WARNING! This post is long and boring. Do not read this post unless you have insomnia.
I recall reading the book An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore many years ago. It was one of the few books that I have ever purchased in hard cover when it first came out. I felt excited and thrilled about finally finding a book that could explain the issue of global warming in layman's terms.
To my horror, the book sucked. It looked more like pseudoscience than actual science. Thus, I believed the book could do more to harm the environment than actually help the environment. We have countless environmental problems in addition to global warming. When we focus so heavily on global warming, we risk ignoring the other environmental problems.
I would like to look at three obvious micro-ecological problems instead of one macro-ecological problem of global warming.
First, we have lots of hard working manual laborers who just want to get the job done in a fast and efficient manner. Mechanics, exterminators, dry cleaners, and janitors work with toxic chemicals on a daily basis. I would really like to see these hard working individuals slow down and avoid making physical contact with these chemicals. They have families at home who love them and do not want to see them dead from cancer.
Second, when I make my periodic moves across town, I like to hire movers to do all the heavy lifting. I always give them my "speech" before they move. It is as follows:
"I am not asking you to get the job done quickly. I am asking you to get the job done without hurting yourself. You are getting paid by me by the hour. So please take your time. The tip will be the same either way."
Sure enough, they always take the shortcuts. Sure enough, they almost always seem to damage some part of their bodies. One guy twisted his ankle. Another guy looked like he strained his back. I know lots of these guys will eventually wind up in emergency rooms. If someone needs a $50,000 ankle surgery, there is going to be an environmental consequence. We will need to use precious natural resources and toxic chemicals to fix the ankle.
Third, even a factory farmer is going to experience health risks. Working in ammonia filled animal sheds can not be healthy. Working ankle deep in poop must present a health risk to the farmer. Animal farming is a hard dangerous job. There is no way around it.
The above micro-ecological problems are painfully obvious. The macro-ecological problem of global warming is an abstraction.
Quite frankly, I have seen so many people on both sides of the argument massage the statistics to their favor. There is huge bucks in the fossil fuel energy market. There is also big buck in alternative fuels. There are also huge research grants for investigating the impact of environmental warming. So no matter how you cut it, somebody has a financial interest in protecting the environment from global warming and somebody else has a financial interest in minimizing the existence of global warming.
Yet, most of the people who claim to have a concern about the possibility global warming seem to do nothing about it. I am a classic example of this problem. It could be 110 degrees outside in an Arizona summer. But, I assure you that it will be no warmer than 75 degree in my apartment. It might be 40 degrees outside in the winter. But, I assure you that it will be no cooler than 75 degrees inside during the winter.
In conclusion, the potential problem of global warming starts with me. I am the environmental problem. I need to change my behaviors. After cleaning up my act, I should write a letter to my congressman.
--- I am willing to bet I get zero likes for this post. But, that is a reflection on me and not you. ---
I recall reading the book An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore many years ago. It was one of the few books that I have ever purchased in hard cover when it first came out. I felt excited and thrilled about finally finding a book that could explain the issue of global warming in layman's terms.
To my horror, the book sucked. It looked more like pseudoscience than actual science. Thus, I believed the book could do more to harm the environment than actually help the environment. We have countless environmental problems in addition to global warming. When we focus so heavily on global warming, we risk ignoring the other environmental problems.
I would like to look at three obvious micro-ecological problems instead of one macro-ecological problem of global warming.
First, we have lots of hard working manual laborers who just want to get the job done in a fast and efficient manner. Mechanics, exterminators, dry cleaners, and janitors work with toxic chemicals on a daily basis. I would really like to see these hard working individuals slow down and avoid making physical contact with these chemicals. They have families at home who love them and do not want to see them dead from cancer.
Second, when I make my periodic moves across town, I like to hire movers to do all the heavy lifting. I always give them my "speech" before they move. It is as follows:
"I am not asking you to get the job done quickly. I am asking you to get the job done without hurting yourself. You are getting paid by me by the hour. So please take your time. The tip will be the same either way."
Sure enough, they always take the shortcuts. Sure enough, they almost always seem to damage some part of their bodies. One guy twisted his ankle. Another guy looked like he strained his back. I know lots of these guys will eventually wind up in emergency rooms. If someone needs a $50,000 ankle surgery, there is going to be an environmental consequence. We will need to use precious natural resources and toxic chemicals to fix the ankle.
Third, even a factory farmer is going to experience health risks. Working in ammonia filled animal sheds can not be healthy. Working ankle deep in poop must present a health risk to the farmer. Animal farming is a hard dangerous job. There is no way around it.
The above micro-ecological problems are painfully obvious. The macro-ecological problem of global warming is an abstraction.
Quite frankly, I have seen so many people on both sides of the argument massage the statistics to their favor. There is huge bucks in the fossil fuel energy market. There is also big buck in alternative fuels. There are also huge research grants for investigating the impact of environmental warming. So no matter how you cut it, somebody has a financial interest in protecting the environment from global warming and somebody else has a financial interest in minimizing the existence of global warming.
Yet, most of the people who claim to have a concern about the possibility global warming seem to do nothing about it. I am a classic example of this problem. It could be 110 degrees outside in an Arizona summer. But, I assure you that it will be no warmer than 75 degree in my apartment. It might be 40 degrees outside in the winter. But, I assure you that it will be no cooler than 75 degrees inside during the winter.
In conclusion, the potential problem of global warming starts with me. I am the environmental problem. I need to change my behaviors. After cleaning up my act, I should write a letter to my congressman.
--- I am willing to bet I get zero likes for this post. But, that is a reflection on me and not you. ---
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