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 By Jack Lepiarz Mar. 2, 2006 Humans have rarely been known for their foresight. We as a species and as a society have an unfortunate tendency to overlook minor (or major) threats if they do not immediately threaten our security. They get put on a "things to do" list--and then never get done. Improving the levees in New Orleans is one example that people did not pay attention to until AFTER all the damage had been done. Unfortunately, that is only one example of many. One such example right now is the prospect of global warming. There are many people in this world that do not believe that global warming is actually happening. They believe that it is a myth, that the world's general climate is just changing for the warmer. That is a genuine possibility. There have been climate shifts before in the history of civilization. from about 1300 to about 1800 the world experienced what is known as the "Little Ice Age," where global temperatures cooled an average of 7 degrees total. Not a whole lot in the grand scheme of things, but enough to cause crop failures, famine, and in one case, a year-long winter. That obviously was not because of humans, because we as a species weren't significant enough to make a substantial change in the planet's temperature. However, now we are. Ice caps and glaciers around the world are melting at an increasingly rapid rate. In Greenland alone (whose glaciers are melting at an alarmingly fast rate--even above the Arctic Circle), there is enough ice to raise global sea level by 20 feet. With that kind of increase, New York City, Los Angeles, Boston, New Orleans, and just about every single coastal town or city would be underwater. Now perhaps this is simply a case of the world's climate becoming warmer. Whatever the cause of global warming be--man or nature--it is real. Winter temperatures this year were regularly higher than fifty degrees. In some cases, even hit sixty. The world is getting warmer. All scientific data shows that. And the implications of this are far more dangerous than any terrorist. A terrorist can get a nuclear device and level a city. If global warming is as serious as it could be, entire nations could be underwater. This is an opportunity for the human race to prevent worldwide calamity. We must at least study this and find out what is going on. Remember the saying, "better safe than sorry?" Well, that's what we need to do. We've already seen what can happen when a city gets flooded because people ignore brooding problems. Let's not let that happen again. ------------ About the author: Jack Lepiarz is a senior at Madison High School. Born in Waco, Texas, he lived with the Big Apple Circus for much of his early childhood, eventually moving to Madison, New Jersey, where he now resides. Although he is often described as stubborn and egotistical, he tries to keep an open-mind towards new ideas and treat people the way he would like to be treated. Email: Jackwuzhere42@aol.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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