Hello on a steamy July afternoon,
As the global sizzles from the Southwest to the European continent and beyond, it is increasingly apparent that we are facing temperatures and heat that is beyond what we are used to, climate events that have cactuses in Arizona dying from the heat. That is stunning to me. Since when does it get too hot for a cactus? And yet, there are daily examples of how serious our climate crisis is, and I do not believe the term crisis is hyperbolic. I struggle with such a reality because I believe my generation is guilty of squandering/overusing resources in ways we never imagined. Certainly, it was living that American dream, but there is so much of our innate national identity of profound individualism that fosters this consumerism, this over-usage; it seems the proverbial chickens have come home to roost and the coop is over populated.
Earlier today I was speaking with my Dominican amigo, my brother-of-sorts, and our conversations are always thought provoking. In spite of his being in the states for over 25 years, he is still a Dominican, and one trying to understand why Americans do what they do. His questions vary from why do we seem content to simply continuing to use resources as we do, to why do we have politicians who seem too old to govern (and that is on both sides of the aisle), to what do I believe will happen in our next elections. Of course, I have no definitive answers, and more accurately, I have the same questions. What I think about more frequently, and with more fear, is what have we done to our children, grandchildren, and future generations. When I read we are currently as hot as we have been in 120,000 years (how this is determined I am unsure) that is beyond startling to me. What are the chances we might stave off such dire predictions, prove consequences? To say it might take drastic measures seems a bit beyond the obvious, and yet I am still driving my little beetle around. I am seriously trying to figure out how to move to an EV for my next transportation, but the realization that our country does little to promote or support such an option is readily apparent. From infrastructure to connectivity, be it the actual charging or supporting it across models and makes, there are significant issues to navigate.
One of my FB friends, a person I’ve known since what is now called middle school, is lamenting living in the American Southwest. The record temperatures both in terms of temperature as well as number of days is unbearable, and yet moving everyone out of the desert we’ve attempted to make into an oasis is not going to happen. I remember reading a book by Marc Reisner titled Cadillac Desert in the late 90s. It is a history of our development of a desert and how there would never be enough water to support such a population. In 1960 Las Vegas had a population of less than 100,000 people, and by 1994, it grew tenfold and continued a 6% population growth yearly for the entire decade of the ‘90s. All in a place that averages about 4 inches of rain a year. Stunning! The average individual consumes 130,000 gallons of water a year, and 90% of the water in Las Vegas is sourced from the Colorado River, the same river that now dries up before it reaches the ocean. And yet, how much do I conserve when it comes to my own usage? The reality of what has happened in the American Southwest is a problem for all of us. I am forever aware that 20% of the fresh water on the earth is contained in the 5 Great Lakes, and my time on the shores of Lake Superior have provided first-hand experience of that astounding reality. The value of water has long been discussed, but the majority of us pay little to no attention to that looming catastrophe. Some of my academic colleagues from Africa or other places are certainly cognizant of the scarcity and political potential of something I take for granted.
At the moment, another month has begun, and I am back in my home state of Iowa, presently residing in the Acorn Cabin, on my cousin’s farm in Decorah (if you go to the summer of 2021 in my former posts, you can learn more about this special place). As I make my way across the Hawkeye state once again, this time I am attending a 50th high school reunion at the end of the week. I have repeated noted this summer thinking those venerable reunion attendees were “older-than-dirt.” I had little idea that someday I would be doing the same thing. There is a connection to this and the “why?” In the title of this post. And the connection is both profound and of imminent significance. While we imagine the future, we seldom consider it carefully, intentionally. We simply wonder where we might be or what we might be doing. I have noted from time to time I had little idea or intention about my life. Am I the only one to be able to say that? While I might be different to some extent, I do not believe my path or thoughts to be so outside the norm. And then there is the reality that I am in my late 60s, and I wonder what difference I might make. Moving toward a more sustainable life and practice is certainly something to aspire to, something that might make a drop or two difference in the ocean of humanity, but to what collective benefit? I do realize the proverbial finger-in-the-dike possibility, but then I ponder if it is only a sort of works righteousness reality or practice. I want to believe in n something more efficacious, but I am struggling to do so. It returns me to the question that titles this blog. Is it possible for anything we do to be altruistic? Are the actions or thoughts that precede the question ever done for the simple goodness of something? My more pessimistic self would say certainly not, in the Pauline perspective of μη γενοιτο. And yet that should not stop individual decisions to be more prudent in our practices. There is so much that I realize I have been selfish about. Is it because I have never really experienced the reality of scarcity? It is because I am someone who falls into the individualism that is such a foundational thread of our American psyche? Is it because I am overwhelmed if I take the time to consider what we have done, and I consequently throw my hands up in despair? It is because I am really thoughtful on one level, while simultaneously to some degree (pun intended) lazy when it comes to actually making the changes necessary? Is it because I am about ready to retire and feel I can focus on something I perhaps should focused upon much earlier? When I speak with my students or read about their concerns, climate is at the top of their lists. Perhaps that provides some glimmer of hope.
