We all have our needs. And then we have our "needs." Air conditioning, cars, phones, television, internet, FOOD, shopping, distractions, hobbies, travel...the list goes on. I can't imagine life in California without air conditioning. Others can't dream of a life without social networking. Our "needs", though, have been polluting the air more and more for centuries. Today America alone pumps out roughly 6,000,000 tons of CO2 per year. It's the highest CO2 output in over eight hundred THOUSAND years. 40% of this comes from just the power plants.
So that's a lot of big numbers.It isn't just numbers, though, and I think we forget that these numbers signify a giant change in OUR world. Do you really want to step outside and get hit by a blast of air 9 degrees hotter? Swim over a lifeless, eroded reef? Do you want an acidified ocean, devoid of all its sea creatures?
     SO the next time you think about getting a fancy but gas-guzzling car, or a pack of plastic water bottles, or a non recyclable container, or an easy plastic bag - remember what it is doing to the planet. Stop  for a fraction of a second, catch yourself, and opt out of the plastic bag. Remind yourself to start a change in lifestyle, and then ACTUALLY change it. As Californians say, "Like, ACTUALLY." No faking it. Don't go on that three-day trip to New York if you can help it; spare jet fuel. Spare gas. It's no longer the era of thinking about change - it is about making that change happen.