May, 25 2010, 03:56pm EDT
Oily Apocalypse or Green Wave?
Kucinich: We Must Look to the Consequences of our own Demand and Consumption
WASHINGTON
Congressman
Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today made the following statement on the Floor
of the House of Representatives about the ongoing ecological disaster in
the Gulf of Mexico:
"We are now in the 36th day of a man-made
environmental disaster which is fast becoming an ecological apocalypse
for countless species of marine life. The ecosystems of the Gulf of
Mexico cannot survive wave after wave of toxic substances hitting the
beaches.
environmental disaster which is fast becoming an ecological apocalypse
for countless species of marine life. The ecosystems of the Gulf of
Mexico cannot survive wave after wave of toxic substances hitting the
beaches.
"The ultimate surprise is not that it happened.
Oil companies, and Democratic and Republican administrations, refuse
responsibility and rejected alternatives. In this privatization of the
natural world, damage to sea life is the cost of doing business. The
ultimate horror is that we can't stop the oil flood, won't stop
consumption of oil products and fail to admit the limits of technology.
Oil companies, and Democratic and Republican administrations, refuse
responsibility and rejected alternatives. In this privatization of the
natural world, damage to sea life is the cost of doing business. The
ultimate horror is that we can't stop the oil flood, won't stop
consumption of oil products and fail to admit the limits of technology.
"This is a morality play writ large as
environmental collapse becomes the new normal. Can we realistically look
to Washington alone to protect the natural world? More permits for
offshore drilling have been issued. We must look to the consequences of
our own demand and consumption: the energy we use, the kind of cars we
drive, the products we buy, the food we eat, and our individual impact
on the natural world.
environmental collapse becomes the new normal. Can we realistically look
to Washington alone to protect the natural world? More permits for
offshore drilling have been issued. We must look to the consequences of
our own demand and consumption: the energy we use, the kind of cars we
drive, the products we buy, the food we eat, and our individual impact
on the natural world.
"We can seize this moment. We as individuals can
begin a green wave of sustainability to save the planet--and ourselves."
begin a green wave of sustainability to save the planet--and ourselves."
Video is available here.
Dennis Kucinich is an American politician. A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1997 to 2013, he was also a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president of the United States in 2004 and 2008.
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