Environmental Lecture

I went to an lecture on environmental issues by Carolyn Raffensperger. She talked about how we have more right to a gun than we do to clean air. There is nothing in the constitution about our rights to breate clean air and drink clean water. She pointed out that we are a here and now generation. We do not look toward the future more than 20 years and that we should be looking out for the 7th generation, along the lines of 150 years down the road. We need to be taking care of the environment around us so there is something still unique and beautiful to future generations. We want something to pass down through the generations that we can be proud of. She mentioned that her generation left behind global warming, dead oceans, and polluted air and that future generations will be paying for that for many years to come. She suggested that the younger generation start taking care of the future and find ways to implement change that would improve our way of life. I agree with her points but I also think time is against us. Change rarely happens fast and we need dedicated individuals that will start the process and then others that will carry on through the generations. It is a big undertaking to think outside of what is good for the economy and start thinking what is good for our world. As she pointed out with slavery, we knew it was wrong so we outlawed it, even though it was supposedly "good" for the economy. We know things are wrong in this day in age, but we are willing to risk things like health, entire animal species, and our lives in order to gain that extra buck. As Carolyn said, we need individuals who will be proactive and have their ideas and possible solutions heard so that our generation has something worthwhile to pass on to future generations.