Across the United States, funding is being cut, mostly by Republican governors who just happen to align themselves with the almight Tea Party, that directly affects our environment. In Maine, the governor is seeking to open up 3 million acres of forest for development seeing it as a way to boost the economy of that state. At the opposite end in Florida, the governor there is cutting funding to the restoration of the dwindling Everglades from 50 million to 17 million dollars in addition to allowing urban sprawl to continue unchecked. What this will amount to will be the devastation of local environments across the country. These two states are not the only ones with new ideas to let the environment be subjected to the whims of the population. Instead of looking in depth at ways to fix their budgets such as pension reform or other options, they are going for the easiest culprit, the environment. These governors across the country, allies of the Tea Party, are not taking into consideration the tangible connection that we have with the environment and are in essence, allowing the environment to be killed off.
Our population is continually growing and as we are growing we our pumping more and more pollution into the environment without taking into consideration the effect it will have. I am not even alluding to the effect it has on global warming, which some people believe and some don't, but I am alluding to effect that it will have on our health. Our environment is the number one filter we have for carbon dioxide and other pollution. Almost every plant thrives on carbon dioxide and through photosynthesis, converts it into oxygen for us to breathe. If we allow, as in the case of Maine, 3 million acres of forest to be opened up for development, it will inevitably mean that we will have that much less of a filter to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen for us to breathe. The very health of our population depends in large part upon the environment. If we reduce spending for environmental convservation programs and allow delopment into large swaths of nature that were previously held either as nature preserves or open land, then we will all suffer. Simply cutting, cutting, cutting, will do us no good. In the short term, it may boost the economy somewhat, but there are a slew of other areas in the budget that need reform and if not adjusted will drive us right back into a recession.
Another issue that needs consideration in this whole debacle is funding for development. How is simply opening up land for development going to boost the economy? In order for businesses and individuals to expand or develop, they must first obtain money to do so. Banks are still not opening up their doors for loans that could support the necessary development that these states seek. There must first be reform in the financial and real estate sector in order to free up more money for individuals to obtain loans. In our current situation with the amount of foreclosures and bankrupt businesses, there are plenty of abandoned properties that are ripe for new growth and expansion should money become available. In my mind, there is a significant lack of foresight by these governors in what would actually stimulate local economies. They feel that, in part through pressure from the Tea Party, that cutting spending any way they can will make a difference. They are unable or unwilling to confront the current issues in their budgets that would actually make a difference.
The Tea Party activists are perhaps the biggest group of loonies that has come about because of this recession. They speak of financial and government reform, yet are not willing to look at all aspects of the problem. I keep on coming back to pensions because I feel that this is a big part of the problem that many states are facing. In Connecticut, there are some individuals who recieve pensions larger than the salary of our current governor. Our state is losing money because of this, yet no one is willing to give an inch, they simply want the budget issues to go away. When a governor proposes cuts in public programs, there is outrage, when he proposes concessions needed by unions, there is outrage, when he proposes tax hikes, there is outrage. It seems that while we want reform and a means to affect reform, no one wants to hear about it. So what happens, the environment suffers because that seems to be the only area that people seem to care the least about, yet also happens to be the area that will affect them the most in the long run. Everyone wants a quick fix, yet there is no quick fix to be had. Our current problems have been years in the making and unless we all buckle down, accept the necessary reforms to pensions, state programs, and unions, we will continue to suffer from these budget problems. What happened to the automakers in the upper midwest when their prices became to high for people to afford? They shut down, mostly because they were driven by unions that demanded high wages and pensions for employees. They turned out to be unsustainable and the factories closed, leaving thousands without jobs. Turns out the unions forced bankruptcy upon some automakers. What is going to happen at the state level if unions don't make concessions, hopefully not the same thing.
Using the environment as a scapegoat for our budget problems will only be a temporary solution unless governors are willing to look more deeply at their budget problems and take the necessary steps to resolve them. In the process, we will potentially lose millions of acres of forest, wetlands, and vibrant species of flaura and fauna at the hands of unscrupulous individuals. If we want to preserve the unique landscape of our country, then we must stand up to these republican governors who want to literally kill our environment. They have no concept of what is at stake and are unwilling to take the stance necessary to fix our local budgetary problems. If you want your children to grow up being able to breath easily and explore the natural beauty of our country, then we all need to take a stand and protect our environment from these bastards. Our welfare is at stake and we need to confront the issues at hand. Today, lets take a walk outside and look around at nature. Enjoy it while you can, because if our Republican Tea Party governors have their way, it won't be there for long.
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