As I sit here in the middle of the corn fields of Iowa, the reality of nature is all around me, and yet I have been exposed to much of that my entire life. Even in my travels, I have been on islands, which are certainly affected by climate change. I lived on the peninsula that juts up into the largest of the Great Lakes. It is awe inspiring to stand on the breaker walls of Lake Superior out by Calumet. I am aware that 1/5 of the world’s fresh water comes from those 5 lakes. When I was in Norway earlier this summer, it was impressive to see the number of electric vehicles on the road. I also realize they have a different size country, a different perspective on how the government interacts with their people. And yet there is a collective appreciation for the world that I do not experience in America. Our individualistic propensity for entitlement because of our understanding of freedom, of manifest destiny, has been consequential, but in many ways we perhaps failed to anticipate. The notes about Las Vegas are an example of that very idea. Water will soon become more and more about politics and power. That is unavoidable.
I wish I had made changes earlier in my life. While I have been environmentally conscious, I am easily lulled into apathy or passivity. Why? I think there is too much of that lack of immediate consequence for me. So why now? I do not have a clear answer to that question, but I guess I believe it is how I want to move forward. Do I think it will assuage my struggles with guilt and shame? Probably not, but it might make some small change in how I believe my own footprint might affect others. I know as I traverse across this home state, I will see more of those enormous three winged windmills than anywhere else I have ever traveled. I do not find them ugly; and in fact, quite the opposite. Sort of like huge birds of white on a sea of green. So, I am committed to making some changes over the next year and beyond. What will that mean for me next summer. I have some ideas, and those ideas have to do with EVs and other options. It is the bucolic feeling that being on the farm brings. Not entirely, but it most certainly contributes to it. There are so many things to consider. And yet we have considered for decades and done little, or so it seems. The song below, a version of Joni Mitchell’s 50+ year old admonishment seems appropriate. I am not sure how I will manage it all, but I will let you know how the process goes over the next year.
Thank you as always for reading,
Dr. Martin
thewritingprofessor55 
Hi Mike.
I know you’ll be in Sioux City this weekend. We have out of town guests here from southern KS until Sat so doubt if we will have the chance to see you. I think you are leaving Monday? But if there’s a possibility to meet up- you come here or us meet you, let me know. Who knows when we’ll get another chance.
Love
Sharon
Sent from my iPhone
Hello Sharon,
I was going to call you later this week. I do hope to be in Omaha for at least a day, probably Tuesday. I will call you on Thursday and we can chat about options. I hope this finds you well.
Love you.
Hello Sharon,
Thank you for the comment. I was going to call you later this week. I think I will be in Omaha on Tuesday. I will try to call you on Thursday as I am driving. I hope you are well, and I am looking forward to catching up.
Love you,
Michael
Dr. Martin,
I agree with you when it comes to climate change. How can anyone not but yet I still see people that do not even recycle items such as plastic. We have wildfires, tornadoes, and hurricanes throughout the world that my parents state they do not ever remember hearing much during their youth. It seems everyday destruction is looming from mother nature’s response to our ignorance of overuse and entitlement.
Recently I was at a World Series Little League game in Williamsport. As we exited the stands, the workers were holding large garbage bags for trash. Most people had a plastic bottle purchased from the concessions because liquids were not allowed to be brought inside the complex. So you can imagine the number of plastic bottles being thrown in these trash bags. There were none offered for recyclables. I took note to this immediately and hung on to my bottle so I could recycle it at home. However, it seems most did not even blink an eye and threw their plastic bottle in the trash bag. Is it ignorance, laziness, neglect, or they feel there is no harm of plastic bottles being buried into our Earth? I feel it is a mix of all items.
My great grandmother had very little resources during her time on Earth. They needed to be mindful of what they used and how they used it. She lived during the Great Depression and often talked about it with me. She was always mindful of her resources. No food was wasted and she tried to live off the land with her garden. I remember her washing out used plastic bags and hanging them on the clothesline to dry. She said if it can be reused why would you not reuse it. However, many today just throw things away and purchase new replacements. My mother is an avid recycler. When she packed my lunch as a kid, the sandwich was wrapped in brown paper (in which I was to bring home so she could recycle it) and all other items were in a reusable container. We now have an over abundance of resources offered to us. Credit cards allow us to purchase whatever we want without thinking. Now instead of having one pair sneakers to get you through a year, kids have 10+ expensive pair of sneakers. Do we feel no guilt from this? My generation has been raised as spoiled and most do not think about the effects on Earth.
