The country’s open space containing wildlife and plants are probably not more immune to air pollution from power plants than it is in big cities. Congress in 1977 amended the Clean Air Act to require the Environmental Protection Agency to make an effort to clean air in national parks and other places that holds a historical value in hope to leave behind for the next generations. Since then, no administration including Bush’s has paid any attention to this ratification. Although we are having some critical and uprising issues in the US, the government can’t disregard the pollution of wilderness areas and historical parks. Government should continuously protect and assure a pollution-free national park.
Two weeks ago, the anti regulatory brigade in the Office of Management and Budget killed ozone standards that offers strong protections for plants, trees, crops and wildlife. Despite the protests from its own regional offices and the National Park Service, the Environmental Protection Agency nearly approve for regulations that would make it easier to build coal-fired plants near parks and wilderness areas without installing pollution control plants. Protecting and improving national parks was President Bush’s environmental promises in the 2000 campaign. He pledged to control greenhouse gas emissions but he abandoned Kyoto Protocol on climate change. The White House weakened a proposed rule that would reduced the airborne particulates that ruin the scenic views in many parks. As a result one of the three national parks suffers from one or another form of air pollution including the Yosemite. Bush only speaks out promises but no actions have taken out far enough to change anything.
The air in these parks will only get worse if the administration proceeds with its latest rules opening the way for more downwind power plants. Sulfur dioxide will continue to cause acid rain and kill trees. Mercury emissions poison streams. Nitrogen oxides and sulfates will continue to create smog and haze. Eventually it will not only affect the trees, streams, animals but we will see the deepening effects of pollution to human beings. We need a leader to lead us to a solution for the better of life of animals, plants, and human beings if we want to look forward to a next generation.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Border Insecurity?
Based on the commentary editorial from New York Times, “Border Insecurity” the nation is so confused and conflicted by the uprising of immigration concerns. From San Diego on the Pacific to Brownsville on the Rio Grande, a division constructed as a steel curtain is descending across the continent to keep out illegal immigrants. This nation used to be a “confident global magnet” that embraces the flow of immigrant workers and U.S citizens to be. Now we no longer want to nurture it but instead we are stooping ourselves down on the idea.
The Department of Homeland Security has been reinforcing an ineffective system consisting of fencing and sensors, trucks and boots on the ground. Where there is a lot of desert and mountains in border areas like Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, we are investing billions of dollars for a fence. In my opinion, we are spending billions to build a "real" fence but nevertheless, from the beginning did we spend enough to build real dams or levies in New Orleans to keep hurricanes like Katrina from entering. No amount of fencing will deter illegal crossers because this will only motivate and give way to other illegal activities. Border-town officials insist that to build the fence we would have to build new roads that will connect to the old ones. These will be something useful for smugglers to pass illegal drugs to the neighboring states.
In Texas, the fence is a “dotted line”, blocking some places but not the others. Since that it cuts through the University of Texas at Brownsville and blocks the migration of wildlife, we no longer hold the principle of conserving nature preservatives.
Like any legal immigrants while crossing deserts and mountains, they are sweating and riven to find the American dream and stray away from poverty. Their show of hardship in this country through the economic eye should give us a passion to find an effective system to help them not push them away. I agree with this article that we need to find a way to supply visas and give immigrants the legal entrance to the U.S rather than “chasing them across the desert” with guns. The Border Patrol should have the technology and resources to catch drug smugglers and other criminals.
The strong government that we said we have isn't so brilliant because this system they put down shows the inability/incapability of what government can do.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/opinion/04tue1.html?ref=opinion
The Department of Homeland Security has been reinforcing an ineffective system consisting of fencing and sensors, trucks and boots on the ground. Where there is a lot of desert and mountains in border areas like Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, we are investing billions of dollars for a fence. In my opinion, we are spending billions to build a "real" fence but nevertheless, from the beginning did we spend enough to build real dams or levies in New Orleans to keep hurricanes like Katrina from entering. No amount of fencing will deter illegal crossers because this will only motivate and give way to other illegal activities. Border-town officials insist that to build the fence we would have to build new roads that will connect to the old ones. These will be something useful for smugglers to pass illegal drugs to the neighboring states.
In Texas, the fence is a “dotted line”, blocking some places but not the others. Since that it cuts through the University of Texas at Brownsville and blocks the migration of wildlife, we no longer hold the principle of conserving nature preservatives.
Like any legal immigrants while crossing deserts and mountains, they are sweating and riven to find the American dream and stray away from poverty. Their show of hardship in this country through the economic eye should give us a passion to find an effective system to help them not push them away. I agree with this article that we need to find a way to supply visas and give immigrants the legal entrance to the U.S rather than “chasing them across the desert” with guns. The Border Patrol should have the technology and resources to catch drug smugglers and other criminals.
The strong government that we said we have isn't so brilliant because this system they put down shows the inability/incapability of what government can do.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/opinion/04tue1.html?ref=opinion
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