Ok, I have about had it. No one- the press, Obama, Romney, the campaigns, or the people of the US, are INSISTING we talk about climate change. Jobs? Economy? None of it matters if the changing climate changes the paradigm. Every time a T-5 tornado wipes out a town, or a Katrina style flood a city; every time a severe storms races across the country in 24 hours and destroys infrastructure, and shuts down airports, our economy takes a blow to the head. Businesses don't make money, employees loose work time and wages, homeowners have to pay deductibles to repair their damaged homes, ( and insurance companies then raise deductibles) people with limited amounts of money have to restock a refrigerator because a power outage wiped out hundreds of dollars of food.. the list goes on and on.
All the 5 point plans, tax cuts or stimulus' mean nothing. How do you calculate the loss of millions or billions of dollars of lost crops from drought, or even the loss of huge swaths of what was usable and economically viable farmland which can no longer be farmed? This all has a major impact on any GDP But wait!, there's more! The increased cost of food prices on a families budgets because whole corn crops or wheat were fried for months as rains disappeared. The cost of goods that go up because rivers are low and the barges can't get goods to market. Health costs also soar with climates change, and people are exposed to new diseases that were once not part of their environment. Who is going to pay when the next storm surge floods and wipes out the New York City Subway system?
So every other topic is moot -taxes, job growth, health care costs, GDP-if Climate Change is left out. It affects every other issue. It is the gut of the Venn diagram. It is the elephant in the room This should also Obama's answer to his plan for the next 4 years. Follow below:
The next debate is about Foreign Policy. People usually relate that to the Middle East, China, Israel.. i.e, the US's policy to individual countries or regions. Climate Change is not an American issue, it is a world issue. Nations will flood. Who takes the refugees? Droughts will increase killing millions.. countries will fight over water and food. Climate Change is the #1 Foreign Policy issue. We as voters must INSIST this be one of the topic in the next debate. It IS a foreign policy issue.
Obama has already laid the groundwork for his Climate Change agenda. High Speed Rail starts. Higher mileage standards for cars that reduce emissions AND saves Americans money. An argument for saving Detroit as a Climate Change solution is they are now building these higher mileage cars and exporting them as one of the solutions. He has started the most wind and solar projects ever to get us away from conventional fuels that contribute to Climate Change. He has started the military on reducing its CO2 footprint. His quest for high tech solutions to solving the coal and other energy problem is another huge plus. He already has a major agenda in place, and needs to let everyone know it in the next debate and in ads until the election.
Mitt Romney doesn't believe in Climate Change. His base doesn't believe in it either. He has no policy. His answer will be Drill baby Drill, more coal, more nukes. He will deny it even exists, and say we need more research ( as the ice caps disappear).
WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO GET THIS ISSUE BROUGHT UP.. Get it first and center in the media to start asking them what are both their policies. And if anyone from Daily Kos has instant accessibility to the Obama campaign, please, please, please, get this request to them so President Obama can bring it up in the next debate... He can divert to it and open up a whole discussion he will be ready for anytime during the hour and a half-and it tilts largely in his favor to talk about it.
Just like the President knocked it out of the park last night, he can do it again.. Let him start a new discussion from the “normal” paradigm of "America's policy per issue" mentioned above to global security being linked more to famine, droughts, wars for water, etc. Climate change again is the heart of the Venn diagram for international issues. The President needs to tell us what he thinks on how we need to confront it.. from job creation to national security to America taking the lead. Mitt Romney will be left scowling and having no policy for it whatsoever. Moderates, people with kids, people with grand kids, and the youth vote, and anyone who sees the reality of whats out there will flee from Romney once they see he has no plans for their future in a changing world. Checkmate..