And to add insult to injury, our governor’s administration in Michigan just granted permits to Enbridge for a tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac - infrastructure whose purpose is to perpetuate the use of fossil fuels for another 99 years. She ignored the science, 70,000 public comments from her citizens, trod over indigenous treaty rights, went back on her own promise that helped get her elected, … either because she was bought off or she has higher political ambitions and this was the way to go not to ruffle major donors. It makes you sick, especially when we are already sick from the smoke from a burning planet.
Eloquently ranted! I feel the same. Looking at pics of northern Ontario ablaze reminds me of driving out west in 1988; my first year tree planting. I learned about the mountain pine beetle outbreak that summer…and the reasons this endemic beetle’s numbers exploded.
It was my first summer job in university…taking environmental studies…writing letters, occupying politician’s offices, blockading forestry roads, learning about Indigenous Peoples’ rights and history, joining more protests, “acting locally”, “being the change you want to see”, getting solar panels, eventually an EV, making the “lifestyle changes”, “being FOR things rather than always against…”, “investing for good”, etc. etc. And I can only conclude: it has made no notable dent in our trajectory. Now I and my co-strugglers are trying to stop a friggin’ GENOCIDE being live streamed every day and even that is considered by the average person “too political”. FFS, is ranting all we have left???
Anyone who cares about the planet is bitter…I am flat out angry. So I get your frustration and anger…you are not alone. I keep hoping we can turn it around when tRump is gone…🤞🏻
I have to be honest, my climate engagement has really collapsed over the last year, and I feel so much shame about it. But I'm just so tired, and angry, and heartbroken. I made so many calls to my state reps and to the governor in New York earlier this year, pleading to not roll back the climate law here. Hochul did it anyway, and the legislature let her do it. At a certain point I just don't know what to say to people who'd rather have money and power than, idk, a planet to live on. I know I'll get back to taking action soon - I want to - but it's a LOT right now. I want to spend my summer picking berries and going to the beach and whale-watching. Instead it's either too hot, too smoky, or both, to go outside. I would like to stop being robbed blind of my time, money, and beautiful home planet, thanks!
So maddening and so true about the specious and bad faith nature of the "debate" around the climate crisis. But maybe we will soon get to the point, as we have with public opinion around the utter brokenness of our health insurance system, where people's own visceral, daily experience overcomes the manipulation by oligarchs who think they can keep enriching themselves with impunity.
I'm in Michigan, too, like the last commenter, and have already written my "are you kidding me?" email to Whitmer and the head of EGLE. Meanwhile, our weekend "up north" with our kids has been ruined by air quality so bad we shouldn't be outside at all. Emily, we hear you, we're with you. Your bitterness is not inappropriate. I've been shouting through every megaphone I can (metaphorically), with a nice smile of course, and I'll keep shouting.
I had to leave Russia for France in 2022, and I thought, hey, this was never the plan, but I can make it work. But now I look at my toddler struggling with tropical freaking nights in Paris and I *know* I have to move again because summer heat here may well be unliveable by the time she’s a teenager. But what if there’s nowhere we can move? Tomorrow I turn as old as the IPCC (born in 1988) and I am so angry my teeth hurt.
I wish I could attach a picture here of the orange sun in Boston on Tuesday night while trying to enjoy the tall ships at SailBoston. It was shocking, yet sadly beautiful, and then Wednesday followed up with the whole city smelling like smoke. It's one of those wild moments when the climate havoc from thousands of miles away feels incredibly apparent.
Beautifully stated, and ranted...feel it TOO!!! This is all hitting me hard, the arguments that Canadians haven't 'managed' their forests enough....ARGH. The second-biggest landmass country on Earth and this BS?! I'm enraged. The David Suzuki quote hitting especially hard right now.
Excellent work... "what are we still waiting to learn?" nails it. But also, putting it in real terms like summer days stolen is the kind of "connecting the dots" that you/we have to do to get people motivated in actually trying to do things to slow and someday maybe reverse climate change. Keep it up!!
I’m already seeing “blame Canada”. I don’t think that the climate change deniers scolding us for poor forest management have any idea of the vastness, remoteness, and inaccessibility of our forests. Given that at least half of wildfires are started by lightning, Smokey the Bear, with his “only YOU can prevent forest fires”, has been proven wrong.
