[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 7]
[House]
[Pages 9249-9250]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     OILY APOCALYPSE OR GREEN WAVE?

  (Mr. KUCINICH asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. KUCINICH. We are now in the 36th day of a man-made environmental 
disaster which is fast becoming an ecological apocalypse for countless 
species of marine life. The ecosystems of the Gulf of Mexico cannot 
survive wave and wave of toxic substances hitting the beaches.
  The ultimate surprise is not that it happened. Oil companies, 
Democratic and Republican administrations, refused responsibility and 
rejected alternatives. In this privatization of the natural world, 
damage to sea life is the cost of doing business. The ultimate horror 
is that we can't stop the flood of oil, won't stop consumption of oil 
products, and fail to admit the limits of technology.
  This is a morality play writ large as environmental collapse becomes 
the new normal. Can we realistically look to Washington alone to 
protect the natural world? More permits for offshore drilling have been 
issued. We must look to the consequences of our own demand and 
consumption: the energy we use, the kind of cars we drive,

[[Page 9250]]

the products we buy, the food we eat, and our individual impact on the 
natural world.
  We can seize this moment. We as individuals can begin a green wave of 
sustainability to save the planet and ourselves.

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