Whether or not you believe Gore’s being handed the Nobel Peace Prize was deserved or not — why not though, at least he’s contributed to the global consciousness of a shared problem more than terrorists and dictators like Yassir Arafat and Mikhail Gorbachev — he has brought the issue to life in a way that just may be the only peaceful endeavor across the globe. Aside from raising the awareness of human impact on global warming he single-handedly seems to have mobilized GOP candidates to finally take a stance on the issue. The New York Times reported yesterday that “The debate among Republicans is largely not about whether people are warming the planet, but about how to deal with it.” Opinions ranged from actively seeking solutions with emission caps and higher fuel efficiency, John McCain, to Fred Thompson admitting that its a real problem but “let’s take a measured approach”. Then there are Romney and Giuliani trying to make global warming about national security and terrorists. Get off it Giuliani, we remember 9/11. And of course the evangelical GOP candidates Mike Huckabee and Sam Brownback trying to put a spiritual spin on CO2 emissions — WWJD with greenhouse gases?
Perhaps the GOP would be better served to listen to the people since 90% of us actually believe global warming is a serious issue. So serious, in fact, that online organizations like Pop!Tech have started a Pop!Tech Carbon Initiative that allows individuals to calculate their carbon footprints and then buy carbon offsets. The organization has indentified projects in places like Benin, Nicaragua and Brazil that allow individuals to “purchase carbon offsets from environmental projects that are also contributing to the social and economic development of the communities they serve.”
While I’m grateful that the conversation is now part of the collective consciousness and there are so many individuals and organizations seeking solutions to the complex problem of global warming, I can’t help but feel a bit like Dorothy in Oz. What’s next flying C02 monkeys? Better yet when can I buy my courage offsets so I can stomach the next year of political posturing on global warming? Where are those ruby CFLs when I need them?
