To see damage done

Coralie Koonce, along with a whole host of other informed letter-writers recently, has weighed in on global climate change. They’ve documented the science of the issue, but perhaps there is a better way for them to make their points.

I suggest that we—along with the obvious majority of scientists and informed governments all over the world—take up a collection to send the climate deniers, most especially the ones in Congress, on an eye-opening vacation to see the planet’s degradation they so blatantly ignore. We can start with the Mid-Atlantic states of the U.S. so homeowners in the Chesapeake Bay area can school them about sea-level rise. A trip to Glacier National Park to see the 30 dwindling former ice giants that remain of the original 150 might jolt a few. Then, for the literary-minded, perhaps a Hemingway-inspired trip to the fabled “Snows of Kilimanjaro” might make an impression—if they can find any of the white stuff. Right after that, we can whisk them off to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef so they can see for themselves the bleaching of the coral beds which—by the way—are living systems. A plane ride over drought-ridden farmlands right back here on their home turf might be a great way to end their tour.

We can pretend not to see the damage we’ve done, but don’t we owe it to our kids to at least peek under the blindfold? LINDA A. FARRELL Bella Vista