This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here.
In a Lost Universe (With You Know Who)
Creating a Genuine Hell on Earth
Imagine yourself in space, looking down on our world and yet unable to return any time soon.
Consider it our bad luck, in fact, that Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita Williams were the two Americans sent to the International Space Station, 250 miles above this planet, for a few days in June and now find themselves stuck there until perhaps next February. If only it had been Donald Trump and J.D. Vance.
If only indeed.
Of course, in some sense, both of them are already in deep space, far beyond where Wilmore and Williams find themselves. And if you don't believe me, just ask any dog or cat from Springfield, Ohio.
Here's the truly sad thing, though: if Donald Trump were once again to become president (and Vance his veep), the rest of us would undoubtedly find ourselves spinning somewhere in space with nowhere to go, nowhere to land, and only piles of AR-15s in sight (and all too sadly in use).
In fact, let's not mince words. Were Donald Trump reelected this November, he would not only be the oldest president ever to take office, but he might represent nothing less than the all-too-literal end of the world, at least as we've known it all these centuries, even if in distinctly slow motion. And typically of The Donald, it would happen slowly enough that, at age 78, he wouldn't be around to pay the full price or even take the full blame for the nightmare to follow.
Think of it this way, if you want: his election would give the phrase "hot-button issue" a genuinely new meaning. (And believe me, I'm already sweating!)
After all, right now, in September 2024, we're living on a planet that has never, not at any time in human history, been hotter. Our world has, in fact, been setting remarkable heat records, one after another, month after month -- August was the 15th straight month to be the hottest of its kind ever -- year after year. In fact, 2023 set a global heat record and 2024 has a 95% probability of smashing that record. And the weather of such an overheating planet should already be taking your breath away, even if we're still early (more or less) in a process that could indeed create nothing less than a genuine hell on Earth.
All the greenhouse gases that have been and are being sent into the planet's atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels are creating ever more heat, about 90% of which is at present being absorbed by global waters and is already altering our world in stunning ways. Recently, for instance, there has been devastating climate-change-related flooding globally, whether you're talking about parts of China, Nigeria, or most recently central Europe that suddenly found themselves underwater (while, by the way, Portugal was burning with more than 100 fires). The droughts have similarly been horrific, while the fires -- oh, yes, those fires! -- have been beyond fierce, including the recent blazes in Southern California and the 1.9 million (yes, 1.9 million!) acres scorched in Oregon's record summer fire season. And don't forget those Canadian fires of 2023 and 2024 that set such grim records in a world where "nearly 12 million hectares [of forests] -- an area roughly the size of Nicaragua -- burned in 2023, topping the previous record by about 24%."
And the heat? Well, don't get me started on that. This year, records have been smashed again (and again) across the American West -- and significant other parts of the planet.
And let's face it, even without Donald Trump, the United States, a country that likes to think of itself as the good guy in so many situations, has historically been the worst of bad guys when it comes to what's now known as climate change (a term, by the way, that's far too mild and unassuming for the set of distinctly [un]natural phenomena it represents). It's true that China, while installing significantly more solar and wind power than the rest of the planet combined (no, that is not a typo!), still beats the U.S. right now when it comes to pouring greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, though its emissions may peak soon.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
