I recently came across a Jerry Falwell quote that left me seething. On the subject of global warming, he theorized that “The whole (global warming) thing is created to destroy America’s free enterprise system and our economic stability.” I am honestly so deeply troubled by this quote that I am almost at a loss for words. Why? It perfectly exemplifies an belief that many Americans share, the belief that global warming is not real.
On a similar note, a regular columnist of my school newspaper recently let viewers know what he thought about global climate change, writing, “The U.N. is behind this global scare tactic, they want to affect U.S. law and slow the world economy down, the Socialist agenda is plain to see.”
I simply cannot understand why the view that global climate change is a conspiracy is still being used to justify inaction, after countless studies and reports have been generated by well-qualified scientists and organizations. Most recently, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report explicitly stating that humans were to blame for global warming and global climate change. Co-author of the report, Dr. Susan Soloman states that "We can be very confident that the net effect of human activity since 1750 has been one of warming," as reported by the BBC.
Why are we still debating the very existence of global warming? There are several factors to blame. People who have special interests in keeping our global economy dependent on oil have succeeded in confusing the masses on this subject matter. Companies such as Exxon-Mobil actually commission scientists to collect data and write reports that contradict global warming. Public figures who are in no way qualified to make statements about global climate change (see above Jerry Falwell quote) are voicing opinions on the subject that are not founded in fact.
The United States is responsible for 30% of annual carbon dioxide emissions. If we don’t do something very soon to decrease this number, we begin to experience some of the more disastrous and large-scale effects of global warming.
Global climate change is a reality. It is a direct result of our actions. We need to stop debating the existence of climate change and accept that is happening. This is necessary to begin fixing the damage we have already caused and to minimize the impact that our future actions will have on the world’s global climate.
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