Al Gore Interview In Sierra Magazine

[RestoreGore]

"Start by Arming Yourself With Knowledge"

Al Gore breaks through with his global-warming message
By Pat Joseph

Six years after a U.S. Supreme Court decision cost Al Gore the presidency, the politician once universally described as wooden is a genuine celebrity—a regular guest on late-night TV, a best-selling author, even a Hollywood leading man. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this transformation is that Gore himself hasn't really changed. An Inconvenient Truth, his acclaimed movie about global warming, is a continuation of the work Gore has been doing away from the spotlight for years: delivering slide presentations, for free, to anyone who would listen. That effort, in turn, grew from the then-senator's 1992 book, Earth in the Balance. Like the companion book to An Inconvenient Truth, it was a best seller—but it also drew ridicule. During the 1992 presidential campaign, George H. W. Bush mockingly dubbed him "ozone man" and said, "This guy is so far out in the environmental extreme, we'll be up to our necks in owls and outta work for every American."

No plague of owls befell us during the Clinton-Gore years, only prosperity. Still, Gore's environmental passions were kept in check during the 2000 presidential campaign by risk-averse political consultants.

Gore seems looser and more engaging as a private citizen than he did as a candidate, but his recent popularity may have more to do with shifting political tides and a growing awareness that global warming is real and urgent. It's fair to say Gore was ahead of his time in 1992. But no longer.

On the morning of our interview, the phone rings at 7:30. Gore's assistant says, "I have the vice president on the line. Are you ready for him?" I think we finally are.

Excerpt from the interview:

Sierra: In your movie, you cite U.S. determination in World War II as an example of the kind of resolve we need to confront global warming. But it took the attack on Pearl Harbor to galvanize the country. Are we going to have a similar moment in this crisis?

Gore: Obviously, we all hope it doesn't come to that, but for hundreds of thousands of people in New Orleans, that moment has already been reached. And for millions of people in Africa's Sahel, that moment has already been reached with the disappearance of Lake Chad. For an untold number of species, it has been reached. The challenge for the rest of us is to connect the dots and see the picture clearly. H. G. Wells wrote that "history is a race between education and catastrophe." And this is potentially the worst catastrophe in the history of civilization. The challenge now is to seize our potential for solving this crisis without going through a cataclysmic tragedy that would be the climate equivalent of wartime attack. And it's particularly important because, by the nature of this crisis, when the worst consequences begin to manifest themselves, it will already be too late.

Sierra: Could you have expressed that level of alarm from the Oval Office?

Gore: I like to think so. No position comes close to being president in terms of the ability to influence events, but the ability of any president to bring about dramatic change depends on how well informed the citizenry is. I want to create a situation in the United States where whoever runs for president, from either party, will encounter an aroused electorate that demands of the candidates that they make global warming their top priority.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My comments:

The one thing I took from this interview that I take away from all of his interviews and appearances, is that this is not about him. He puts the issue front and center, and I truly believe that questions surrounding the issue of the environment are what really excite him. Also, yes, he does know the power of the Presidency (as do I and many others in a society where checks and balances and the lack of a good ole boys network rule,) but he also knows that the power of the people is greater than any Presidency, for we live in a Democracy not an oligarchy... or so we are told. A President is not a KING, and therefore in order for any President to be able to exert influence over an issue to exact positive change, the impetus for that change in a Democracy must first come from an informed citizenry.

It isn't that Al Gore doesn't know this, it is that he is so much more aware of what is more important in this process for the ultimate good: That of working to bring political change through empowerment of the people as it should be in a Democratic society which should work for the benefit of the people. Running in 2008 isn't going to cut it yet. There is too much work that still needs to be done to bring that informed citizenry into being, and then to inspire that informed citizenry to use the knowledge they have armed themselves with to not only push for change on ALL political levels, but to also become a part of the solution themselves. That will take time, and time is not what we really have a lot of considering the speed in which our planet is changing.

Those who keep saying "Al Gore must know he can do more as President" are missing the point once again. It has to be done by ALL OF US, and Mr. Gore is telling YOU that YOU have the power, and in essence the same power he has regarding using your mind, your voice, and your heart in becoming part of the solution and exacting change. He also eluded to the point here that in the past, movements to bring enlightenment regarding this topic have faded, which was what I too write about in my entry regarding the Crying Indian ad in the seventies and its effect on communities that has now faded somewhat. This movement cannot then be reignited and sustained without people keeping the momentum going and being inspired by a leader on this issue... and that leader is Al Gore, who has more heart, soul, commitment, desire, passion, and respect for this issue now than any President could ever have.

Again, the title is just that, a title, and it means nothing without the backing of the people. The power to exact real change comes from all of us if we stop looking to others to do it and take it upon ourselves to be that change. That is the reason why other movements lose steam, because people are too busy looking to one person to take it all on rather than doing the work themselves and joining in the fight. Now is the time that we must all see the urgency of the climate crisis, and become our own President of sorts. Only then after we do so and exert the pressure necessary on political leaders across the board will we begin the changes necessary to turn this tide. It isn't just about seeing the word President in front of Al Gore's name, it is the ISSUE that needs to be addressed now on all levels, including and most importantly a moral one. Mr. Gore knows that, and that is why I believe it is time to join him in this fight for our future sustainability.