My sinuses and eyes are dry, my lungs feel congested, I have an occasional dry cough, last night I felt weak and “under the weather.”

No, it is not covid – I’m vaccinated for that damn plague.

My respiratory symptoms are due to the horrible air quality we are experiencing from the smoke we are receiving from all the wildfires on the north American continent mixed with all the pollution from burning fossil fuels for energy in our automobiles, power plants, and factories.

In my classroom I’m running the air filter on turbo mode so my students have cleaner air while in class…

…and all the while people seem to only be talking about the pretty sunsets while continuing to deny anthropogenic climate change and carry on like nothing is wrong.

It boggles the brain.

We are our own limiting factor.

In my opinion and experience, many politicians and religious leaders are nothing more than openly (or under the table) highly paid businesspersons who are adept at saying exactly what you want to hear so you will willingly feed them more of your support, time, and money.

They do not care one bit about you and are nothing more than charlatans and leeches feeding upon the fears and tears of the masses. They have nothing to offer me when it comes to making the important decisions that support us all.

The lessons of history show that many politicians and religious leaders are out for only personal gain or the betterment of only their chosen “side” or agenda. This side-taking helps only a very few and it only servers to widen the gap of division, doubt, fear, and hate.

To think that a politician, a religious leader, (or a random loudmouthed citizen on social media) would have better health, science, or environmental suggestions/recommendations than those learned individuals who have devoted their entire careers, lives, and passions to the betterment of human health, understanding the environment, energy matters, and the progress of everything moving forward – would be the ultimate in senseless, futile, self-sabotage.

Therefore, in great matters of health, environment, evolution, adaptation, life, and death, I will always first and foremost choose to listen to and follow the careful recommendations of the experts. If however, a politician or religious leader chooses to ignore the lure of money, status, power, prestige, and instead choose to actually listen to and act upon the guidance of the experts – then I might choose to give them a chance to live up to their claims.

So far this has not happened yet and we are spiraling down toward our species demise.

If we do not adapt – nature will have its way with us because in nature there are only two options: adapt or die.

In this case adapting means putting aside toxic politics and dusty ancient dogma in favor of following the evidence, logic, and listening to and accepting the findings and recommendations of the planets unbiased experts. Then, with this knowledge in hand we must all work together to do the following:

We must transition as fast as possible away from a fossil fuel based energy economy and replace it with a renewable energy based economy.

We also need to end single use throw away items.

We need to learn to eat far less animal protein – unless we buy locally and ethically produced meat or raise, or legally hunt/fish for them ourselves.

We stop having litters of children just because we can.

We all need to go get ourselves vaccinated when faced with planetary plagues.

We must work together to be more accepting of each others ethnicities, nationalities, choices, and differences – we need to be more humane humans.

We need to plant more trees, flowers, and vegetables.

We must help animals and humans in need.

We must help the young get a good start and help the old find friendship, support, and rest.

If we can find the will power to do these things – our species will thrive.

If we cannot do these things I fear that we will end up living on only in the fossil record.

Make good choices.

Do good things.

Be the change.

Are you air aware? www.purpleair.com