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EMILY WATKINS: Democratic hopefuls: Go green or goodbye
by Emily Watkins
Columnists | 11/6/07
Posted online at 2:32 AM EST on 11/13/07
Al Gore is something of a phenomenon. In 2000, he lost a presidential election despite winning a majority of the popular vote, and today, he's on the road to winning an election he's not even running in.
That's right: A poll conducted by CNN in October shows Gore in third place for the 2008 democratic primary with 14 percent of the vote.
This startling poll result begs the question: If people are voting for a candidate who's not actually running, what are they really voting for?
The answer is simple. Americans are voting green. They are voting for the government to take action on global warming. Over the past seven years, Gore has concentrated his efforts on a single issue: Preventing the impending climate crisis. Gore and his supporters are demanding that America go green.
Going green isn't just about saving the polar bears. True, for the first time ever, polar bears are drowning because blocks of ice in the arctic are fewer and farther between, sometimes leaving them stranded at sea.
Global warming, however, is affecting more than just the glaciers; it's drastically changing conditions all over the planet.
Scientists predict that the Dead Sea will dry up within the next decade. Major lakes in Asia and Africa have shrunk over the past few years, threatening to cause severe water shortages for the surrounding populations. And cities across the United States are experiencing record high temperatures. Warmer weather causes fiercer and more frequent storms, like, that's right, Hurricane Katrina. In short, the world is gradually becoming less habitable.
You might have thought that only superheroes have the power to conjure storms and melt glaciers, but in this brave new world, ordinary humans like you and me have the power to release carbon dioxide emissions that feed into the chain reaction that leads to global warming.
We now have the power to affect the natural forces of the world. But in the words of Spiderman's Uncle Ben: "With great power comes great responsibility." Al Gore is here to save the world by taking on that responsibility, and a growing number of Americans are joining him.
That's right: A poll conducted by CNN in October shows Gore in third place for the 2008 democratic primary with 14 percent of the vote.
This startling poll result begs the question: If people are voting for a candidate who's not actually running, what are they really voting for?
The answer is simple. Americans are voting green. They are voting for the government to take action on global warming. Over the past seven years, Gore has concentrated his efforts on a single issue: Preventing the impending climate crisis. Gore and his supporters are demanding that America go green.
Going green isn't just about saving the polar bears. True, for the first time ever, polar bears are drowning because blocks of ice in the arctic are fewer and farther between, sometimes leaving them stranded at sea.
Global warming, however, is affecting more than just the glaciers; it's drastically changing conditions all over the planet.
Scientists predict that the Dead Sea will dry up within the next decade. Major lakes in Asia and Africa have shrunk over the past few years, threatening to cause severe water shortages for the surrounding populations. And cities across the United States are experiencing record high temperatures. Warmer weather causes fiercer and more frequent storms, like, that's right, Hurricane Katrina. In short, the world is gradually becoming less habitable.
You might have thought that only superheroes have the power to conjure storms and melt glaciers, but in this brave new world, ordinary humans like you and me have the power to release carbon dioxide emissions that feed into the chain reaction that leads to global warming.
We now have the power to affect the natural forces of the world. But in the words of Spiderman's Uncle Ben: "With great power comes great responsibility." Al Gore is here to save the world by taking on that responsibility, and a growing number of Americans are joining him.
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