Earth Day

45 years later and the outpouring of concern which sparked the first Earth Day has given way to, mostly, resignation regarding the continuing despoiling of mankind's only home.  Resistance to change is what seems to be driving the destruction.  Even though solar and wind energy are rapidly becoming competitive with oil and gas, we continue to subsidize the destruction of wide swaths of America and Canada in the name of "energy independence".  We might as well call it what it is, namely profits for oil companies.  Until the last drop of oil is wrung out of a protesting Mother Earth, there will be no alternatives allowed on a large scale.  Meanwhile, we are in the midst of causing the sixth mass extinction.  The other five, where up to 3/4 of the species on earth perished in short order were caused by meteors, volcanic eruptions or other natural causes.  By pouring trillions of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in a geological instant we may be greasing the skids leading to our own departure.  There may still be time for us to halt and begin to reverse the damage we have done, but I wouldn't count on it.  I hope when my grandchildren celebrate Earth Day in 2060 there will still be an earth to celebrate.