Beliefs Pt. 1

Yesterday, four of the Vermont DOTCOM students met in the Burlington Ben and Jerry's ( a perfect spot, even if it was a little cloudy out) to discuss the summer program ligistics, our blogs, and the new phase of DOTCOM. Simultaneously, we learned about each other's endeavors and opinions, which was an experience in of itself. It would be really great to work with you guys some more!
The majority of the meeting was spent discussing our personal beliefs/issues that we think are important. And that got me thinking about what I believe in. It's a big question to ponder, but it's an important one. Reading and listening to some source of news everday, we are all exposed to the world's issues- the genocide in Darfur, climate change, the complicated Israel-Palestine conflict, a failing economy, crimes against women in the Middle East and elsewhere, Zimbabwe's political situation and more. Bombarded by these stories, it can be overwhelming. But I always feel saved from being swamped by the media by grabbing on to and focusing on to a news report that explores things that I feel strongly about.
One of these things that I have always been drawn in by is our environment and most specifically that ever present threat of global warming. Though this is definitely not a unique topic to feel strongly about, I personally am moved by the fact that this is a huge, GLOBAL problem. It is an issue that does not discriminate, and involves us all- from those that have in a sense created this mess, to those that in no way have contributed. And that thought is a scary one. There is no rationalizing or summit meetings with climate change, it can only be reversed with direct action. Just today in school one of our teachers informed us about a huge ice bridge in Antartica that collapsed, and urged us to realize that everyday the warming temperatures effect the world, in small to large ways. I have been invested in actions such as recylcing, carpooling, composting, eating locally, switching off appliances, like many others, but it is always shocking to step back and look at the global effects of this climate change we are all trying so hard to combat. It makes me want to work harder in my efforts, for sure.
An interesting media piece about the ice bridge story: my teacher, being British, always checks the BBC news website for news first. It was here that he saw the story, right on the front page. (not on the front page, today, of course!) He then went to CNN.com to check out that home page and couldn't find the ice bridge story. He would of had to type it into the search box, but why would he know to do that if it was breaking news that had occured just that day?
Just something to think about.