Gore's new presentation on global warming

This is a half-hour presentation given by Al Gore in February about global warming, and I found it very informative.

You really have to tip your hat to Gore - he doesn't appear to be resting on his laurels or accomplishments - not by a long shot. He's taken the smears and the attacks by the political right and global warming deniers, and he remains determined to do something about what he calls "the global climate crisis." I firmly believe he's right, too; it is a climate crisis, but the problem is getting greedy, selfish people who only care about their generation and their way of life to take steps to insure a better future for successive generations.

Gore has it right, too - as Ghandi so famously said, we must "be the change we wish to see in the world," and a big part of that is changing the laws in America. There is almost a disincentive for people to invest in alternative energy sources such as solar, wind and plug-in hybrids, and the next president must change that. It should be noted that McCain is opposed to subsidies for these very types of energy sources, according to the latest issue of Newsweek. Outrageous. We can, we must and we will end subsidies to Big Oil and turn over those subsidies and incentives to solar power and other clean, zero-emission technologies.

I also took note of Gore's mention of what he has done in and around his home to reduce his carbon footprint. I still seethe at the media coverage he received over his electric bill, less than 24 hours after his movie, An Inconvenient Truth won two Oscars. A right-wing smear campaign, financed by the Republican Party, did all it could to make Gore's electricity bill public in an asinine, transparent attempt to embarrass him. My favorite line was the one echoed over and over and over again by the likes of Hannity, Limbaugh and Coultergeist - that he flew around in private jets, contributing to global warming.

An inconsequential point, as far as I'm concerned. I'll tolerate Gore flying around the world 50 times on a private jet, compared to what the bloated Limbaugh and his ilk do to help stem the climate crisis, which is nothing. In fact, all the hot air they spew into the air no doubt worsens the climate crisis.

The evidence is pretty stark that we altering the Earth's climate, but Big Oil has hundreds of millions billions to spend on putting plenty of doubt into the minds of some dim-witted politicians, and tragically far too many citizens the world over.

My point of view is this - evidence be damned. What's so bad about cleaning up our environment and decreasing air pollution, which kills hundreds of thousands of people every year? The answer is so simple it defies explanation why some people embrace pollution as if it's a virtue.

People like Gore make me proud to be an American, and damn proud that I voted for him in 2000. I wonder what sort of world we would be living in today if the Supreme Court would not have chosen our president in 2000.