House Republicans, including Representative Fred Upton, recently voted to prohibit the defense department from providing funding for research on climate change, despite the fact that the Pentagon considers such research vital to its mission.

Upton is so against the idea that climate change is happening, and that it is a real threat to the environment, that he votes to block funding for scientific research that is designed to find the truth and inform the people he is supposed to be representing.

People need to know the truth, and we need our congressional representative to be open to the truth. We need someone who believes in thinking seriously about the future, our own and that of our children and grandchildren. As Aldous Huxley once said, “Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.”

As Michiganders, we can all see that climate changes are happening. We see the dead fish in our area after a very harsh winter; we see that it’s June and some days we are still wearing jackets and the next day we are burning up. We read about severe droughts, wildfires, tornadoes and hurricanes. We need a leader in Washington who will fight for the health of our environment.

Fred Upton is not that leader.

Politics and science need to harmonize. If they don’t, it may be too late. Our leaders need to wake up to the dangers of climate change.

I want Fred Upton to be replaced by Democrat Paul Clements, a man who is committed to applying the truth of scientific knowledge to improving our lives, and the lives of generations to come. I hope you will join me in voting for Paul Clements in November.

 

Aiden Weston

St. Joseph