I know
You'd like to remain
Distracted,
Ignorant.
Before you get upset
That I accused you
Of the I-word,
Take a breath.
Because I care,
I'm not going to spare you—
Rising sea levels
In Bangladesh
Are the least of your worries.
No water in Phoenix,
Drought in Iowa.
Tampa slammed
Repeatedly, every year.
Hurricanes
Will have to be numerated.
You'll run out of letters
To name them.
Whoever heard of one
With a name that
Started with X?
They're called typhoons
In the Pacific Islands.
And they're worse there too.
No escape,
Even in paradise.
Designer respirators
Are all the rage
In California now.
You'd like to lament
Your burning lungs,
But you can't spare
The breath
I asked you to take
Earlier.
Nevertheless,
Try breathing again.
Know that you have joined
Much of the rest
Of the world
In our climatic
Suffering.
It was easier to ignore
When the laments
Were in Chinese.
Or Hindi.
Wasn’t it?
Our responsibility
And our inheritance.
Human greed,
“Need,”
Short sighted.
And yet,
The logical conclusion
To a system and
Ideology that
Assumes and demands
Infinite growth.
Meanwhile,
At the Equator
It will be too hot
To sweat.
Let me say it again:
It will be too hot
To sweat.
Illegal immigration
Won't be caravans of hope
From Central America.
It'll be you, me,
Clamoring to be
Canadian.
Icelandic.
God forbid,
Even Russian.
Can you define
Peak oil?
It's code for
Not enough
To bring food
To your city
From places where
It can still grow.
Do you know how to farm?
How to heal with the herbs
Who live amongst you?
If there are any.
I'm sorry it's come to this.
Ripping off
The blinders
Of denial
Is painful work.
But I do this,
Because I care.
It sounds similar,
But it's different
From, “It's for your own good.”
Hate me if you'd like
But remember,
Your indignation's true name is
Shared Culpability.
