Thursday, July 15, 2010

Oil Spill Opportunity

We have all seen the coverage of the oil spill over the past three months. The devastation in the gulf and the images coming out of that region have been heart breaking. Not only have the images of wild life covered in oil been the source of disappointment but the notion that so many of those living in that area will have to spend the coming months and years putting their lives back together because of how this spill has impacted them is also unsettling.

This is why I was extremely pleased that the Obama administration secured a $20 billion clean-up fund from BP last month after the President met with top executives from the oil company. They should pay whatever their circus show in the gulf costs.

I don’t claim to be the smartest person in the world and I definitely don’t claim to have all the answers but when the fate of the gulf coast rests in the hands of Kevin Costner (no offense to Mr. Costner, but seriously?), you have to begin to wonder if the best and brightest working down there to “fix” this are really the best and brightest.

But we, as citizens, and those serving us in Washington and across the country cannot let our frustration cloud our view of what is important. This oil spill gives our country a great opportunity to do something about our energy policy.

I have never been a strong supporter of drilling off-shore for oil, no matter how much I enjoyed hearing Sarah Palin and her followers shout “Drill, baby, drill!” (More like Spill, baby, spill!) throughout the 2008 presidential campaign (funny, I don’t hear those same people shouting that once-popular campaign slogan anymore). It’s an outdated, and – as we are seeing in the gulf recently – a sometimes dangerous process.

It is up to all of us to make sure that this oil spill is the last reminder that our energy policy must change and it must change now. There are simple ways we can all take advantage of the great opportunity this tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico has given us.

Call or write to your Congressmen and tell them that now is the time to stop talking about our outdated energy policy and actually start doing something about it. More specifically, call those Republican congressmen and tell them consistently voting ‘no’ in what is clearly a political decision does not count as an energy policy. Election year or not, we cannot wait.

My generation should be concerned about the future of our country and our climate more than anyone. It will be that generation that must deal with the consequences if no action is taken today.

Action in Washington D.C. may be slow but that doesn’t mean we can’t do our part in the mean time to help our environment. Reconsider how you get from place to place (take a bus, ride a bike, car-pool, etc.). Plant trees in your yard or your community. Recycle. Use fluorescent bulbs. And turn out the lights if you don’t need them or aren’t using them (right now I’m sitting in a dark cellar with a candle writing this on recycled paper). These are just some simple, common sense ways we can all help out our environment.

Our country may be divided and those serving us in Washington may be more concerned about what is politically popular than what is the right thing to do. But the images we see coming out of the gulf should give all of us a reminder of what needs to be done.

The time to do something about America’s energy future is now.

It is a challenge that must be faced and it won’t be easy. But, I will ask what many leaders from many generations have asked in the face of difficult challenges and great opportunities: If not us, who? If not now, when?

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