded with the committee to not cut programs and tax breaks to environment related issues. These items have come under the most attack in recent months as the Tea Party and the Republicans look to free themselves of these "inconvenient" regulations and programs.
The article goes one step further and requests that the committee actually do the hardest thing, which is very much the right thing, by ending the tax breaks and handouts to programs and corporations that are not beneficial to the environment. We need to cut the link between the government and the fossil fuel companies of oil, gas, coal, and other mining industries. We need to stop the beast dead in its tracks. Taxing it like the rest of American businesses, or even harsher, will start to reign in this monster industry - and maybe even get it thinking about investing in clean, renewable energy sources.
The fight against man-made climate change and destruction of the environment is moved along by individuals and businesses who get reality and are dedicated to making a difference. It will be slow, and it will be very hard, until our nation's government decides it too wants to make a difference and bring some good tidings to the Earth. We must all decide to make a difference in the best way we can, but we must also get our government to hear our voices and realize that the future generations of the human race are the majority and they are demanding cleaner air, cleaner water, and a much more stable climate than we are currently giving to them. Make a change, make a difference!
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