Week Four Question

In his op-ed “Going Green? Easy Doesn’t Cut It,” Michael Miniates makes several good points about the lack of coordination and far-reaching effects seen in the current environmental movement. His main argument states that environmentalists are treated adult Americans as children by not believing they have the ability to come together and work in unison for a better planet. Instead of trying to change the societal thinking and values that fuel pollution, environmentalists offer X # of easy ways one can individually help save the planet. His most convincing point in this article is that even if the entirety of America made these easy steps, such as using better light bulbs and taking shorter showers, their collective impact would only slow the current environmental disaster. In order to have a useful effect, societal values need to be changed so that limiting pollution and protecting the planet takes precedence over consumerism. The current trend of take all you can afford must be changed to use only want you absolutely need, recycle and reuse as much as possible, and conserve nature. Miniates also believes that Americans, due to their heroic and powerful past, deserve more credit than they are given. Surely if Americans can win their independence from an oppressive country or mobilize a generation to fight for civil rights, they can do far more than change a light bulb to stop global destruction.

Of course, the best and most effective ways to have a quick and meaningful impact on global warming is through policy changes at the local, state, and national levels. However, this understanding should not lead the average person to believe that the destruction of the planet is a problem for some one else to deal with; after all, the basis of the United States government is that the voice of the people is heard. Therefore, the people must work to show their leaders that they care about this earth and want anything and everything to be done to try and save it.