Reading time – 2:43; Viewing time – 3:50 . . .
I distinctly recall the day I first wondered about pollution.
I was a young kid in Chicago and the little family car was idling at the curb. I was curious about the exhaust curling from the exhaust pipe and then disappearing into the cool autumn air. It seemed like something fun to play with, so I started running my hands through the vapor. Dad quickly warned me away from it, telling me that it was poisonous and could hurt me. I found myself standing on the sidewalk a few feet away from the car, still looking at the exhaust and thought that if there were enough cars putting their exhaust into the air, we’d all be poisoned. Turns out I was right, although in more ways than I had imagined.
Los Angeles’ Smog Is At Its Worst Levels Since 2009
There were roughly half as many people on the planet back then and the amount of exhaust from all the cars was still a relatively small percentage of what makes up our atmosphere, so there wasn’t the overall poisonous effect I had imagined. Now, though, there are simply too many of us spewing too many things into the atmosphere for the system to tolerate it without significant impact. The poison I imagined back then is now connected to global warming.
One of the things we can do to ameliorate global warming is for there to be fewer of us – population reduction. Of course, that’s a tricky thing, but the numbers work, even if the required human behavior doesn’t.
Enormous Antarctica glacier calves, 2017
As difficult as it seems to be – especially for Congress – it’s actually easier to reduce our polluting and planet warming behavior. All it will take is for us to get our Congresspeople to stop selling out to big money interests. I’m working on that and have a plan to do more.
I’m delivering programs to educate and motivate We the People about the terrible harm that big money is doing to our politics, our democracy, our country and the entire planet. I present at no cost, so just get a group of people together and I’ll be there. And no, they don’t have to be tree-huggers or all Democrats, because this presentation and this issue are non-partisan – or perhaps bipartisan. I’ve presented to people from all over the right-left continuum and have never gotten push-back. Just tug on my sleeve via the Contact button on the top-right of this page and we’ll make something good happen.
The next thing I’m going to do is to monitor Congress for those who are climate warming deniers and who myopically only act in pursuit of short 
term gains that sacrifice all of us over the long term. Then I’m going to research the names of their children and send each of them a letter, within which will be a sealed envelope. The letter will instruct the children of our disaster deniers to give the sealed envelope to their own children when they turn 18 years of age. The letter to the grandchildren of our legislators will detail what their planet-compromising grandparent did. By the time of the opening of the letter, those grandchildren will have to deal with the ever more horrific catastrophes created by their own grandparents.
Members of Congress and President “Paris Climate Agreement Double-Crosser,” you better watch out, because I’m gonna tell on you.
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Ed. note: There is much in America that needs fixing and we are on a path to continually fail to make things better. It is my goal to make a difference – perhaps to be a catalyst for things to get better. That is the reason for these posts. To accomplish the goal requires reaching many thousands of people and a robust dialogue.
YOUR ACTION STEPS: Offer your comments below and pass this along to three people, encouraging them to subscribe and engage. Thanks! JA
Copyright 2024 by Jack Altschuler
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2 Responses to For the Congressional Grandchildren
Anastasia Gonzalez September 10, 2017
I am not a scholar or consider myself a smart, well educated person. However, when it comes to our great Earth, none of that matters except the passion one feels. I have that! Jack you write about when you were a kids and the exhaust coming from your little family car. Amazing! In the past decade I have become very aware of a similar thought. The congestion in our city with so many people and the garbage that is created. My own household garbage sometimes shocks me and then I think I am only ONE family!! Restaurants, schools, hospitals. I wonder where the garbage goes and when will we run out of room. I feel small and unable to help. Your dedication and your dialogue encourages me. I am a movie person and there are so many movies that have been made for ENTERTAINMENT!!! About the destruction of our Earth. Mad Max is a good example. It’s about how the Earth has soured and how those that survived have to survive at great cost. The writers of these types of movies have fantastic imaginations but IT IS REALLY HAPPENING!! Thank you, thank you! Jack for being a voice and for keeping this very real concern out in front. It cannot go away or be ignored. This is not happening to another country or another state or even to another family. It effects all of humanity. It scares me to think of the future and what that means for our grandchildren and what we will leave them! We have to act now!!!
Andrew Rowlas September 7, 2017
A new book (2107) The Ends of the World by Peter Brannen addresses the previous five major mass extinctions on our globe. He talks about how these occurred over time and how over time the earth recovered from them – hundreds of thousands to millions of years. In the past 2-3 centuries we have increasingly used fossil fuels and dumped into our ground, water and air pollutants that can cause another major crisis and extinction. It is a book worth reading
Jack is addressing a major issue of importance to our families.