The Washington Post By Bill McKibben, Published: May 23
Caution: It is vitally important not to make connections. When you see pictures of rubble like this week’s shots from Joplin, Mo., you should not wonder: Is this somehow related to the tornado outbreak three weeks ago in Tuscaloosa, Ala., or the enormous outbreak a couple of weeks before that (which, together, comprised the most active April for tornadoes in U.S. history). No, that doesn’t mean a thing.
It is far better to think of these as isolated, unpredictable, discrete events. It is not advisable to try to connect them in your mind with, say, the fires burning across Texas — fires that have burned more of America at this point this year than any wildfires have in previous years. Texas, and adjoining parts of Oklahoma and New Mexico, are drier than they’ve ever been — the drought is worse than that of the Dust Bowl. But do not wonder if they’re somehow connected.
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Yikes. That sure does don paint a pretty picture. But no need to worry! The government knows what its doing and will take care of everything! Really!
I Love the humor in this article! This author seems to really have hit the proverbial nail on the head! 🙂 Nah! I think I’ll Trust the weather any day before I would Trust the government!!! 😉
“It’s very important to stay calm. If you got upset about any of this, you might forget how important it is not to disrupt the record profits of our fossil fuel companies.”
Great awareness/article Mia – Thanks! Also, as you and Johannes see the government’s role in special interests in what the public is lead to believe ..instead of our health, environment .. I found another article that pointed out the government funds that are going to help the victims of the tornadoes are coming directly out of the funds that were set aside for environmental projects that cut down our dependency on fossil fuels.. I found that interesting! ~
An excerpt from the AP/Huffinton Post article dated 5/24/2011 – “The disaster aid package would be financed by a $1.5 billion cut from a loan program to encourage the production of fuel-efficient vehicles. That means the new spending wouldn’t add to out-of-control budget deficits.”
hmmm ~
Thanks, Coralina. Yes, I read that article and raised my eyebrows, too. It would appear that the government is more interested in money and oil production than they are in the world around them. As is mentioned in the Post article, extreme weather is happening all around the globe. Super storms, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, droughts…….they are happening in record numbers and with record intensity. Yet, our government pays no attention to any of it. That is just about as naive as a child who thinks that a orange juice comes from a carton in the store, rather than from an orange that grew on a tree. They seem to just not get it.
However, I think the government really does get it. I think they just don’t want the rest of us to get it, so they downplay all of it. Yet, the storms keep coming, the floods are historic, as are the droughts. The earthquakes are coming more frequently and with growing strength. The volcanoes are complaining more loudly and more often, even Yellowstone has been moving and shifting increasingly over the past several years. Add the fact that the magnetic north pole is moving toward Russia at a rate of about 40 miles a year, and the picture does get interesting!
The human hand in Mother Earth’s cycles and processes are pushing her to the limit. Just like a rubber band that is stretched to its limits, all it takes is a little more pressure and it will break. Naturally, when it does, it snaps the hand that broke it. I think Mother Earth is going to break if human hands keep pressuring her. And, when she does, she will no doubt snap some human hands in the process.
The government can’t change the world we live in…………but we can. 🙂
You know, I just have to make one more comment on this article and the subject of extreme weather and the government’s continued push for fossil fuels…………….
Right now we are experiencing historic flooding throughout Montana and Wyoming – where I live. In the space of three days, we have gotten up to 10 inches of rain in some areas of Montana. There are towns flooded, others isolated by floodwaters, roads and bridges washed out, people are in shelters, even the trains are shut down in some areas, as well as miles and miles of Interstates. In both Montana and Wyoming there have been mudslides and landslides. The farmers have lost all their seeds recently planted. Some people have lost everything they have owned. Tragically, we have lost two lives in this flooding. And, there is more on the way as our mountains are carrying a snowpack of more than 200% or normal – and the snow hasn’t yet begun to melt. Predictions are calling for more historic flooding of these already beleaguered areas. As the waters continue downstream, more communities will be flooded out and farmlands washed clean.
Yet, the Obama administration has just “cleared the way” for 758,000 tons of coal to be extracted from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming. We have heard talk of opening more Wyoming wilderness up to oil production. Wyoming has just joined Utah and Alaska in a lawsuit to stop the Obama administration from using “executive privileges” to claim hundreds of thousands of acres of land – some of which is already in private ownership – as wilderness. Why would they do this? If we take a look at what is under the ground in these proposed wilderness areas, we will find oil, natural gas, coal, and water.
When will it end? Perhaps more importantly we should ask if this is truly just greed behind the insatiable lust for fossil fuels and control of the people, the land, the water, and so on. It’s something to think about.
Please be safe and sorry to hear of the flooding in your state, Mia ~ Just hope that more people become aware of how government policies directly affect our environment and contribute to the great climate changes .. a chain reaction of events ~
Thank you for your compassion, Coralina. I also hope that people become more aware of the government/environment connection – and sooner than later!