A new survey reported on by WND on November 28, 2019 indicates that about six in 10 Americans say they are at least "somewhat worried" about global warming and 23 percent say they are "very worried." Meanwhile, Washington-based psychiatrist Lise Van Susteren who has studied the mental health impacts of climate change for a decade and a half, says it is affecting us all.
And what kind of impact may that be? She lists ""conflict avoidance, fatalism, fear, helplessness and resignation." The latest survey was conducted by a joint venture of Yale and George Mason universities. It found it is not just "only upper-middle-class, white, well-educated, latte-sipping liberals" that care about climate change. Meanwhile the "dismissives" are mostly "well-educated conservative white men." (I guess the researcher had people like me in mind when reporting that finding.)
What does this generic "climate change anxiety" look like for some? Here are two examples reported by WND:
Kate Schapira, a senior lecturer at Brown University, operates a "climate anxiety" booth, just like Lucy's counselling booth in "Peanuts." She's so concerned that she and her husband are not having children. She wants her "sense of responsibility to the world to shrink down to the size of one person." And she's not flying again.
Debbie Chang organized a group counselling session on dealing with climate anxiety on the National Mall in Washington in May, and she is going with a zero-waste policy. WND said, "She keeps chopsticks in her purse to avoid single-use plastic utensils, carries a handkerchief to substitute for paper napkins, and brings a steel container with her to restaurants for any leftovers she might want."
So, why all this anxiety? One lobbyist (Alicia Cannon) says it has to do with the fact that climate change is such a "large-scale issue and it's overwhelming and you feel that it's overwhelming because of helplessness."
Okay, here are my thoughts. Don't ever say I'm not sharing.
First, climate-change is not a large-scale issue for many millions of people. In fact, millions around the world just worry about making it through the day, let alone worry about what may happen a decade from now.
Second, it's not over-whelming unless we want it to be. We are not breathing less because of climate change. No one or nothing is choking us. Why then, on a practical level, are we so much more anxious now?
Third, if you have a feeling of helplessness, it is because you have bought into the lie that the world will end soon. People have been proposing this event at least for the last 2,000 years (that's 200 times longer than the current prediction says we have left). Check out the details here. You don't need to feel helpless on this account any more than you do believing that Santa Claus is real and you've been naughty all year. [I don't venture to guess the correlation between being a climate change fearer and believing in Santa Claus.]
Fourth, isn't it amazing that an increase in climate change anxiety or syndrome goes hand in hand with an increase in Trump Derangement Syndrome victims. I am convinced that if ever the Democrats are in power again, you will notice the climate change anxiety symptoms will die down a lot if not totally disappear. There will always be a few carriers of it around that have suffered beyond repair. But the point is that this is a political "anti-Trump" epedimic like so many other things these days. Things like violence on airlines and restaurants and elsewhere because people happen to be wearing red hats with a certain four capital letters on them.
So, where do I stand on the issue of climate change?
I believe God created this earth in such a way that He could say, "it is good." I believe we have not taken care of it as well as we should have. I believe God is perfectly aware of the state of His creation and He cares much more for it than all the tree huggers in the world combined.
I believe I have a responsibility to do my part in keeping 'me' from harming the earth. But I also believe that God cares as much if not more about our lack of humaneness that we have shown towards our fellow men (as we kill them, get them addicted, sexually abuse them, torture them, hate them, even cheat them or take advantage of them) and to babies in their mothers' wombs (as we abort them). And probably a lot more things that we have a direct "up or down" impact on.
Let's start working on these things and let Him worry more about the the weather -- after-all, that's His Natural realm. Our purpose is to love all life -- especially where our actual actions would otherwise eliminate it outright. Now get out there and take a deep breath.
-- Ken Godevenos, writing to do form Toronto, Ontario.
p.s. I would like to have your view on this. Share a comment on the blog. Please sign up to receive my next blog. Just fill out the "subscribe by email" section on the right. And feel free to share this blog with others.
So, why all this anxiety? One lobbyist (Alicia Cannon) says it has to do with the fact that climate change is such a "large-scale issue and it's overwhelming and you feel that it's overwhelming because of helplessness."
Okay, here are my thoughts. Don't ever say I'm not sharing.
First, climate-change is not a large-scale issue for many millions of people. In fact, millions around the world just worry about making it through the day, let alone worry about what may happen a decade from now.
Second, it's not over-whelming unless we want it to be. We are not breathing less because of climate change. No one or nothing is choking us. Why then, on a practical level, are we so much more anxious now?
Third, if you have a feeling of helplessness, it is because you have bought into the lie that the world will end soon. People have been proposing this event at least for the last 2,000 years (that's 200 times longer than the current prediction says we have left). Check out the details here. You don't need to feel helpless on this account any more than you do believing that Santa Claus is real and you've been naughty all year. [I don't venture to guess the correlation between being a climate change fearer and believing in Santa Claus.]
Fourth, isn't it amazing that an increase in climate change anxiety or syndrome goes hand in hand with an increase in Trump Derangement Syndrome victims. I am convinced that if ever the Democrats are in power again, you will notice the climate change anxiety symptoms will die down a lot if not totally disappear. There will always be a few carriers of it around that have suffered beyond repair. But the point is that this is a political "anti-Trump" epedimic like so many other things these days. Things like violence on airlines and restaurants and elsewhere because people happen to be wearing red hats with a certain four capital letters on them.
So, where do I stand on the issue of climate change?
I believe God created this earth in such a way that He could say, "it is good." I believe we have not taken care of it as well as we should have. I believe God is perfectly aware of the state of His creation and He cares much more for it than all the tree huggers in the world combined.
I believe I have a responsibility to do my part in keeping 'me' from harming the earth. But I also believe that God cares as much if not more about our lack of humaneness that we have shown towards our fellow men (as we kill them, get them addicted, sexually abuse them, torture them, hate them, even cheat them or take advantage of them) and to babies in their mothers' wombs (as we abort them). And probably a lot more things that we have a direct "up or down" impact on.
Let's start working on these things and let Him worry more about the the weather -- after-all, that's His Natural realm. Our purpose is to love all life -- especially where our actual actions would otherwise eliminate it outright. Now get out there and take a deep breath.
-- Ken Godevenos, writing to do form Toronto, Ontario.
p.s. I would like to have your view on this. Share a comment on the blog. Please sign up to receive my next blog. Just fill out the "subscribe by email" section on the right. And feel free to share this blog with others.
It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.
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