National Treasures                                                                                #227

By Hank Silverberg     

 

The scenes from Yellowstone National Park in Montana are devastating. The record flooding from this past week has caused $29 million in damage to roads and buildings, and actually washed away chunks of the Gardner River bank. The damage will cost millions to repair and has ruined long, dreamed- about vacations for thousands. But there's more to it than that.   

(Damaged North Entrance to Yellowstone, Courtesy of NPS)

Much of what happened damage-wise this past week in Montana is likely the result of climate change. The National Park Service warned us years ago that warmer temperatures are accelerating the melting of mountain glaciers, and it's changing the timing, temperature and amount of streamflow. Vegetation patterns have been altered, and wildfires have increased, enhancing flooding in some areas and creating drought in others. 

The impact on the mostly pristine Yellowstone is now easy to spot, and this week's floods put a new urgency to do something. 

https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/climate-change.htm

Yellowstone was designated as a preserve in 1872. A push from Teddy Roosevelt in 1906 led to the creation of the National Antiquities Act, giving authority to presidents to protect sites of historic significance such as national monuments.  President Wilson signed a law in 1916 creating the National Park Service to oversee such sites. 

Today there are 423 national park sites with 63 designated as official National Parks. 

Alias National Park in Alaska is the biggest, covering 13.2 million acres. The Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis is the smallest at 192 acres.  

The idea behind such parks is to preserve our country's natural beauty and its history for future generations. I live in the shadow of Shenandoah National Park along Virginia's glorious
Blue Ridge, and I have been to several National Parks in the past, including the Gateway Arch just last summer.   

I have always wanted to visit Yellowstone. Maybe I will get there once they fix this damage. The Park will partially re-open again to visitors this week. (6/22). But I am again wondering if our government's lack of any serious action on climate change will spoil such glorious sites for my grandchildren. 

Littering on Mars

The next NASA mission to Mars may have to include a "NO LITTERING" sign. The Mars Perseverance rover had everybody's head turning last week when it snapped some pictures of a MANUFACTURED metal object amidst some rocks on the red planet. No, it's not some mysterious

(Photo courtesy of NASA Perseverance) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

piece of a spaceship that crashed, or the remains of a Martian civilization. It appears to be part of the rover's thermal blanket that may have come off during the vehicle's landing last year.

The picture above was snapped by the rover itself.  But here's the mystery. How did it get more than 2 kilometers away from the landing site? The current belief is that it was blown there by the wind. So, it wasn't a Martian scavenger. But it is sure fueling all kinds of mysterious theories.

Either way, it's litter and somebody should pick it   up. We have already polluted one planet and we need to keep Mars clean. NASA's Perseverance rover has been looking for signs of past microbial life, and collects rock and soil samples in preparation for future human exploration.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/nasa-rover-images-show-agency-062148769.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

No Holiday

A major defeat for Virginia's regressive Governor Glenn Youngkin. The State Senate has rejected his proposal for a tax holiday on gas, an effort to remove the 26-cent sales tax on gas between July and September.

Democrats in the state senate, which they control by a slight margin, say there would be no real benefit to Virginia consumers, but instead it would mostly benefit out-of-state drivers and the oil companies.
 The provision included nothing to force retailers to pass on the savings to consumers. Virginia has a $2.6 billion surplus, but gas tax money is specifically dedicated to

transportation projects. 

 Neighboring Maryland had a one-month suspension of a 36-cent tax on each gallon of gas which has now expired.  It had no noticeable impact on prices at the pump. 

https://wtop.com/virginia/2022/06/virginia-senate-dashes-youngkins-gas-tax-holiday-proposal/

Remember Covid-19?

Millions of parents with young children have been waiting for this. The Centers for Disease Control has now recommended the Covid-19 vaccines for children under 5. Any child six months or older is eligible. The shots will protect the children from hospitalization, death, and possible long-term complications, but will not prevent them from getting the illness. There are two vaccines, Pfizer and Moderna, which are now available. 

https://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2022-06-18/cdc-advisers-recommend-covid-19-shots-for-children-under-5

The dose is about one-tenth of the adult dose for Pfizer, with three shots needed. Moderna will be a quarter of the adult dose with two shots. 

So, should you still get your child the shot? Here's a fact. Since the pandemic began, 480 children under 5 died from Covid-19.  

In total, more than a million Americans have died from Covid-19 up to this point.  

Dumbest Quote of The Week!

We return this week to a woman who has been labeled by many as the dumbest person in Congress for our dumbest quote of the week.

Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (R-Colo) was a guest speaker at a Christian conference. Talking about gun control, she said: 

 “On Twitter, a lot of the little Twitter trolls, they like to say, ‘Oh, Jesus didn’t need an AR-15, how many AR-15s do you think Jesus would’ve had?” Well, he didn’t have enough to keep his government from killing him.”

I am not Christian. But the New Testament does say Jesus willingly died on a cross to repent for the sins of those who followed him, and he dissuaded his followers against using violence to save him. 

So, I don't think I am saying anything sacrilegious when I write that no, Lauren, Jesus did not need an AR-15 and neither does the average American citizen. Oh, and no matter what your religious beliefs, historical Jesus was NOT crucified by his own government, but by the imperial power of the Romans who were occupying his country--Judea.

  

(Your comments and suggestions are welcome)

(My book "The Campaign" can be purchased at the links below. Or you can buy a copy by emailing me at:

HankSilverberg@gmail.com for instructions on how to get a copy at a reduced price and with my signature.)                       

 

https://www.amazon.com/Campaign-Hank-Silverberg/dp/1543422608

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-campaign-hank-silverberg/1126429796