The War & Global Warming

My Newsletter article this week:

There are two great tragedies related to the war in Iraq. The first is the war itself with all of its human suffering and its mind-boggling drain on our nation's resources. Just to focus on the financial aspect, I think it is impossible to fully grasp its impact because the numbers are so huge. As an example this morning in the Star Tribune Senator Joe Biden had an editorial with suggestions about how we should respond to events in Pakistan. Among his suggestions was an infusion of foreign aid to the tune of $1.5 billion a year. An enormous sum of money, he acknowledges, but then he reminds us that this is what we are spending in Iraq every week. $1.5 billion a week. How is that possible?

The war is such a tragedy and travesty at so many levels. One of those levels is the way it is distracting us from addressing what is a real threat to the future of our planet: global warming. In my recent issue of Audubon Magazine, there is a distressing story about the rapid melting of the Arctic ice shield and the unfolding tragedy there as the food chain begins to collapse. What is already happening there could be a harbinger of what to expect around the globe. This is where we need to be spending our nation's vast resources of brain power and wealth.

There is plenty of reason to be down about the state of our country and world right now. We have big problems. And yet I remain hopeful. For one thing, I am hopeful that the political climate and direction of our country will soon change. Unfortunately, there is still plenty of time for more damage to be done, but the end-game is in sight for what I believe to be the worst political leadership in the history of our country.

But I am also hopeful because as threatening as global warming is to the future of life on our planet, there are very simple and concrete things we can do to address this issue. This is one of those problems that you and I can do something about today. In that same issue of Audubon Magazine there is, for instance, a reminder that changing the light bulbs we burn in our homes is the simplest and single-most important action we can take to make an immediate difference in global warming.

One incandescent light bulb requires 82 pounds of coal to keep it lit over its lifespan. One fluorescent bulb burns a tenth as much coal. According to the article "if every household replaced three 60-watt incandescent bulbs with CFLs, the nation would reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions by an amount equivalent to taking 3.5 million cars off the highways."

I can do that, and so can you. We can also be mindful of our energy use in countless other ways. Of course, we are going to need real political leadership here too. But we don't have to wait for it to come. Everyone of us can respond today to what will likely be the biggest challenge our children will face during their lifetimes. We can begin making a difference for them right now.