Where do we go from here? Education on reduce, reuse, recycle needs to start with our youth and carry over to all. Perhaps it will take a massive disaster to bring us back down to reality and respect the land we live on.
Hello Dr. Martin
I found this writing to be very intriguing to me in a excess of ways. First being the fact that I wrote about climate change in my coffee shop discussion, but also because this explains in great detail that us Americans indeed take way too many things for granted. Which you make an extremely valid point about, “The American Dream” and “freedom.” I think people see those sayings and our rights and abuse them to do whatever they want to. Forgetting about the harm they may bring to our future home. Which is now coming out more and more and making people realize what they have done. Except the past cannot be changed as much as we hope we can change it today.
You write about how, “I believe my generation is guilty of squandering/overusing resources in ways we never imagined.” Which I believe is very much the problem, however that was the whole “American Dream.” People did not realize the problems that they may cause in the future and the people who said they would cause problems were not heard enough or thought to be hippies. Now we are where we are today and if nothing is done soon I feel like there will be no hope to our future generations to come.
Another thing that I found to be very intriguing is when you talked about Denmark (which reading other writings of yours I wish I could travel as much you have) and their use of electric vehicles. There is so much more that we can do as a society to help protect what we know as our beautiful home. We can use more solar power, we can use more electric vehicles, get rid of power plants, and stop using our resources so much that we are ruining our atmosphere. Which I agree comes from the people who rule our country who see differently. I never once thought about this in my years of concern about our climate change is that soon water will become about politics and power. Which is absolutely frightening to think about. If the world comes to the moment where the one source that everyone absolutely needs to survive comes that point. I would just call it quits there.
My last thought which I think has been getting more recognition in todays society, is about how you were talking to your friend from the Dominican. Which he had brought up the fact that almost everyone who runs America, is still from the generation where using the resources as much as we did was seen to be okay. I pray that in our next elections coming up, a new generation of people will take control of some of the occurring problems we are facing today. Personally I cant wait for my generation to become of age because I feel like we are living in the world that was once so beautiful and we see the problems it caused. Like I said in the coffee shop I hope I can be that age where I sit on my porch swing and watch my grandkids enjoy our lovely country.
Thanks, Dylan Dietz
Dr. Martin,
Our acceleration of climate change is a complex issue. It is one that is filled with fear and in some cases, ignorance. The scientific consensus is clear: The majority of climate scientists agree that humans are causing the globe to become warmer at an alarming rate. However, the consensus lacks throughout our society, specifically the United States. I personally know individuals who refuse to believe in climate change, and refuse to acknowledge the fact that they contribute to those problems every day, now matter how much or how less. I acknowledge I too am guilty of that. My goal is not to point out the issue to others in a derogative manner, but to spread awareness.
I must admit that I have been naive to the issue at various points throughout my life. I drive around in my small, yet speedy, Volkswagen Jetta all the time. Sometimes, I have to criticize myself. I often fail to realize that I am contributing to the same issue that I am concerned about. I am, and can be, hypocritical I suppose. You mentioned that sources of renewable energy are being discussed, but yet little is done to provide those resources to people such as ourselves.
I personally find it embarrassing that some politicians show little or no concern about climate change. Even the ones that do show little or no empathy or care. This is the difference between the United States and other nations, such as Norway, in which you thoughtfully highlighted. Your statement is powerful. I constantly found myself thinking about the issues you raised awareness of. It is something that we as society may never truly understand.
Dr. Martin, I completely agree with you when it comes to climate change and the way people treat the Earth. Climate change is something serious that most people make light of because they think it is out of their control. As you mentioned above your generation is partially responsible for the overuse of resources in poor ways. Thinking about this in perspective if your generation was partially responsible my generation should be able to all do their individual part and help reverse the ill effects.
As I walk around campus and the town of Bloomsburg I cannot help but to notice all of the garbage lying around. It is not only heartbreaking that people would treat our home like this but also scary to think how long that garbage is going to sit on Earth until it breaks down. This is essentially as harmful as the gas emissions you have talked about. The combination of each of these issues with the ignorance of the people on Earth on all contributes to it getting hotter each year. I agree with you in the sense that I just cannot comprehend how we are still living like this and why nothing is being done to change it.
