I am listening to a re-run of Rachel Maddow on Al Franken right now. She says that
the hurricane was a natural disaster, but the flood wasn't. The flood in New Orleans happened after the hurricane. The money to prepare for something like this years in advance went to Iraq, and the National Guard to clean up after it went to Iraq too. The flood is "man-made."
I woke up to Stephanie Miller on the radio joking that Katrina is just what the hurricane is called for short. Its real name was "global warming."
I do not like to feel powerless against this. I want to do whatever I can to make a difference. Red Cross donations after the fact are not enough because they do nothing for the next Katrina (aka Global Warming).
To cut to the chase, here is a link to my overall ideas on what to do as an individual. More after the cut.
In the case of Katrina, what we
really should have done is:
- Address global warming as a nation and in our international relations (Kyoto!)
- Do not spend money on unnecessary wars of choice so that we have it to use for what we need at home.
- Conduct the necessary studies and preparations for a disaster of this magnitude. Our government thought of that idea, but Bush took the money needed for it and sent it to Iraq.
- Implement policies that bring more low income people into the middle class so that they have the means to evacuate if necessary.
- Do not deploy our national guard to a war of choice so they can help out in their duties at home.
I can't do any of those things as an individual. I can get involved in Daily Kos, educate myself about issues like this, write my representatives, vote Democrat, sign up for the National Guard (although that wouldn't actually help until the policies change and we bring them home from Iraq), but none of those actions has the impact necessary to make a difference.
I believe that the solution is large-scale. Global warming needs an international mobilization to make a difference. Disaster preparedness needs a national and state/local joint effort.
If our government isn't going to get moving, the next best thing would be for businesses to do something. Right now (in "after-the-fact" mode) they can donate relief supplies like bottled water and corporate jets to transport those supplies. But in the long run, they can employ environmentally friendly practices. They can install solar panels on their buildings, for example. My company supplies the employees with fair trade coffee, but they could even get shade-grown organic fair trade coffee to improve their impact on the environment. Coal plants especially right now need to clean themselves up so they stop polluting mercury into the environment. And they can put their lobbying efforts into causes that do not hurt (or actually help!) the citizens who are their customers, employees, and shareholders.
Sadly, I don't own a business so I cannot single-handedly make such a difference. I shop at them though. I work at one. I am only one person, but I can vote with my dollars the way I vote at the ballot box. We all do every day, even when we don't realize it.
I put together a database and blog of one-a-day things you can do to "vote" for your own self-interest in your daily life. It is called Daily Granola and it is open for anyone to read, comment on, or join and begin posting to.
Obviously the less oil you use, the better; however, none of us can reduce our oil use to zero. If you give up your car, you still need to take the bus. If you can live your life using only feet and a bicycle and heat your home with solar energy, the food you eat still took oil to produce and transport to your grocery store. I am not advocating anyone make a complete 180 change if it is impossible or too uncomfortable to do.
The idea behind Daily Granola is that you do what you can. Can you give up your car? Probably not. But could you check your tire pressure once a month? Sure. Use cruise control when possible? If your car has it, then yes. Make a conscious effort to switch lanes less? That's easy. Believe it or not, those tiny actions will make your car use the gas you put in it in a more efficient manner. It won't cramp your style to make such a small effort, and it will put a few extra bucks back in your wallet now that gas is $3/gal.
The more people vote with their lifestyle, the better. We'll make an impact by our actions alone - AND we will change the market that businesses look at when making their decisions. Businesses analyze their sales and conduct market research. The bigger the demographic of people who vote with their lifestyle and dollars, the more businesses will begin to pay attention. They will need to change their practices, and that will make even more of a difference.
I realize that this is idealistic, and that government and businesses work with large aggregates (of which one person alone is usually not so influential if their name isn't Cindy Sheehan). I realize that one person re-using a commuter mug, thus keeping 365 paper coffee cups from the landfill each year, isn't much when compared with the number of paper cups still going to the landfill. But if it doesn't start with you, then where will it start?
Please join me in doing your part before we have the next Katrina.
http://www.dailygranola.com