Whether global warming is a natural
process or man-made, it is yet not
clear. Compared to age of earth, we
don’t have sufficient and proper
data even for a century to conclude
this and even if we have some data
then they are quite interesting. For
example, a study found that Bihar
has one of the most polluted sky in
the world and definitely the most
polluted among other states in India
(few months back this was a big news
in all major newspapers of India),
but Bihar does not have any industry
or car or that many planes flying in
its sky. It seems this is happening
because of burning cow dung for
cooking. Is Bihar responsible for
Global Warming or is it Gujarat with
so many Chemical Factories and Cars?
Forget about USA as according to
that study Bihar’s sky is one of the
most polluted in the world. Earth
has gone through this global warming
and ice age phase several times even
without human being in existence, I
feel, US President George W. Bush is
right in refusing to sign Kyoto
treaty because scientists, so far
have not given us more accurate data
than Bihar’s cow dung burning theory
and that may have created a feel
good factor in India (after all it
was not industrial emissions) but it
failed to convince US President of
its link with hurricane Katrina.
Until compelling evidence is
produced take it lightly. - Raghu
Yadav - Oct. 24, 2005
All
these 'researches' are inconclusive
at the very least and politically
motivated at its worse. Everyone
knows MSN/MSNBC is a liberal (in US
political sense) organization that
has supported Democrats like Al Gore
and John Kerry - all known to be
strong pro-environment politicians.
I would not be surprised if the
research itself was funded by the
Democrats to make George Bush look
bad (not that I am a fan of him).
While the report may completely be
unbiased, the reality in today's
political world where everyone has
an agenda, one should be skeptical
to any such report. The earth has
withstood ice age, earthquake,
flood, fire, volcanoes, meteorites,
dictators, autocrats, poison gas,
for millions of years and a few
hundred thousand gas-guzzling SUVs,
or heat generated from industries,
in my opinion, are not going to
devour this planet. But then, that's
only my opinion. For all I know, the
report could be right on the mark,
but at the same time it could be
nothing but a big political hogwash
and one should take them with a
pinch of salt. - Anil Kumar -
Oct. 24, 2005
I
hope you all are right. Personally,
I would love to be an optimist.
However, there are apparent
disturbing signs which one can not
ignore.
Forest cover has been cut down to
make place for human habitation and
agriculture. Many species of animals
have been wiped off the face of the
planet.
In the last hundred years of rapid
industrialization, we have damaged
nature more than the cumulative
damage in the millions of years man
has walked this planet. The
degeneration is so fast that we can
easily feel the impact within our
life spans so far. As children we
were used to seeing the clear blue
sky, the green vegetation around and
clean unpolluted water bodies.
As a kid I used to go fishing with
my friends in the paddy fields and
we would catch many tiny
multi-colored fishes. Today, the
water logged paddy fields are there
but there are hardly any fishes in
the water. This is the result of the
rampant use of chemical fertilizers
and pesticides.
Today we have polluted air, polluted
water, concrete jungles, social
chaos, tension filled lives,
diseases spawning out of these etc.
Distance yourself from your
immediate worries and think on a
larger plain. Development was meant
to make us happy, wasn't it? Has it
done that? While it is true that
development has brought some
luxuries to our lives but overall
has it progressed on desirable
lines? Perhaps somewhere things went
awry. Man turned selfish and started
to compete. The competition prompted
us to create weapons of mass
destruction. Double, triple and
multiple standards developed within
societies and amongst countries.
Today the word in focus is GREED.
Getting to the point, global warming
and the causative effects of CO2
were not fabricated by a bunch of
politically motivated bandicoots.
They were discoveries made by
scientists. Do we agree to this? If
there are no doubts on that point,
rest are plain statistics. Just find
out the amount of fossil fuels being
burnt by different countries.
Whether global warming can produce
devastation through nature turning
hostile remains debatable but we
have witnessed the wrath of nature
more frequently in the more recent
past than in our childhood days.
Lopsided rainfall inundating parts
of the country while drought like
conditions exist elsewhere, super
cyclones, hurricanes, extreme
weather in different seasons etc. So
without delving into scientific
discourses we can draw apparent
conclusions. Either ways I do not
think we are coming out of an ice
age and need global warming badly.
There can not be many positive
effects of global warming, apart
from your wet socks drying quicker.
The 'suspected', if not proven, bad
effects are lethal. Without going
into retort and repartee, just look
at the innocent face of your kids
and ask yourself whether you are
handing over to them a world better
than what you got from your parents.
First let us rise above selfish
motives, look at life from a larger
perspective, shift our mental
paradigms and then work for greater
responsibility in this direction. -
Rajesh Chaubey - Oct. 24, 2005
No
argument from me on that, Rajeshji.
I totally agree with you and all of
us must do our bit to ensure we
don't damage our planet anymore than
it has already been. My point simply
was that these days when everything
has a political color, including the
academia, I for one, wouldn't accept
any report without a sense of
skepticism. - Anil Kumar -
October 25, 2005
Maybe you can get the United States
National news programs such as CNN,
to admit there may be a problem
instead of this natural cycle they
keep yammering about. Natural cycle
it may well be, but our emissions
are not helping! - Ed Schumacher
- October 25, 2005
I am not quite sure I understand
Mr. Schumacher's point maybe because
I don't know what the CNN is
'yammering about'. - Deepak - October 25, 2005
The
affects of global warming is playing
out in front of our eyes.
Most of the states in India have
dealt with flooding this year. In
New Orleans, the state of
Mississippi, and now the hurricane
that cut across Florida.
In the case of my motherland and my
home state (Bihar), bringing up
these issues are futile since, our
state government has totally
destroyed the infrastructure (if
there was any to begin with). There
is no education system or any
private companies that are willing
to set up something in Bihar. What
we have experienced and are
experiencing in Bihar for the last
20 years is the real GLOBAL WARMING.
