Cape Karen
Just in time for this year's Earth Day celebration comes the news about how pollutants from airplane contrails, factory emissions, and the billions and billions of tiny carbon particles in the atmosphere have been causing a phenomena called "global dimming." Pollution's dimming of the sun's rays is now thought to have actually slowed down the effects of global warming. A careful review of this known, but misunderstood, phenomena is causing the world's leading scientists to re-evaluate what might happen if we actually continue to clean our dirty air.
(The big business lobbyists, those who have been fighting to extend the Clean Air Act timetable mandates, are jumping for joy at hearing this news!)
On the bright side, at least it has a name that will capture our President's attention: "Global Dimming? Oh! I know what that is! It's what happens to the globes in the chandelier in the Oval Office when I turn that little, white knob on the wall. Yeah, dimming. . .that's what happened the day after the keg party, when I flunked the science test. Okay, sure . . . I know all about global dimming."
The implication of this recent discovery is that the power of both particulate matter and greenhouse gases on the climate have been grossly underestimated. All of our traditional global climate models will have to be revised, and it will raise challenging new questions for our policy makers. For instance, will further reductions in particulate pollution, necessary to alleviate serious, deadly, and widespread respiratory illnesses, mean that we'll see more devastating effects of global warming in this century?
Basically, it seems that the 'dirty thermal shade' discovery has shown that if we do move forward and clean the air, removing the particles of crap that cover the earth and clog our lungs every day with invisible carcinogens, it will reduce the current 'protective' dimming effect. Then, the full strength of the sun's rays will be able to reach the earth's surface for the first time in decades. Like a bright, hot light being suddenly turned on full force, it will open the way to an even more rapid increase in surface warming than was previously predicted. The resulting climate changes will, therefore, be felt in as little as ten years ~ not hundreds of years from now.
I sure hope environmental science is a mandatory course of study in our schools, at every grade level, these days. After all, today's students will be tomorrow's adults who will inherit the mess we've made. It will be left up to them to figure out how to clean it up, or not. (It is believed that the increase of polluting smog, coming from developing countries like India and China, is what has been changing the climate over Africa during the last two decades, resulting in severe and long-lasting droughts.)
We are all connected by one sky, we all share the same sun and moon - and I think we need to remember that, at the highest level of our collective consciousness. And yet, our world leaders seem to be increasingly 'caught-up' in wars and rumors of wars. . . in how to obtain more oil profits and reduce their financial losses, in how fast can they spend our tax dollars wastefully, and in other such meaningless and utterly insane behaviors. Governmental priorities are so screwed up!
(Now, if women ruled the world. . . .)
If this recent global dimming discovery heats up as a topic of discussion, and the science is proven to be accurate, then the state of the environment will have to become THE primary political issue of the day. We really won't have a choice anymore. Just to survive, the world will have to become a friendlier neighborhood. We're all going to need to work together on this one. To continue ignoring what is happening 'out there' is not only immoral, it's just plain nuts! Dramatic climate changes are already happening, they'll continue to happen, and they'll affect all of us ~ sooner than later.
When will we wake up and smell the coffee?
For example, look at what has been happening in East Africa - millions and millions of innocent lives have been, and are being lost, due to mass starvation ~ caused by decades of severe drought, due to a drastic climate change. Suddenly, their spring monsoons with the life-giving rains just stopped coming. They no longer have any water for their lands, so they have been unable to grow any food. They are dying as we speak. On tonight's news they said that the United Nations can only provide them with 2 cups of water a day per person ~ and a minimum of 8 cups is needed for survival in the intense heat.
In two weeks . . .well. . . let's just say that in three weeks we won't have to help them anymore. That's how urgent their need is for immediate food and water. And, make no mistake about it, that same kind of climate change could also happen right here, and just as suddenly.
What have we been doing as a global community to help our starving brothers and sisters who are suffering and dying in East Africa? We've pretty much just been ignoring them for years, because their suffering doesn't directly affect or benefit our economy. Well, guess what? What goes around, comes around. We're the richest and most powerful country in the world, we have the means and the power to help them, (and much more so, if we'd get the heck out of Iraq) and yet, we continue to just turn away from this devastating humanitarian crisis? We're much more concerned with all the appointment changes on the Hill, meeting with the President of China, and other 'important political stuff.'
Yup. What goes around, will come around. . . .
April 7, 2006 - USA Today
Changing Climate Leaves Millions to Starve in East Africa:
"The warning signs have been clear, but yet again they have fallen on deaf ears. We need dramatic action now, before it is too late for thousands of east African children. Nowhere else on earth is so much at stake as in Africa, where three million people are relying on aid, aid that is not forthcoming, after a succession of failed harvests."
Imagine if that headline read: "Changing Climate Leaves Millions to Starve in the United States." Would the worldwide "humanitarian response" be any different if the tables were suddenly turned? What if climate changes began to adversely affect 'our' crops, and what if those were 'our' children, starving to death on a parched and barren landscape? Hello! They are our children, and we are partaking in a terrible neglect. We're exhibiting a sub-human indifference by ignoring our fellow human beings during this time of their desperate need ~ and I don't think the Universe will be blessing us for doing that.
Yes. . . I whole-heartedly pray that the world's educated children will be up to the many challenges that are ahead of them on this dimmed blue planet of ours. But, if we don't wake up and get our environmental act together. . . and real soon. . . then their future probably won't be a very pretty sight either.
Happy Earth Day ~ April 22, 2006
Posted by Karen at April 19, 2006 11:51 AM