Earth Day will be celebrated on Wednesday

Earth Day, Smurf Day. Officially Earth Day isn't until Wednesday and I'm already tired of it.

I remember when Earth Day first came into being. Hippies roamed the planet. We were urged to give peace a chance. We believed in making love, not war. If everyone would just be nice then the world would be a better place.

All of us former hippies and hippie wanna-be's grew up and found out that it wasn't that simple. We gave peace a chance and discovered that wasn't always the best solution. We found out that making love can kill you. We are still sending our children off to war in the name of restoring peace. I'm not so sure that is working either but we can't help meddling in the affairs of others. We are determined that the rest of the world enjoy the blessings we have in our country. We will help them if it kills all of us.

We old hippies and wanna-be's are the ones who are panicking as we face retirement with dwindling savings. We are the ones in charge of companies struggling to survive. We know first-hand that life isn't as simple as we once believed.

Yet, in spite of it all we have not lost our idealism. We discovered that if we worked within the system, we could change the way things have always been.

As a result of the laws we have enacted, our air is cleaner. I remember wondering how we could tell if cars are running if they didn't emit a plume of blue smoke behind them. Factories no longer have great black clouds cloaking them. Our waters are cleaner. Our air is cleaner. It is even possible to go out to eat and not have to breathe the pollution of others.

Do you ever wonder why other countries have cholera outbreaks and we seldom do? It is because we have water and wastewater plants that enable us to remove and/or neutralize contaminants in our water. We have laws regulating pollutants. Old hippies did this.

Of course, the terminology has changed. At first it was called idealism; then conservationism or environmentalism. Now it is the green movement. Personally, the green movement sounds like something that happens after a very bad meal.

I find it interesting that the country that uses the greatest amount of the world's resources; the country that embraces oversized vehicles; the country that I call my own; is also the country that is determined to clean up its own mess.

It may be just because I'm ignorant, but I don't see a so-called green movement in the countries that produce the cheap goods that we crave. I read about air pollution in China and Mexico and wonder how soon it will be before clean air becomes as important to them as it is to us.

I don't believe that anything we do or don't do will save the planet. I believe that the planet is perfectly capable of getting along with or without us. All the hoopla about saving the planet is really about making it more comfortable for us.

If we clean the water then we won't get sick and die from water pollutants. The same applies to air pollution. If we grow our own food it tastes better and is better for us than something that is shipped from who knows where and is coated with who knows what. If we conserve our resources then there is more for our children and our children's children to enjoy.

By refusing to spoil everything we touch we make the world better for all of us. I plant flowers, not to make the world a prettier place, but because I enjoy them. I plant a garden, not because I'm part of the green movement, but because I like picking vegetables in my own backyard. I pick up trash out of my yard because is my yard and it is my responsibility to take care of it the best that I can. I do these things for myself.

The planet is our home and we all have a responsibility to take care of it the best that we can on Earth Day and every day. It is ours to cherish or trash. It is our choice. You make a difference no matter which you choose.

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