Our country's current economic woes have many concerned about the financial well-being of the United States and the ability of this country to reorganize itself and become profitable. Symptoms of a failing economy seem to be recurring all over the market, and the standard treatment is to dump money in the form of bailouts to old, ineffective business systems. Even the war machine system, and the profitability it has created for Americans over its history, is not enough to recharge most of the business market. In many ways, our continued military presence throughout the world is only helping a select few businesses while digging deep, money-bleeding wounds in the rest of the financial realm.
Amidst the variety of issues that challenge the new president's administration is one that could bring about economic revolution, and then dilute the effects of the other problems currently plaguing the United States. If the global issue of the climate crisis were placed in the forefront of American political attention, our country could focus on a new global enemy. Our nation's effort to reverse global warming would bring about financial growth and a new vision to defeat many of the other tough challenges ahead.
The U.S. could defeat begin to halt the effects of global warming by reforming the types of energy used in this country. After freeing itself from the noose of fossil fuel, and maturing the infant industries dealing in new energy sources, this country would then set an example for the entire world to follow and renew its position as a world leader. The U.S. would not just be a leader in today's War on Terror, but a leader in a battle that keeps the entire world habitable for generations to come.
The fight against global warming has remained stagnant for many years. Currently, there is a stigma attached to global warming, and many do not even believe it to be true. Al Gore is a prominent figure in our American society who remains a leading advocate for the climate crisis, and he has become accustomed to the arguments of those who remain suspicious of global warming. He addresses that many would rather conveniently deny the existence of global warming because of the enormity of the problem. There are so many things involved in combating global warming that for some it is easier to pretend that it is not occurring and continue on the same path we have been following all along. But we need to change gears and start moving in a new direction. "We must begin by winning the first key battle-against inertia and the fear of change." (Gore, 2008) Once we agree that continuing on in the same way will only further our problems we will realize that the correct direction is towards new energy.
Developing more efficient, alternative energy sources is paramount to economic success and independence. Taking cues from the framework of the internet, Al Gore proposes that our energy system be completely non-reliant on foreign sources while looking to adapt and transform in the same way our foreign competitors do. He argues that the longer we remain dependent on foreign fuel and the volatile markets that control it that we only perpetuate an inefficient system that strangles our pockets and creates hazardous new pollution. The way out is through creating new profitability through an alternative energy industry, but at the same time not isolating our nation from the global community. (Gore, 2008)
The U.S. is not adapting to meet the needs of the climate crisis, and is thereby slipping farther behind in the world economy. Gregg Easterbrook predicts that the climate crisis would alter the entire world economy alongside the temperature, but he suggests that there is a benefit to those who adapt to the changes before the worst comes. In fact, he even describes ways in which huge amounts of profit could be made for those who invest in our climate, though if left to pure chance it's very hard to discern who will win out. This concept of winning and losing in the market has to be addressed, because things are not working as they are. The stubbornness of the United States to continue on the current foreign fuel path, and not accept global measures for change, is why we are so far behind. (Easterbrook, 2008)
The benefits of better energy efficiency would transform the financial woes of this country into prosperity. Instead of amassing debt to many world nations to secure more fossil fuel, we should be a self-sustaining energy market with an energy system other nations would want to copy. Having new technology to offer to the world would restore our place in the international market while relieving us of our need of foreign supply. If we produced all the energy we needed here in the United States in a globally friendly way, the price of foreign fuel would be virtually meaningless. The disappearance of those types of foreign impact on our market would be among the best benefits of an independent energy system.
In order to foster this change we need to actively attack the current status quo while racing to catch up with the world. International communities have already set strict guidelines calling to reduce carbon dioxide pollution and countries around the world have stepped up to the challenge. If the U.S. were to ratify the Kyoto Treaty, as other countries already have, it would call for a huge movement of change in the business and financial realms, but that would in turn strengthen the market. Our car industries are failing because they didn't adapt and become highly efficient as they did in foreign countries with stricter carbon emissions policies. Examine how foreign countries have adopted a lowered pollution policy and how their vehicle manufacturers strove to meet them, and you see low-emissions, high-efficiency vehicles that outsell the vehicles made in the U.S. This is only one example, but since we do not change we are stuck with the results of failure. (Gore, 2008)
The results of climate crisis failure are evident everywhere and no one likes to hear it. Environmentalists don't like talk of rising warming temperatures in the same way that a business owner from New Orleans doesn't like to talk about hurricanes. But the current method of bandaging up our environment and community after the storms pass is not enough. We have to adapt and adopt new energy sources-and the sooner the businesses and investors of our country's communities come together the better our results will be. It is understood that we have higher profitability and more efficiency in a system of new energy, but we will also have reduced risk and cost of catastrophe. One of the best reasons for taking on the challenge of global warming is that the cost of control, however great, will be exponentially smaller and cheaper than the cost of rebuilding the world. (Easterbrook, 2008)
By addressing the issues within the climate crisis, our nation could pull itself out of its economic woes. Even while some debate the existence of global warming, there are many ways to draw both high savings and new profits by creating new energy industries. Our government has to forge new laws that would spur innovation in efficient energy, and resume an environmental leadership that would restore some of its lost respect in the world. The path to an eco-friendly America would help diminish market volatility, and in this new economy it would stave off the effects of the next Katrina or foreign war. This is why the way we handle the current climate crisis is so important, and why it should be a central issue to be dealt with immediately. (1329)
Works Cited
Easterbrook, G. (2008). Global Warming: Who Loses-and Who Wins? In G. Goshgarian, The Contemporary Reader (pp. 281-290). Pearson Education, Inc.
Gore, A. (2008). Global Warming Is an Immediate Crisis. In G. Goshgarian, The Contemporary Reader (Ninth ed., pp. 291-302). Pearson Education, Inc.
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