Tomorrow’s Child

Tomorrow’s Child

Without a name; an unseen face

and knowing not your time nor place

Tomorrow’s Child, though yet unborn,

I met you first last Tuesday morn.

A wise friend introduced us two,

and through his shining point of view

I saw a day which you would see;

A day for you, and not for me.

Knowing you has changed my thinking

for I never had an inkling

That perhaps the things I do

might someday, somehow, threaten you.

Tomorrow’s Child, my daughter-son

I’m afraid I’ve just begun

To think of you and of your good,

Though always having known I should.

Begin I will to weigh the cost

of what I squander; what is lost

If ever I forget that you

will someday come to live here too.

Glenn Thomas, © 1996

No matter how far down the wrong path you travel, turn back! We’re currently emitting 30 billion tons of carbon into the atmosphere each year. The earth can only assimilate 2 billion. Kyoto attempts to address some of our wrongdoings – but is just a rounding error of what we need to do. And yet we can’t even do that. Capitalism seemed like a good idea at the time, but it’s not sustainable. Howard has now bought into climate change – only because his re-election depends on it. So he’s going to do what’s required – but not at the cost of coal-miner’s jobs or the economy!! How do we get here? How do we get to the position where people like Bush and Howard are our leaders? Are we idiots? That’s not to say that their opposition/replacements will be any better. They’re all self-interested politicians, with short-termist views incongruent with what our children’s children want from them. Admittedly, this is merely a rant and not a solution – required solutions are too radical for us to comprehend as a general populace – we are sheep and need to be led. Please George Bush, show us the way, oh wise man.