As you had previously mentioned you wish you had made changes earlier in your life to help combat this issue. I feel that it is never too late to start. I have recycled for as long as I can remember and became a vegetarian during my freshman year of high school for many reasons. However, a reason that really drew me in was the amount of water you can save while following this diet, something you seemed to be extremely passionate about in this blog post. Now I don’t think everyone should be vegetarian, to each their own but this just goes to show how much one person can do to make a positive impact.
For the future generations, the only things we can do is educate them about the current issues and hope they realize the danger Earth is in and try to do their part in fixing the climate crisis.
It’s nice to hear that someone else has similar thoughts. I’ve thought of many of these same things before. Wondering the “Why” about so many things. Why do we continue to do things that have obvious negative consequences? Why do I myself continue to do things that have negative consequences when I know that I shouldn’t and that I actually want to do things differently but have yet to do so? I think part of the answer to why we continue to do things that have obvious negative consequences are that it’s easy to continue to act these ways, we’ve built up habits and aren’t fond of change, and we face no direct consequences for these actions. I’ll use driving a gas powered car as an example. It’s easier to hop into your car to get where you need to than it is to walk, ride a bike, or take public transit. It’s also easier to use a gas powered car than an electric car because of price and accessibility. Gas powered cars are cheaper to purchase, easier to purchase, and easier to refuel. Also, we’ve built up a habit of using the car to get where we need to. Even though I can walk less than a mile to the grocery store, and I actually enjoy walks, I still take the car instead. Nobody wants to even consider walking, biking, or taking public transit (even if they were all viable options) because we’ve built up a habit of taking the car and don’t want to change. Same thing goes for using gas powered cars rather than electric ones. When we drive our gas powered cars, we don’t face any direct consequences for doing so. Even though we are actively emitting carbon emissions that contribute to global warming, the temperature outside doesn’t automatically become warmer when we push down on the gas petal.
As much as I wonder why other people aren’t acting on important issues, I think I probably wonder more about why I haven’t acted myself. Just this week I wondered why I chose to not turn up the air conditioner a few degrees, even though I knew that it was the right thing to do. I also wondered why I haven’t talked with my roommate about climate change even though I’m really passionate about it and I know that I can talk to him about anything. Ultimately, I think it’s totally natural to wonder about the whys of the world.
Dr. Martin,
It is refreshing to hear your side of climate change. While reading your post, it makes me think about how much of resources I personally use. I’m the type of person who recycles bottle and cans that I use, and I take notes on my laptop to not waste pictures. That’s not enough though. I drive around an old Jeep Liberty, she’s a gas guzzler. I use all of this gas and further pollute our world. I feel as though I also don’t try to conserve my electric use. I have gotten better since I can now see how much electricity I use through my bill, but before I started paying bills, I did not think about how much I use. Thank you for further lifting the veil in my world.
Dr. Martin,
I agree with your opinion on climate change. The question “Why?” is something we might never know. Why do Americans act the way they act. I think it simply has to do with the fact that it was the way we were brought up. Being such a powerful nation in such a beautiful part of the world, naturally we are born with a lot of resources. Every American child born uses about 5 times the resources a kid in a less developed country would.
I think you don’t have to worry because although we have not made any progress in the past 30 years, it is not an argument anymore whether or not climate change is real. Even if we did not cause it, the earth is heating up naturally over time. I think that overtime more and more generations are going to be taught how to live more sustainably, and to appreciate their resources. Also I would not blame your generation, because at the time I feel like less people were aware of climate change. My generation knows about climate change, and are still reckless and not careful.
Dr. Martin,
I completely agree with your opinion on climate change. The question “Why”? will most likely never be answered though. Why do Americans do the things we do? I think it is because of how we were brought up. We were born into a great nation with beautiful land. Naturally we have a lot of resources. Every American child is born with five times as many resources as a child in a less developed country.
My hope for the future is that now that so many people are aware that climate change is real that they will make a difference. There is no denying that climate changes is real. Even if humans are not the exact cause for it, naturally the earth is heating overtime. I think future generations will be taught about this while they are young, making them act more careful.
I do not think you should blame your generation though. At the time I feel that less people were aware of climate change and its affects on our lives. Now my generation is aware of this, but they still chose to be careless. I think we all need to make better choices.
Dr. Martin
I think you are right about climate change. And for me, I don’t think we will ever know “why”. I think we follow in our ancestors’ footsteps and I think you are right about climate change. And for me, I don’t think we will ever know “why”. I think we follow in our ancestors’ footsteps and it causes us to blindly run forward. But some excuses can truly be used for the more knowledgeable individuals should know what they are doing and be mindful.
