20something: Is it hot in here, or is it just me?

Published in The Post-Star (Go)
March 29, 2007

Nothing is neutral.

A sociology professor terrified me with that statement in college. I'm not good at making quick decisions, so it was overwhelming to suddenly feel surrounded by them.

She made the point that even the simple act of eating comes with a lot of baggage, thanks to globalization. You can choose between organic and non-organic; fair-trade and non; New York or New Zealand apples. Your dollars make a statement, whether you want them to or not.

The weather, apparently, isn't neutral either.

Sure, rain is rain, and you'll get wet whether you're liberal, conservative, green or a member of that obscure "Rent is Too High" party that showed up in last year's gubernatorial elections.

But drop the words "global warming" into any of those circles, and you'll definitely get some mixed precipitation.

Most liberals and greens will unleash a hurricane of anxiety, pelting their listeners with statistics about the imminence of climate change and free viewings of "An Inconvenient Truth."

Many conservatives will respond with an icy drizzle of skepticism.

"Global warming? Riiiight ... Al Gore didn't notice that snowstorm last month. Guess he was busy inventing the Internet!"

(As for that last party, I can only assume they would say something like: "The planet is in danger? Will that reduce my rent?")

I recently overheard a group of middle-aged men debating global warming in these terms. One argued that scientists are still divided on the issue, and it's only those crazy liberals who are scaring everyone because ... well, that's the part I must have missed. Is there some sort of secret kickback system, where a dime of every dollar spent on reducing carbon emissions gets donated to the Democratic Party?

Another man responded with earnest outrage that millions of people will die by the time the proof is undeniable, and it's only those crazy conservatives who are dilly-dallying because ... hmm, I didn't catch that one either. Are all conservatives accepting bribes from the oil industry? (Why haven't I been offered one? I've voted for at least one Republican.)

They droned on for an hour or more, accomplishing nothing besides annoying everyone in earshot. I wish I could say this surprised me, but I've heard the same debate so many times it hurts my head.

How did what should be a scientific issue get so tied up in a political tug-of-war? The result is that people who vote on issues, rather than party lines, are bewildered into a false sense of neutrality that feels more like paralysis.

Nothing is neutral, and it's foolish to pretend otherwise. But that doesn't mean everything needs to become a battle, either, especially not a politicized one. The world's got enough war on its hands already.

Amanda Bensen writes features for The Post-Star. She agrees that rent is too high, but probably won't be voting that way.