The Daily Aztec

Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: Science & Technology

Media Credit: MCT Campus There is so much hype about global warming that it's difficult to know what to believe. Maybe the world is going to end, or maybe this is just another natural cycle it's experiencing.

The world is ending. In the wake of the San Diego wildfires, many residents of the county may be nodding their heads, as they might already know.

The blazes that torched our county are another sign of the "inconvenient" disaster that's ruining our world, at least according to some.

Environmentalists are begging us to ponder, "What will you do when the water is so polluted you can't drink it and the air is so chock-full of smog you can't step outside?"

Before you torch my house (or invite me to a party) for being an Earth-loving hippie, let me make this point: We polluted the crap out of the land, air and sea on planet Earth. But, Earth also pollutes itself. Gasses and elements from volcanoes, fires, storms, meteors and earthquakes all naturally contribute to Earth's warming and cooling processes.

The only thing we did was speed it all up.

As such, global warming is not a problem we can fix. Earth's history is riddled with warm times as well as cold times. And let's remember Earth began from nothing and will end with nothing. We are a grain of sand on a never-ending beach and fully exposed to all the elements. Global warming will not end the existence of planet Earth.

The Earth will end itself. Or the sun will burn out. Or a comet will smash into Manhattan. (Insert Michael Bay movie title here.)

As for the biggest natural "disaster ..."

What does global warming really mean? It means the planet is warming, the ice is melting thus, global warming equals a warmer planet. It's that simple. Guess what comes next? Global cooling. But what if the pollution doesn't allow Earth to do its natural cycles? In the '70s, people thought we were heading into an ice age. What happened in just 30 years?

The weather has its ups and downs, as volatile as the stock market complete with trends, cyclicality, skeptics and believers. Just like the stock market, there is little we can do as individuals to create a dramatic impact.

There are millions of ways to help slow the warming process, from the clothes you wear to the food you eat. But let's highlight some big ones.

Reduce, reuse and recycle. Simply recycling the Sunday paper every week saves 500,000 trees.

Switch to chlorine-free paper products.

Stop wasting water.

Walk or ride a bike to school.

Do everything you can to conserve energy - towel or air dry your hair, turn off lights when they're not needed, etc.

Understand that doing your part and influencing others will make for a brighter future. See you on Mars.



-Justin Weisbrod is a business administration senior.



-This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec.

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