Four More Years

Yes, not slipping over the fiscal edge in January is job one for our poor deadlocked democracy, but we can't afford four more years of yammering over health care, social issues, and economics. It's the environment, stupid! How many Super Storm Sandy's do you need before you believe we have messed up our world? The science for human induced climate change and general environmental degradation is overwhelming yet the party of angry white men and fat cats continue to obstruct change for their oil company masters while the party of everybody else panders to the self-interested needs of its multiple constituents.

This is the last four years where my selfish generation can do something to ease the burden of debt on our children and grandchildren, but it may also be the last four years where we can do something to stop catastrophic climate change. A truly progressive administration would realize that environmental issues are at the core of everything from improving public health (and cutting health care costs) to diplomacy-how can the emerging countries like China, India, and Brazil achieve lifestyles like ours without destroying the world? Answer: they can't. It would be wonderful if Mr. Obama would provide some leadership on these issues while the Republicans sort themselves out and see if they can cough up the hairball of men like Rush Limbaugh and Karl Rove. Sadly, I doubt both Mr. Obama's vision and the Republican's commitment to change a losing formula.

"A plague on both your houses" Shakespeare said referring to the Capulets and Montagues, but he could just as well have been talking about the House of Representatives and the Senate. With climate change the plague is likely to be Dengue Fever.