It's gettin' hot in here...

When is the US going to start considering global warming a serious threat to humanity? Bush seems to understand the necessity to stem the spread of AIDS but his administration has only just admitted the Greenhouse Effect is real. I realize that there are many potential cataclysmic events. The eruption of super volcano, like Yellowstone; a collision with a large meteorite or comet; a massive earthquake in Tokyo; a new viral pandemic. These are all real possibilities in our lifetime that are bound to chance. The only inevitable cataclysmic event that we can prevent is the Greenhouse Effect.

The US is currently responsible for one third of the worlds carbon emissions. Since ratification of the Kyoto Treaty requires countries that produce 55% of carbon emissions to come into force, it is impossible to ratify without the support of either the US or Russia. What would happen if the Kyoto Treaty was ratified? Would we all have to ride around on bicycles and go without heat on cold winter nights? No. It calls for a reduction of about 5% over 10 years. It really isn't much, unless of course all your buddies own energy companies and you don't want them to lose 5% of their billions of dollars in profits.

It's true that the greenhouse effect won't lead to the end of the planet, but it is true over the next couple of hundred years if we don't do something to curb emissions this won't be a planet humans can live on, unless of course you have gills.