Are we doing anything to help?

Assa la mu alaikum today I’m going to be speaking about -- the greatest environmental challenge facing this planet.
The first seven months of 2006 were the warmest since climate record-keeping began in 1895. And on every scientists projection, it’s only going to get warmer. The question is how warm? If temperature increases are kept to 1 to 2 degrees, it is manageable. But if warming increases to 5 to 9 degrees or even more, the effects on our planet will be catastrophic. We must begin to take action and save our planet.
So, each of us is confronted with a choice -- a choice that will impact not only our future, but the futures of generations to come. Do we live as if nothings wrong? Or do we make the changes needed to prevent catastrophe?
How has global warming become so serious? Quite simply, we are addicted to fossil fuels. And it is the usage of these fuels – coal, oil, gasoline and natural gas and the resultant greenhouse gas emissions – that is the primary cause of global warming. Carbon dioxide, the most plentiful of the greenhouse gases, is produced by power plants, cars, manufacturing, and residential and commercial buildings. And here is the key: Carbon dioxide doesn't dissipate. It stays in the atmosphere for five decades or more – causing Earth's temperature to rise. That means that the carbon dioxide produced in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s is still in the atmosphere today. And the carbon dioxide produced today will still be in the atmosphere in 2050 and beyond.
The Earth has already warmed 1 degree in the past century and we're seeing the dramatic effects: * The 1990s were the hottest decade on record. * Glaciers are melting; coral reefs are dying; species are disappearing. * Extreme weather patterns have evolved – heat waves, droughts, hurricanes, and floods – and they are occurring with greater frequency and greater intensity. Things will only get worse as temperatures rise. The question is how much will the increase be?
If temperatures increase by another 1 to 2 degrees over the next 50 years, we will see major -- but manageable -- shifts in the world around us: But if nothing is done…if the Earth warms 5 degrees or more in the next 50 years, the face of our planet will change forever. According to scientific estimates: * Three out of five species would become extinct. Oceans would rise. Flooding would occur. Hurricanes, tornadoes and weather would become more volatile than ever. Malaria would spread.. * Sea levels would rise more than 2 feet, leading to 100-year floods every 10 years. * Risk of catastrophic wildfire would more than double. * Energy demands would increase 10 to 20 percent. So, we're at a tipping point.
Refuse to act, or act too slowly, and humans will have caused the most sudden temperature shift in the history of the planet. But, if we act soon and decisively, global warming can be limited to 1 to 2 degrees. This, I contend, should be our goal. America emits 25 percent of the world's greenhouse gases, This makes the U.S. the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world yet they aint doing much to help. Cars and trucks in the United States produce nearly 1.2 billion tons of carbon dioxide a year – which is playing a great role in global warming.
As long as our nation continues its addiction to oil, we cannot sufficiently slow the warming trend. Rather, we quickly need to get up and running on developing new, clean technologies and alternative fuels or else our children and grandchildren are going to face major catastrophes in the future. So I now leave you with the choice, are you going to get up and save our planet, or are you just going to sit back, relax and watch it slip through our fingers..like that…