by Lana Evans

Created on: April 19, 2008

Well, if we can ask underdeveloped countries to "go green" then, yes. We have had a head start on the rest of the world in industry. We are one of the the more populated nations. We also have many more square miles under our feet than most nations. So the impact we have made has been over both, a longer period of time and a greater span of earth.

Everyone follows our example. As it is, many people hold the opinion that we shouldn't ask underdeveloped nations to "go green." One reason they give is that people from those nations have never experienced the progress that we have. They say that it would only be fair to allow those nations the same, or similar, privileges; to build an industrial nation with the right to compromise the environment.

Shhh! They want us to pretend that it's still 1950 so they can catch up to us without any constraints! At least that my interpretation. In a way, I can't blame them. They have been deprived. They do envy us. They would like to progress before the window for easy, low budget industrial progress is closed forever for environmental reasons. They can just hear the heavy steel door slam shut on the industrial revolution. They know that when that happens, they won't be able to take the easy way into development; by simply depleting natural resources that they have available to them.

They can't understand why some are pushing the green issue. To them, it looks like we just get to have our cake and eat it too. Not only should we not give that kind of impression, but we should clean up behind ourselves, at the very least. That at least justifies our asking them to "go green." We can't sit here and say, "We big, strong superpower! Ug! We do whatever we want to, then stop you from making wheel like we know how to! Ug! Only us do that, now go sit down and be quiet."

We have had the advantage, even at the expense of the environment, so I believe that we should try harder to fix what we have broken. After all, following years of industrial development, we certainly have the financial means to afford to do whatever is expected of us in order to make amends for our short sightedness. That short sightedness, by the way, led and influenced the developed world.

Maybe if we hadn't discovered electricity first, some other nation might have. Maybe the so-called Baghdad Battery would have led the industrial revolution. Maybe they could have built an industrial nation on millions of 2-volt batteries. I guess that would have made Iraq the world dominating super power.

But they're not. We are. Didn't we get lucky? The point is that we have the obligation and the means to correct our actions and our bad environmental examples to the world. As the leader, we should show some initiative to lead the global community in things other than destructive practices. We must continue to lead by example.

So, we can still continue to ask everyone to "go green," while at the same time paying our dues in proportion to the amount, duration, and intensity of the damage we have caused. It would be irresponsible, pompous, and offensive not to in the eyes of the global community.
For every action there is a consequence; I think this is a fair consequence. Plus, it will help to heal the environment a little quicker, I'm sure.

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