And to add insult to injury, our governor’s administration in Michigan just granted permits to Enbridge for a tunnel under the Straits of Mackinac - infrastructure whose purpose is to perpetuate the use of fossil fuels for another 99 years. She ignored the science, 70,000 public comments from her citizens, trod over indigenous treaty rights, went back on her own promise that helped get her elected, … either because she was bought off or she has higher political ambitions and this was the way to go not to ruffle major donors. It makes you sick, especially when we are already sick from the smoke from a burning planet.
Eloquently ranted! I feel the same. Looking at pics of northern Ontario ablaze reminds me of driving out west in 1988; my first year tree planting. I learned about the mountain pine beetle outbreak that summer…and the reasons this endemic beetle’s numbers exploded.
It was my first summer job in university…taking environmental studies…writing letters, occupying politician’s offices, blockading forestry roads, learning about Indigenous Peoples’ rights and history, joining more protests, “acting locally”, “being the change you want to see”, getting solar panels, eventually an EV, making the “lifestyle changes”, “being FOR things rather than always against…”, “investing for good”, etc. etc. And I can only conclude: it has made no notable dent in our trajectory. Now I and my co-strugglers are trying to stop a friggin’ GENOCIDE being live streamed every day and even that is considered by the average person “too political”. FFS, is ranting all we have left???
😤😤
Anyone who cares about the planet is bitter…I am flat out angry. So I get your frustration and anger…you are not alone. I keep hoping we can turn it around when tRump is gone…🤞🏻
I have to be honest, my climate engagement has really collapsed over the last year, and I feel so much shame about it. But I'm just so tired, and angry, and heartbroken. I made so many calls to my state reps and to the governor in New York earlier this year, pleading to not roll back the climate law here. Hochul did it anyway, and the legislature let her do it. At a certain point I just don't know what to say to people who'd rather have money and power than, idk, a planet to live on. I know I'll get back to taking action soon - I want to - but it's a LOT right now. I want to spend my summer picking berries and going to the beach and whale-watching. Instead it's either too hot, too smoky, or both, to go outside. I would like to stop being robbed blind of my time, money, and beautiful home planet, thanks!
So maddening and so true about the specious and bad faith nature of the "debate" around the climate crisis. But maybe we will soon get to the point, as we have with public opinion around the utter brokenness of our health insurance system, where people's own visceral, daily experience overcomes the manipulation by oligarchs who think they can keep enriching themselves with impunity.
I'm in Michigan, too, like the last commenter, and have already written my "are you kidding me?" email to Whitmer and the head of EGLE. Meanwhile, our weekend "up north" with our kids has been ruined by air quality so bad we shouldn't be outside at all. Emily, we hear you, we're with you. Your bitterness is not inappropriate. I've been shouting through every megaphone I can (metaphorically), with a nice smile of course, and I'll keep shouting.
I had to leave Russia for France in 2022, and I thought, hey, this was never the plan, but I can make it work. But now I look at my toddler struggling with tropical freaking nights in Paris and I *know* I have to move again because summer heat here may well be unliveable by the time she’s a teenager. But what if there’s nowhere we can move? Tomorrow I turn as old as the IPCC (born in 1988) and I am so angry my teeth hurt.
I wish I could attach a picture here of the orange sun in Boston on Tuesday night while trying to enjoy the tall ships at SailBoston. It was shocking, yet sadly beautiful, and then Wednesday followed up with the whole city smelling like smoke. It's one of those wild moments when the climate havoc from thousands of miles away feels incredibly apparent.
Beautifully stated, and ranted...feel it TOO!!! This is all hitting me hard, the arguments that Canadians haven't 'managed' their forests enough....ARGH. The second-biggest landmass country on Earth and this BS?! I'm enraged. The David Suzuki quote hitting especially hard right now.
Excellent work... "what are we still waiting to learn?" nails it. But also, putting it in real terms like summer days stolen is the kind of "connecting the dots" that you/we have to do to get people motivated in actually trying to do things to slow and someday maybe reverse climate change. Keep it up!!
I’m already seeing “blame Canada”. I don’t think that the climate change deniers scolding us for poor forest management have any idea of the vastness, remoteness, and inaccessibility of our forests. Given that at least half of wildfires are started by lightning, Smokey the Bear, with his “only YOU can prevent forest fires”, has been proven wrong.