Life in the Sub-Tropics
Yes, as the effects of climate change sweep across the country, all of a sudden, here in South Arkansas, we find ourselves liing in a semi-tropical setting. I know that’s a little hard to accept, but it’s true, and the unusual weather we’re currently having is a forerunner of things to come. We’re shaking our heads at our July and August weather, but strange weather is a key ingredient of climate change. Record rains here in July and August, heat waves in Oregon, and tornadoes in Michigan are finally getting our attention. The cities of Houston, New Orleans, and the entire southern Gulf Coast are getting weather typical to Central America, and they are truly in the tropics. Last year Houston had two 500 year rains and Houston and New Orleans have popped up on National news about once a week this year because of flooding. The recent mega storm, Harvey, which created such havoc in Texas and Louisiana, is just the first of what will be numerous hurricanes to come out of the warm Gulf of Mexico.
Will there one day not be a New Orleans? The city is 10 feet below sea level right now, and it’s all they can do to pump out a heavy rain. The ice shield in Greenland, which is rapidly melting, will cause sea level to rise by a minimum of two feet, and low lying coastal cities will be unlivable in twenty-five years unless climate change is reversed. To make things even worse, most of the coastal cities in Texas suffer from the lack of adequate drainage from even small rains by depending on water just running off into ditches. We lived in South Texas for around twelve years, and most of the small and medium size towns have no underground storm drainage at all, so a five to fifteen inch rain just piles up and night after night we watch TV and see cars float down the street. Yes, we’re finding climate change isn’t as slow as a kid’s Christmas in coming. It’s here and more is on the way.
A recent, unreleased (leaked to the New York Times) government study by 15 departments concluded climate change caused by global warming is an absolute fact, and it is caused by humans. Yep, you can deny it until you are blue in the face, but climate change caused by worldwide industrial expansion is the cause. Of course, the die-hard deniers firmly refute climate change and the environmental controls that come along with trying to reverse it. Want a quick answer? Okay. “It’s a matter of dollars!” Of course, the link between the deniers of climate change are the same ones who say the hog farm on the Buffalo National River’s watershed won’t harm the river. Here’s a couple of comments from a good friend, in a conversation about the Buffalo National River and climate change: “I don’t believe the hog farm will harm the Buffalo National River” And later in the conversation.”I think we do have climate change, but I don’t think it’s caused by humans.” My friend is a successful businessman and a graduate of, The University with a degree in business. Wow, how about that for dodging the blame? Actually, instead of letting overwhelming scientific knowledge guide his reasoning, he lets the dogma of—simply put—and he would never agree to this statement”We can’t let anything get in the way of making a dollar.” Those folks put the unfettered goal to make money in front of mentally deficient kids whose mothers ate too much mercury contaminated fish, and the health of the Buffalo National River. But what really gets me is the unyielding reasoning. Of course, it’s being politically correct. It sad to say, but we live in an era where blind dogma prevails over reason, and a dollar of profit today is preferred over a degraded quality of lives for our grandchildren.
Let me make it very clear. If you stand against controlling climate change by slowing global warming and believe the EPA shouldn’t make regulations to protect the environment, then you are for decreased intelligent in the thousands of babies who will be born after their mothers eat contaminated fish, and if you stand with the climate change deniers who are dooming our grandchildren to an increasing substandard environment, and you are putting the goal to make money over the health of your grandchildren, and if you deny the hog farm will pollute the Buffalo National River, you are for making it a hog farm sewer and depriving our grandkids of a precious heritage.
Our quality of life shouldn’t be a political issue, but regrettably it is, but it hasn’t always been that way. Many of the positive environmental regulations and even creating the EPA were formulated by Republicans. Of all things, protecting our environment should be bi-patrician and on the top of everybody’s list. So stop embarrassing yourself by being in the worldwide 1 percent of the scientific community who says climate change is not happening. Yes, it’s happening and greed for the all-mighty dollar is the root of this evil.
But what I really can’t get over is the rush to dismantle the EPA and reverse the environment gains that have been made over the past two decades. You would think we are in the throes of a major depression, and have a business climate that needs extra incentives. To the contrary; unemployment is at an all-time low, company profits are the best ever, and the citizens of our country have the highest standard of living that we have ever enjoyed.