How Should We Deal with the Potential Threat of Global Warming?
11/30/2009 — George Lipper, Development Capital Networks
To Be or Not to Be! Shakespeare had it easy.
I don’t recall ever encountering a more conflicted issue than that of global warming or not.
Here we are, priming for next week's global conference in Copenhagen during which we, the 6 billion citizens of the third orb from a young sun, will attempt to agree on whether we're jeopardizing the well-being and perhaps even existence of future generations. And yet there are so many conflicting objectives, it'salmost overwhelming. Take the spat that broke out last week over e-mails exchanged among global climate change researchers, which has now evoloved into a side issue to consider ahead of the main problem.
Trapped by polarizing and highly partisan issues of not only global warming or exaggerated research, but also current and future economies of nations, energy resources and alternatives, the needs of population growth, we face a dizzying divide.
While polls show that most Americans still concur with research suggesting that warming not only exists but represents a threat to the future, the numbers have been declining, even as concern for our economic problems increases. The scientific community itself is less than unanimous -- if not on warming, then on whether human behavior is the cause.
During the past few weeks, LCW has been trying to share diverse viewpoints and data. But the information merry-go-round just keeps going faster. It seems increasingly unlikely that we (the global "we") will come away from Copenhagen with more than another agreement to meet again next decade.
Conference delegates at the partisan extremes -- winning being more important than listening -- will shout, berate and excoriate among countries as well as within, even as examples of people in trouble abound.
As I worry that we may take too long to ascertain a course of action -- to the point where time no longer permits next generations to implement a solution -- you can be sure that I'll be closely watching next week's conference.