Comments on: Change Doesn’t Come Easy http://www.shockstone.com/2006/06/change-doesnt-come-easy/ Matt Smith's personal blog detailing his search for a sustainable life, and his opinions on current events Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:15:18 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Dev Novack http://www.shockstone.com/2006/06/change-doesnt-come-easy/comment-page-1/#comment-7 Dev Novack Fri, 09 Jun 2006 07:40:33 +0000 http://www.shockstone.com/2006/06/change-doesnt-come-easy/#comment-7 People are burnt by environmental gloom and doom. And Americans crave a happy ending. The ending for An Inconvenient Truth will only be happy if millions of Americans see the film and are moved to action. It can happen. This country is better known for its global influence than its planetary impacts. The US has an uncanny ability to create change, lead innovation, develop new markets. We need only look to our past to see what we are capable of. The technology revolution has had a profound impact on how we live every day. Compare your life to what it was 10 years ago, before you began banking, shopping, dating, communicating and conducting significant parts of your life online. We are profoundly capable of integrating new philosophies and technologies into our lives. We could easily shift into smaller sexier hybrid cars, slip into some comfortable responsibly made clothing and eat a delicious locally grown meal –if only we were properly incentivized. Consider how World War I turned our men into soldiers or how World War II turned our women into workers. Our entire economy shifted within two years twice. These challenges mobilized our nation. The scope and scale of the threats from climate change that we face today are far greater than a World War III. And the US must once again respond. Our lives will change, but it will be for the better. The economy will strengthen as businesses develop the solutions we need. A better culture will emerge and we will transition seamlessly. What do we need to awaken our nation? How many more millions must suffer as they did in Mississippi before we act? The only thing we lack is resolve and leadership. After viewing An Inconvenient Truth, I believe a new leader has emerged in the form of a resilient Al Gore. And it's hard to imagine the person who could view this film and lack the resolve to act. Our very survival depends on it. People are burnt by environmental gloom and doom. And Americans crave a happy ending. The ending for An Inconvenient Truth will only be happy if millions of Americans see the film and are moved to action. It can happen. This country is better known for its global influence than its planetary impacts. The US has an uncanny ability to create change, lead innovation, develop new markets. We need only look to our past to see what we are capable of. The technology revolution has had a profound impact on how we live every day. Compare your life to what it was 10 years ago, before you began banking, shopping, dating, communicating and conducting significant parts of your life online. We are profoundly capable of integrating new philosophies and technologies into our lives. We could easily shift into smaller sexier hybrid cars, slip into some comfortable responsibly made clothing and eat a delicious locally grown meal –if only we were properly incentivized.

Consider how World War I turned our men into soldiers or how World War II turned our women into workers. Our entire economy shifted within two years twice. These challenges mobilized our nation. The scope and scale of the threats from climate change that we face today are far greater than a World War III. And the US must once again respond. Our lives will change, but it will be for the better. The economy will strengthen as businesses develop the solutions we need. A better culture will emerge and we will transition seamlessly. What do we need to awaken our nation? How many more millions must suffer as they did in Mississippi before we act?

The only thing we lack is resolve and leadership. After viewing An Inconvenient Truth, I believe a new leader has emerged in the form of a resilient Al Gore. And it’s hard to imagine the person who could view this film and lack the resolve to act. Our very survival depends on it.

]]>