On April 22nd thousands of likeminded people will take to the streets in a March for Science.
When I first learned of the event I must admit I was perplexed and more than a little saddened.
Have we regressed in our polarized discourse to the extent that we must engage in public advocacy for science? I mean in my view public advocacy for science is like publically advocating for oxygen. The indispensable need for both seems self-evident.
I had to remind myself that our newly elected president has declared war on science. He has described global warming as a “hoax” and a “Chinese plot” and staffed his administration with people who share his views.
Exploration, discovery, innovation…hypotheses tested and challenged…reformatted by scientific research…advanced by an entrepreneurial spirit. This is who we are as a society. These concepts are essential components of our nation’s DNA. To deny science is to deny who we are.
As our society advances through exploration and discovery our progress often results in by-products that can bring harm to our world. Climate change, global warming, rising sea levels are all proven phenomena. We can debate whether or not these phenomena are manmade though the scientific evidence is overwhelming. Even if you hold to the theory that man cannot significantly alter these alarming phenomena, shouldn’t we take whatever steps we can to assure that we are not contributing to the decline?
Over the last 25 years China has consistently led the world in pre-mature deaths from ozone air pollution; technically known as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Google Beijing, China and read the stories about the pollution in the weeks preceding the 2008 Olympics and you can see why. The Chinese government shut down factories and prohibited citizens from driving their cars in hopes that Mother Nature would clear out the choking pollution and prevent an international embarrassment. Once the Olympics ended life in Beijing returned to its old ways.
In 2015 China relinquished its title as world leader in pre-mature deaths from ozone pollution to India. According to the State of Global Air Report released in February 2017, India recorded 1.1 million premature ozone related deaths.
Does the United States really want to be a contender in that race?
Most of us believe that we should take measures to preserve our planet. The watchdog that the United States has assigned that task is the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA stands as the indispensable guardian of our natural resources against those who would prioritize personal profit over the general good.
In recent weeks we have seen the new administration take bold steps to dismantle the effectiveness of the EPA.
President Trump’s new EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt, is an avowed critic of the EPA. In his former life as Oklahoma’s attorney-general, Pruitt filed 13 lawsuits against the EPA on behalf of the oil and gas industry. Recently released emails under the Freedom of Information Act show Pruitt cutting and pasting talking points suggested by fossil fuel lobbyists into his official correspondence. Talk about getting cozy with special interest groups!
Pruitt has made no secret of his desire to dismantle the EPA and has referred to himself on social media as: “a leading advocate against the EPA’s activist agenda.” If Mr. Pruitt has his way the EPA will cease to exist.
During the 2016 presidential campaign candidate Donald Trump promised to bring back the coal industry and repeal energy and environmental regulations that in his view were harmful to economic growth.
In his first days as president, Trump took steps to fulfill that promise; signing a resolution that rolled back Obama administration rules prohibiting the coal industry from dumping processing waste into nearby streams. Trump promised that this would be the first of many actions that he will take to unwind the previous administrations climate change policies. Trump’s proposed budget will gut EPA funding.
This particular signing ceremony was staged against a backdrop of several enthusiastically applauding coal miners. I assume that many of them liked to hunt and fish. I wondered how they will feel when their favorite fishing spot is polluted and their hunting grounds are cleared off to make way for fossil fuel excavation.
We live in a time when “alternative facts” are preached as gospel and fantasy is proffered as reality. A time when the truth is whatever is politically or economically expedient. We cannot allow this alternate universe to cloud our vision of what we know to be true.
Science is who we are. Marching for science is marching for the truth.
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