Dear Mr. President,
Congratulations
on your re-election. Now, let me introduce you to the constituents you – and
the Republican opposition – will have to answer to before you answer to anyone
else.
Their
names are Celia Rizzo, Laura Aptheker-Cassels and Rose Driscoll. I met them
four years ago, when they were 7th graders at Holmes Junior High in
Davis. They were on a field trip to the Chabot Space & Science Center in
Oakland and having the time of their lives.
Celia
loved the star show at the Ask Jeeves Planetarium. Laura loved the simulated
space shuttle mission in the Challenger Learning Center. And Rose was
fascinated by the space toilet from the Mir Space Station.
But
their favorite exhibit by far was a teeny little display tucked away in the
corner. It was about solar energy.
"All
our friends are freaked out about global warming, but our parents' generation
aren't," Rose explained. "By the time it becomes a real problem,
they'll all be gone. We're the ones who are going to have to deal with it."
Well,
her timetable was a bit optimistic. Global warning is already a real problem
only four years later, as Hurricane Sandy demonstrated. But her basic complaint
– that we grownups are still making like ostriches – is as valid as ever.
Mr.
President, neither you nor Gov. Romney uttered a peep about it during the
campaign. Not exactly profiles in courage.
But
now that you've got the job for another four years, it's your duty to put the
issue front and center in the national dialog.
Yes,
I know your plate is already full. There's the so-called "fiscal
cliff" coming up at the end of the year, plus immigration reform and
finding replacements for Hillary Clinton at State, Tim Geithner at Treasury and
David Petraeus at CIA.
But
this is one can that can't be kicked down the road any longer. Every year, more
and more fossil fuels – which increase the amount of carbon dioxide – are being
pumped into the atmosphere. And every year, more and more trees - which reduce
carbon dioxide – are being cut down. The arithmetic is inevitable.
And
make no mistake: Only we can take the lead on this for the simple reason that
we - along with the Europeans – have been the ones who have contributed most to
the problem.
Now
that formerly underdeveloped countries – like China, India and Brazil – are
becoming industrial giants, it's only natural that they want to claim a piece
of the pie, too.
It's
going to be hard to convince them not to behave as badly as we did for the last
150 years. And the only way we can is to lead by example, which means being the
first one to make the necessary sacrifices.
That's
going to be a tough proposition to sell to the country, and it won't come about
overnight. So you'd better get this conversation started ASAP.
I
won't be here when the crunch comes, Mr. President, and probably neither will
you. But Celia, Laura and Rose will.
They
weren't eligible to vote this time because they're only 16. But they will be
eligible in 2016. And if we grownups haven't cleaned up our act and embarked on
serious action by then, they won't be in a very forgiving mood.
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