EAARTH – TOO BIG TO FAIL

Can earth survive climate change? Author McKibben sees a chance
April 7, 2010 (USA Today)

"Bill McKibben…long-time environmentalist and author of more than a dozen books, first warned about global warming -- then called the "greenhouse effect" -- in 1989 with The End of Nature, which he says was largely a philosophical argument…In contrast, his new book, Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet (Henry Holt/$24)…is a dire, frightening call to action. It talks about the planet melting, drying, acidifying , flooding and burning in heretofore unseen ways."

[From the book:] "The world hasn't ended, but the world as we know it has -- even if we don't quite know it yet…It's a different place. A different planet. It needs a new name…Eaarth…"

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"…McKibben sees a slight chance we could still save the planet…[With luck and commitment]…it may be possible in several decades to bring the planet's carbon dioxide levels -- now nearly 390 parts per million -- back to what climate scientist James Hansen says is the maximum safe level -- 350 parts per million…That's why he and a handful of students at Middlebury College, where he's a scholar in residence, started the grassroots group, 350.org, last year to raise awareness and press for political action…

"…[The first thing needed is a national and international law that puts a cap on carbon and raises its price]…Such a bill, pushed by President Obama, is now pending in the U.S. Senate…[McKibben says] Everyone has to keep voting for politicians who will raise the price of gasoline high enough to cause most of us to park our cars and take the bus…McKibben says Obama has done more to fight climate change than all presidents before him but…Obama's administration still falls ‘way short’ of what needs to happen…"

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"He chides New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, author of the best-selling Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need A Green Revolution for suggesting that a new green economy will save us. While he agrees in the need for solar and wind power, McKibben says green growth alone won't do it -- the planet is too far gone. (He also pokes fun at Friedman's 11,000 square foot Maryland home.)…Rather, he says, people need to accept a future of less growth and less consumption.

"He says he understands why people don't want to believe in climate change. He says they're addicted to fossil fuels, and to maintain that addiction, the oil and coal industries are spending a lot of money to spread ‘disinformation’ about global warming…What gives him some optimism is the young generation's intrinsic understanding of the world's interconnectedness, fostered by…social networking…[and the Internet]…"