I guess we won the war on pollution

[BobcatJH]

With that mission now accomplished, we can go back to the way things were:

The Bush administration is considering doing away with health standards that cut lead from gasoline, widely regarded as one of the nation's biggest clean-air accomplishments.

Battery makers, lead smelters, refiners all have lobbied the administration to do away with the Clean Air Act limits.

With that sad news, I bring you this subtle reminder:

If we're going to do this, if we're going to work for a better tomorrow, we're going to do so in the face of such massive opposition. We're going to do so despite the fact that a large proportion of the population is living in complete denial. We're going to do so knowing that our opponents resort to shameful, personal attacks because they can't debate us on the merits of our arguments. We're going to do so while those in our way refuse to become a part of the solution, instead willfully remaining a part of the problem. But make no mistake, we're going to do so.

It shouldn't surprise us when we encounter fervent opposition while we fight for progressive values. When an old way of thinking is rendered obsolete by emerging realities, it's hard for some people to accept change. It's not enough for them to embrace a dying model. No, they've got to fight, tooth-and-nail, to see that we fail. In this case, the incestuous relationship between the energy lobby and the Republican Party has resulted in an ongoing campaign to paint the most important issue of our time as an affront to commerce and an extremist position only debated by radicals. But if you let yourself get caught up in the right wing's tried-and-true disinformation-mongering, it's easy to lose sight of the goal.

And this is one of the many great aspects of "An Inconvenient Truth". Sure, as we know, we'll encounter resistance when we fight for change. That's a given. Some people will never come around. Some people will remain oblivious to the fact that the world is moving on without them. Some people will fight to see that things don't get any better. But we don't fight to change every mind. We can't. Not all at once. When we do, every moment we waste on those who will never come to the light is a moment we don't spend making things better. What we can do starts with us. It starts by our becoming advocates for change at all levels. It starts by our not despairing when we run into opposition. Their protests only mean what we're doing is working.

[havocmom]

1. Nah, just the usual GOP Cut & Run from the battles we SHOULD fight.

AWOL as usual.