We accept letters to the editor. Letters to the editor are opinions of the authors of the letter, not Decaturish.com. Everyone has an equal opportunity to submit a letter to the editor. So if you read something here and don’t like it, don’t jump on our case. Write a letter of your own. All letters must be signed and are typically between 500 to 800 words. We reserve the right to edit letters for length and content. We also reserve the right to publish longer letters if we need to. To send your letter to the editor, email it to [email protected].

Dear Decaturish,

Hello Earth Day readers. There are many competing perspectives on caring for our planet and its inhabitants, what I like to call “Earth Care.”

Conservatives dismiss climate change policies as unnecessary overspend. “Just plant a trillion trees!” Libertarians advocate for solarized independence without any government “interference.” Progressives vie for immediate carbon shutdowns. Liberals advocate for government funded clean energy research and subsidies.

In walks the radical middle proposal: increase the cost of fossil supplies annually, return the money EVENLY to every CITIZEN.

What happens next? Covid. War. Can we do it? Shift to clean energy and find ways to stop increasing greenhouse emissions. We read of glaciers melting. More sea rise than predicted. Rain bombs. Burnt orange moons from wildfires thousands of miles away. Hurricanes carrying water bombs and record wind speeds. Of a weakening polar vortex triggering unusual deep freezes. Longer droughts impacting distant peoples. Rising temperatures are baking Asia and melting the arctic.

Electric vehicles emerge on city streets. Solar panels cover more rooftops, but we hear “Drill, drill, drill!” in response to geopolitical dependence on fossils.

Airline industries seek fossil free fuel sources, but no replacements are immanent. Apocalyptic stories increase.

Have we failed? Will we learn? It’s Earth Day 2022. What kind of Earth we care for depends on enough of us willing to pay for the change and helping others afford it too.

It’s already too late to avert some climate change impacts, but will we avoid irreversible tipping points that trigger severe costs and loss of life? Perhaps, if we each decide to do something. Call Congress. Go solar!

Take action by visiting cclusa.org/action!

– Bob James

If you appreciate our work, please become a paying supporter. For as little as $3 a month, you can help us keep you in the loop about your community. To become a supporter, click here. 

Want Decaturish delivered to your inbox every day? Sign up for our free newsletter by clicking here.