Several years ago my greatest fear for our planet was the prospect of nuclear war. The U. S. and Russia each had enough nuclear weapons to kill all human life several times over. However, since the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was signed and got started in 1970, the threat has seemed more remote and less frightening.
Today, my greatest fear for humanity is Climate Change with Global Warming. I am not alone. Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations declared that “Climate change is the defining issue of our time... .” (United Nations 2019)
He will convene a summit in September 2019 to identify ways in which each country could accelerate the pace of meeting the goals of the Climate Change Paris Accord. Alas, we are behind in worldwide efforts to meet the goals that were established.
Frankly, I am embarrassed that the U. S. is not only not helping to lead this effort, but we have signaled that we are dropping out. Our President (undergraduate degree in economics and no graduate degree) has decided that climate change is not real, and he has brought in as many nay-sayers as he can into his administration. His policies may benefit business (his area of interest) but at an unimaginable cost to humanity worldwide in the future.
I am not particularly concerned about people in my age group, including President Trump, but I am deeply concerned about my grandchildren. It is a travesty that we are on track to leave devastation in our wake as our legacy to them.
This site is dedicated to health (mental and physical). Unchecked global warming is the biggest health threat that I can imagine. If anyone is interested in the facts about this issue, consult NASA who declared, “Scientific evidence for warming of the climate system is unequivocal.” (NASA Global Climate Change site on the internet in which this quote from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was taken. The site gives easy-to-understand data on the topic.)
Peter M. Hartmann, MD