- Sameer Choudhary - Oct. 27,
2005
This article is titled "Global
Warming a Threat to US". That "US"
should be read as "us".
Mumbai, Bangalore and now Chennai
are inundated in the same year. A
massive population is affected
adversely. If this were to happen
every year, where would it lead us
to? Can we build industries that can
withstand annual submergence?
We try to trash the obvious, what if
our own homes are flooded? What if
our loved ones lose their lives to
flood or famine? Would we still
trash the obvious? Yes, we must
stick to the problems of Bihar on
PD, is this not a problem that Bihar
faces along with the rest of the
country? Is not every single soul
hit by this problem?
Like a true ostrich let us sweep
this problem under the carpet and
pretend it never existed. Shall we
discuss petty things, while millions
of our country men suffer. -
Rajesh Chaubey - Oct. 28, 2005
It
seems Mr. Chaubey is too much in
love with his favorite topic and
concern for environmental awareness
even so much as to forget that there
is a 'raging wildfire' in his own
backyard but he is worried about
saving the planet.
Worrying about the planet is good
but not when your own house is on
fire. Bihar is on fire. Let's fix
our problems first then we will
worry about the planet. If this is
like an ostrich sticking his neck in
the sand, then Mr. Chaubey's
approach is like Nero. -
Deepak - October 28, 2005
Bihar's fate is being decided by the
masses and the results will be out
soon. The contribution of the
intellectual community, if any, has
been made. Till the masses love him
there is no way Laloo's python grip
can be slackened. Call it wild fire
or high waters there is nothing you
can do about it. The fate of Laloo
or Bihar is not in the hands of the
intellectual community.
I write to mobilize the opinion of
the intellectual community where
they can make a difference. Deepakji
perhaps we should learn to agree
sometimes. The problem with the
intellectual community is that there
is always an ego problem, hypocrisy
or hidden agendas. That is the
reason why Biharis, though
singularly intelligent, are a total
failure as a society. That is the
prime reason for the fire in the
backyard too. I hope the fire burns
away all the ego problems, hypocrisy
and hidden agendas of Biharis. Bihar
has the double disadvantage of an
illiterate population and a
indifferent intellectual community
from whom Bihar gets a diarrhea of
words but hardly any action
percolates. Deepakji instead of
lamenting do something concrete for
the fire in your backward. -
Rajesh Chaubey - October 28, 2005
Rajesh ji, I know you will not lose
the argument because you are
determined to win by throwing words
like 'intellectual community' etc.
but I am not here to win or lose an
argument.
Your last statement that the
intellectual community has an ego
problem, hypocrisy or hidden agenda
is extremely pompous and displays a
sense of false superiority complex.
You have certified yourself as an
intellectual and whoever doesn't fit
in your definition is a hypocrite,
or has an agenda. By your
definition, if you talk about the
spotted owl in SIMI Valley and how
to find homes for them, you are an
instant 'intellectual' but if you
talk about Bihar politics, which
obviously doesn't interest you maybe
because you haven't live there in
many years, you are deemed as a
hypocrite and having a hidden
agenda.
All I can say is your priorities are
extremely messed up maybe because
you have absolutely no interest in
the welfare of Bihar. You are
comfortable in your luxurious home
in whatever city/country you live in
and for you talking about tsunami
and blue-necked magpie and saving
the hump-back whale and the monarch
butterfly is more important. For
mere mortals like us, the welfare of
Bihar is more important. And yes, we
are doing something to make Bihar a
better place instead of just talking
about it but that's for another
discussion. Let's open a debate on
who is doing what for Bihar and I
will be more than happy to tell you
my contributions.
It's your turn now Rajesh ji but
this was my last comment on this
issue. I have no further interest in
stretching this debate any more. -
Deepak -
October 29, 2005
I am very happy to hear that you are
doing something on the ground in
Bihar. But Deepakji I think you have
not seen the pictures of the human
misery in the Indian cities that got
flooded. I do not wish to describe
the horror stories I read in the
media. People lost their lives and
that is pathetic. When people died
because of the earthquake we spoke
of the relief operations even though
we have no control on earthquakes.
In the case of man made disasters we
do have control and we must exercise
it. Deepakji, winning/losing an
argument on PD gives me no happiness
or sorrow. When we look at the
pictures of dead people after a
disaster we lose all arguments
either ways. We are the people who
can generate opinions that can make
a difference. At least let us not
abdicate our responsibility and
become a partner in the crime. We
must speak out with honesty and
responsibility.
I an sure when you look at the
pictures of human misery from around
the globe because of man made
disasters, you will not be thinking
of the spotted owl in SIMI Valley,
blue-necked magpie, saving the
hump-back whale or the monarch
butterfly. You will think of how
these lives could have been saved.
If you refer back to my writings in
PD you will find I have written on
varied topics. It is not that I have
a vested interest in this topic. I
am not a politician and I do not
have any hidden agendas. It is plain
concern with which I write. If today
is bad and we do not make amends
tomorrow will be horrible.
I am not indifferent towards Bihar
and it's problems. Please refer
back, I have spent considerable time
writing about possible solutions to
the Bihar quagmire and have helped
out wherever I possibly could. Over
time I have realized that we can not
do much to solve the problems
arising out of the political
scenario in Bihar. Now I have
reached the conclusion that Laloo is
like a self limiting disease. He
will trouble the people of Bihar
till they themselves rise to get rid
of him. He is his own enemy. He does
not need our co-operation, he will
destroy himself. You can see he has
lost support and is tottering
already. - Rajesh Chaubey -
October 29, 2005 |
