Global Warming: Does It Even Matter?

            Does global warming exist? Although not a recent discovery, this single question has created a significant amount of controversy. Originally brushed off or played off as a hoax from politicians to the average Joe alike, many changes within the last three decades of the world seems to say otherwise. Scientific data has contained various data related to weather changes, climate changes and various other topics. However, despite all these indicators, there's still a division among people in regards to taking action or not. Many cite money as the key obstruction to a solution, but it seems that all people like to do is talk. The uncertainty over global warming is mind-boggling to me. I for one believe that this is a very real and current topic that needs to be addressed and responded to. In a situation like this, the oh-so-familiar phrase, "actions speak louder than words" sums everything up. It is better to take action against something that you know is going on rather than wait to see the aftereffects. It's clear that industry caused by man is effecting the environment in a negative way and things must be done to limit any further damage.

            I believe that all the major powers of the world have the resources and the authority necessary to tackle global warming. If a country can afford to go to lengthy extents for its military programs, surely some funds can be provided for saving the world? Because it is clear that global warming is causing a division among the world, rather than the unity that is so desperately needed. In light of many natural resources not being so renewable, there has been an increase in competition among the world's remaining resources. As a result, many countries have stockpiled their nuclear warheads, and if launched, these W.M.D. (weapons of mass destruction) will cause far more devastating destruction in the short and long run. Rather than fighting over these resources through the development of weapons to be used as subtle threats, it is far more important to research alternative energy sources. In countries like Brazil, there is a huge industry based on the production of ethanol, disproving the theory that alternative energy sources will not draw in profit. If anything, the smaller countries are the ones with the right ideas. In class, Germany was said to have converted many of its farm to produce not animals and crops but wind energy. The government there pays its farmers to operate these windmills so that there will be less reliance on fossil fuels. The world's bigger countries should follow Germany's example. The U.S. developed as a result of industry and became a world power after WWII. Look how far that has gotten us. We are now inputting 25% of the world's greenhouse gases. Other countries like China, who have not been industrializing for as long as the U.S. have made strides to make up for lost time. Within one generation, China is now an industrial powerhouse and is soon threatening to overtake America. Yet, look at the damage done to the environment. The air quality is so poor that it kills over 600,000 people a year. Many more acquire respiratory problems. Whether or not global warming will ever be verified may never be known. More importantly, does it matter? It is clear that human industrialization is a driving force behind the harming of the environment.