Go Green: The Earth is Flat

By Tom Last

It’s a common misconception that people thought the Earth was flat until the Middle Ages and that Columbus set sail to prove the Earth was round. In fact, the belief that the Earth is flat was pretty much disproven at least a few hundred years before the birth of Jesus. Although, there were still some skeptics throughout history who believed the Earth was flat and some still believe it to this day even though scientists, scholars, and most others know that the Earth is spherical.

Presently, the Governor of Florida denies climate change exists even though his state continues to be battered by epic climate disasters such as hurricanes, flooding (partly due to rain bombs), and record-breaking heat. He ignores all scientific data that proves climate change is causing a world-wide environmental disaster and refuses federal funding that would help Floridians pay for green initiatives such as solar and wind power. Although he attempts to address the changing climate with his $1.8 billion Resilient Florida Program, he also signed a bill that would increase the use of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, remove the term climate change from state statutes and ban power-generating wind turbines offshore.

Why would Governor DeSantis deny climate change when in the last seven years, 122 separate billion-dollar disasters have killed at least 5,000 people and cost over $1 trillion in damages just in the U.S.? Why would he reject federal funds for green energy solutions when solar and wind energy are now cheaper than energy derived from fossil fuels? Maybe he has friends in the oil and gas industry where these companies continue to reap profits of $2 billion a day. Or maybe he is just one of those people who still believes the Earth is flat.

Governor DeSantis should read up on American scientist, inventor, and women’s rights campaigner Eunice Newton Foote. She was the first scientist to confirm, in 1856, that certain gases warm when exposed to sunlight, and that therefore rising carbon dioxide (CO2) levels could increase atmospheric temperature and affect climate, a phenomenon now referred to as the Greenhouse effect. This groundbreaking work was titled “Circumstances affecting the Heat of the Sun’s Rays.” Thanks to Eunice, we know that the greenhouse effect theory is nothing new, but it has been around for almost 170 years.

In addition to reading about Eunice, I would recommend that Governors DeSantis pick up the book “Life as We Know It (Can Be),” by Bill Weir. Mr. Weir is an award-winning journalist and the first Chief Climate Correspondent in network news. “Life as We Know It (Can Be)” is an amazing book on the nature of our planet that has been in distress due its exploitation by governments, businesses and all of us. The book provides graphic accounts of man’s assault on the environment but also includes inspirational stories based on those who are fighting back by becoming environmental advocates and those who are developing new solutions to save the earth.

These new green solutions that I read about in the book involve a Brooklyn based business “Glenwood Mason Supply” that many here in the Rockaways are familiar with. The company is using a new technology to capture CO2 into their cement blocks, locking it away before it makes its way into our atmosphere. This is just one of many interesting and positive stories within the book.

So, to Governor DeSantis, I say read up on Eunice’s theory and Bill Weir’s book and hopefully you will have a better understanding of climate change and how we can possibly save the Earth. Also, Governor DeSantis, please read the following passionate quote from former Republican Senator Howard Baker –

“If we cannot swim in our lakes and rivers, if we cannot breathe the air God has given us, what other comforts can life offer us?”