I am not a saint. I can say I have helped to make the problem worse. You probably have also added to the problem, but that is okay we are only human we can and will be greedy once in a while. So even if you blame your generation for this problem it is our fault as when for following down the same path.
I think we would have an easier time if more people research climate change. And as you talked about what change you can do alone. It is a thought that scares me as I don’t think I can make a difference sometimes. But I try to recycle everything we can in my house. Like your grandmother, we reuse plastic bags.
I hope that by the time I’m 60, I can make just a ripple in the water. And I hope my generation can help to elevate climate change. But sadly I don’t think we can fully go back. I just hope we can make it just a little bit better for the next generation.
Dr. Martin,
I am starting this only half on topic because it is something I find funny, when looking through your blog posts to find one to respond I look for something that speaks to me. Today it was not the topic of climate change but it was the song you posted with your blog, Big Yellow Taxi. It is funny to me because today when in a grocery store that was the song that was playing throughout the store while my family and I were checking out. It got us on the topic of old songs that had more meaning that my sister and I noticed when we were younger and being forced to listen t the 70’s on 7 in my dads Red pick up truck.
I never thought much of climate change or anything to do with saving the environment until recently. I always knew it was happening but I too never knew why. It wasn’t until I came to college and my advisor was big into environmental issues that I took notice as to how messed up our world has become. I then took a summer class called global water, where we had to take a step back and look at how we effect the earth and that was really eye opening for me.
I believe that no matter what in life you will always wonder what you could have done differently to change the outcome of anything, but the truth is it doesn’t matter. You can never go back in time to prevent things from happening. I believe that the future is always gonna be more important than the past because people learn from their mistakes. I try and be optimistic and say everything will be fine with our Earth and sometimes I even believe it, but I also thing more people need to see what is wrong before anything will happen. As the movie “The Lorax” says “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better, it’s not”
Dr. Martin
I agree that climate change is certainly a subject of matter. We use more resources than we actually save and to be quite blunt Americans are the best example of doing the worst job. Although it isn’t our fault, this is how we were raised. Fortunately, in school we are now taught what to do to avoid more conflicts to our world, unfortunately, not very many people follow it. Only three percent of our world’s water is consumable. We take that little water we have for granted. I see videos all of the time about people fifty years from now when we have no water asking people what water was like. The people respond with how great it was, we swam in it, drank it, put it in balloons and threw it at each other and the people fifty years from now were disgusted. But that is the reality of it. We literally throw away water. Climate change is coming whether we caused it or not and we can’t reverse it. The future generations will simply have to adapt to it as we have, up till this point. I remember when we were out of school for a week or two from snow and now we are lucky if we get a two hour delay because we don’t get much snow anymore.
Dr. Martin,
One of the many reasons I admire you as a professor is your ability to captivate an audience regardless of their political views. I can tell that you have taken a lot of time to think every thought out and provide a clear and in my opinion unarguable passage. I too am extremely worried for our beautiful ecosystem. Even in my short lifetime, I have noticed many changes over the years. For instance, where did all of the fireflies go? I can remember looking out into my backyard as a child and not being able to avoid the lightning bugs. Now I would be lucky if I could look out and see one every hour.
Climate change is a real-world issue, and some may argue that political talk has no place in a classroom but that is where it is most desired. I cannot stress how important it is to shed light on these issues. This is not a left or right issue but rather we need to save the planet before we have no home issue. Earth is getting hotter and hotter, pollution is getting worse, and I believe that we as humans are feeling the effects of it every day. Thank you for addressing this topic in a meaningful way, rather than pushing your opinion on it.
I think that as a society we will continue to avoid the topic of climate change until it is too late. It is sickening to think of, but we will not listen until the last tree is cut down, the last polar bear dies, and the air quality is so low that it hurts to breathe. Although to be entirely honest with you I’m not even sure if we will listen then. We have set ourselves up for complete and utter failure.
Dr. Martin,
Thank you for sharing this post and talking about your concerns for the climate. I feel like climate issues often get overlooked and put on the back burner in politics a lot. It gets brought up as an issue a lot, yet no one wants to take the action and do what is needed to help fix it. I hope this is an issue that makes great strides in the near future.
The need for more sustainable living practices is needed. It is hard to be environmentally friendly as an individual since so many things around us are bad for the environment. If we don’t take care of our earth, it wont take care of us.
Thank you for talking about this world issue. I enjoyed reading and I took a lot away from hearing your thoughts on this.