Global warming, the increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s near-surface air and oceans, has now become a problem that our country can no longer afford to ignore.

The effects of global warming are varied, including rising sea levels, altered growth patterns of agriculture, increased extreme weather events such as category 4 and 5 hurricanes and category 5 tropical storms, and increases in the range of tropical diseases.  These are but a few of the overall effects of the increasing temperatures on Earth.

The Environmental Protection Agency recently put out a report endorsing what weather experts have long argued: that oil refining, power plants, and automobiles emissions are important causes of global warming.  President Bush dismissed the report and still opposes the Kyoto Treaty, a treaty negotiated in Kyoto, Japan in 1997 calling for mandatory reduction of "greenhouse gases" put out by industrial nations.

Al Gore is releasing a documentary this summer entitled An Inconvenient Truth about global warming and its effects.  In the film, Gore discusses what the vast majority of scientists all over the world already know: that the human race will very likely destroy Earth within this generation or the next if we don’t take drastic measures now to slow and/or reverse this phenomenon.  

What can we do about global warming?  Here are five ways each of us can do our part:

·        Compact fluorescent light bulbs: These energy-efficient bulbs cost less than $4 and are produced by major corporations like GE. If every household in America switched five regular light bulbs for five fluorescent bulbs, it would be the equivalent of taking 1 million cars off the highways for a full year.

·        Outdoor solar lighting: These yard or patio lights cost less than $20, and they don't burn any electricity or produce any CO2.

·        Programmable thermostats: Though these thermostats cost from $50 to $100, they can actually cut your heating and cooling costs. Set the setting so it's a little bit cooler in the winter and warmer in the summer when you're not in the house. A difference of 2 degrees can reduce a home's CO2 emissions by up to 9 percent over the course of a year.

·        Air filters: Changing the air filters in your heating and cooling systems regularly can knock 2 percent off of your CO2 output each year.

·        Electric hot water heater blanket: Hot water heaters use a lot of energy and generate a lot of CO2. A blanket costs less than $18 and can cut your home's CO2 emissions by almost 4 1/2 percent.

According to Al Gore, the 10 hottest years in our country’s history have all occurred in the last 14 years, and we, the human race, have caused it.  We salute Gore for actively and aggressively addressing an issue that can’t wait another 20 years.  We just wish that the majority of the House and the Senate, as well as the White House would jump on Gore’s bandwagon.  In fact, the entire world should.  Thank you, Al Gore!