Hot, Flat and Crowded

I have just finished reading an interesting, informative and disturbing book, “Hot, Flat and Crowded,” by Thomas Friedman. He says that global warming, the stunning rise of the middle class all over the world, and rapid population growth have converged in such a way that is making our planet dangerously unstable. We need to do something now if we want to save planet Earth for our children and grandchildren.

The problem is far greater than I had ever imagined. My noble efforts at recycling, while the right thing to do, just won't make any difference. There needs to be a global effort by the governments around the world to cause the kind of change the earth needs to become a clean, safe place to live.

We have polluted our planet with the wastes of fossil fuels, spewing CO2 into the atmosphere at alarming rates. We need to stop now. Alternate sources of energy must be found, developed and used now. There are no easy answers. It will take hard work, sacrifice and a lot of money to make it happen. Friedman does have a vision of a brighter future and many suggestions on how to make this happen. His suggestion are controversial and will be hard to accomplish. It is difficult to make people see past the immediate concern and plan for the future. I don't know if our nation has the political will to make it happen.

One of his proposals is to phase in a gasoline tax of $5 to $10 per gallon. Some of that money would be used to help consumers to trade in their gas guzzlers for smaller, fuel efficient models. He says the best monument to 9/11 we could erect would be mountain of crushed gas guzzlers. Raising taxes is always unpopular , controversial and hard. Friedman claims this is the best solution to helping us accomplish what is need. The tax would help to reduce consumption, shift people to more fuel-efficient models, shrink the amount of money we send to petrodictators, improve the air quality, strengthen the dollar and balance payments, help mitigate global warming, and give citizens a feeling they are contributing something to the war on terrorism.

Would you be willing to pay a large tax on gasoline to help save our home?