...Alaska feels and sees impacts of climate change more so than any other state.
"...how are we going to get there to positively affect the impacts?
...to come along with us with the impacts of climate change.
I was the first governor to form a climate change sub-cabinet to start dealing with the impacts...
...an "all of the above" approach to deal with climate change impacts.
This is a satellite image of Katrina as it approached the Gulf Coast with its IMPACTS. It was a huge Cat 5 storm that resulted from a very hot planet, in a hurricane season when there was still plenty of surface humidity, when a record number of hurricanes occurred.
Below is how the Republican lead USA addressed this disasterous storm while looking the other way to the issue of Climate Change and Human Induced Global Warming.
This is how the people of New Orleans ended up under the Republican majority of Congress, where at last count 1,836 people perished.
That doesn't even begin to address the damage to the economic infrastructure of the entire Gulf Coast, the displacement of people into the interior of the country or the equally disasterous effect of Countrywide Credit in New Orleans (click here) for people that subsequently lost their homes.
Katrina dead interred at new memorial (click here)
by Laura Maggi, The Times-Picayune
Friday August 29, 2008, 10:17 AM
Seven people who died during Hurricane Katrina were interred Friday morning in one of six mausoleums created to hold the remains of those who were not identified after the storm or whose families did not claim them....
PALIN: Yes. Well, as the nation's only Arctic state and being the governor of that state, Alaska feels and sees impacts of climate change more so than any other state. And we know that it's real.
Those IMPACTS in Alaska include the loss of valuable and irreplaceable Permafrost.
Those IMPACTS in Alasks include the loss of ice supported land mass that villages were built on, resulting in loss of complete hamlets and towns to Climate Change.
Those IMPACTS in Alaska include the listing of the Polar Bear due to loss of habitat.
Those IMPACTS in Alaska include the loss of tourism areas of profound value to the state and its economy.
I'm not one to attribute every man -- activity of man to the changes in the climate. There is something to be said also for man's activities, but also for the cyclical temperature changes on our planet.
Not attributing every man in one breath while changing in mid-sentence to state there is something to be said ALSO for man's activities...so which is it?
But there are real changes going on in our climate. And I don't want to argue about the causes. What I want to argue about is, how are we going to get there to positively affect the impacts?
Treating the impacts AFTER they have occurred IS the problem with the Republicans. Either they are ready and willing and able to PROTECT this nation to prevent disaster or they aren't. In Sarah Palin's case, she is NOT willing to serve the people of this nation to protect them from Climate Change. She didn't protect those in Alaska or in Wasilla and has never spoken in advocacy for protections for people, fauna or flora in the state of Alaska. All that can be expected of Republicans is more of the same and the continued denial of reality and discrediting of 90% of scientists globally.
We have got to clean up this planet. We have got to encourage other nations also to come along with us with the impacts of climate change, what we can do about that.
The Republicans live with double standards. The USA pollutes Earth with 25% of the carbon dioxide responsible for Climate Change. The USA sets NO example to leadership in regard to curbing and stopping carbon dioxide emissions. Add to that the Republican opposition of a progressive Senate bill that will reduce substantially the carbon dioxide emissions of this country to the troposphere and you'll realize the future in regard to Earth's viability to support life. China and India aren't even close to being able to control their emissions and while it is a good idea to encourage same and provide guidance and support in technology to them, why should they comply with such measures if the USA WON'T even handle its own pollution first !
As governor, I was the first governor to form a climate change sub-cabinet to start dealing with the impacts. We've got to reduce emissions. John McCain is right there with an "all of the above" approach to deal with climate change impacts.
Sarah Palin commissioned this sub-cabinet as the Polar Bear was listed as threatened or shortly thereafter. This sub-cabinet is simply an attempt to build evidence to dispute the listing of the Polar Bear. Alaska has annual reviews called "State of the Arctic" click here. If Palin wanted to intercede effectively with Human Induced Global Warming at any time in her political career she would have had plenty of information to conduct such advocacy.
We've got to become energy independent for that reason. Also as we rely more and more on other countries that don't care as much about the climate as we do, we're allowing them to produce and to emit and even pollute more than America would ever stand for. So even in dealing with climate change, it's all the more reason that we have an "all of the above" approach, tapping into alternative sources of energy and conserving fuel, conserving our petroleum products and our hydrocarbons so that we can clean up this planet and deal with climate change.
In Palin's message is the hidden truth that drilling offshore is more than prudent in providing oil for America. I am not going to debate the FACT that any offshore drilling won't provide more fossil fuels to the American consumer for eight years.
But, there is a reality on the east coast of the USA that would result in a nightmare should any drilling be conducted in the fact that NASA discovered and NOAA confirmed in 2000, a huge fissure immediately offshore of the North American Plate beginning at Florida and extending to the north Virginia border. If there were to be offshore drilling anywhere and I do mean anywhere along that fissure, the USA would be risking deaths with the potential of coastal tsunmais with any undersea water displacement.
FACT, not fiction.
Additionally, anyone knows that in order to be completely energy independant takes reverting to alternative sources of energy at every available possibility. It is why transportation needs High Speed Elevated Magnetic Rail and electric cars and wind turbines in cooperation with our Ag Sector in places that will produce significant electricity. It is why home owners need to be given tax breaks when they use solar panels for their energy source and more tax credits when their systems produce enough to sell back to the 'grid' excess electricity.
For the Republicans to continually insist that fossil fuels are REASONABLE to use as domestic American energy sources is complete incompetency. And to allow them to bring that incompetency into government is nothing but "W"rong !
