Today, much of our attention is focused on the Russian-Ukraine war as well as political battles, while remarkably little attention is being paid to what may be the greatest threat to our grandchildren’s future: climate change.
You don’t have to be a scientist to see that severe floods, wildfires, temperature extremes and storms such as Hurricane Erin have become the new normal. Exxon’s own scientists warned as far back as the 1970s that burning fossil fuels could cause global warming with dramatic consequences by 2050. Regrettably, those findings were hidden until investigative journalists revealed them in 2015. Despite this, our government now intends to expand fossil fuel use while reducing investment in renewable energy and carbon-reduction technologies.
As someone who worked on carbon capture research for several years before retirement, I can tell you this is not just short-sighted — it is dangerously reckless.
If you love your grandkids, now is the time to act. Call your representatives, demand serious investment in clean energy and carbon-reduction technologies, and press state and local officials to treat climate change as the defining challenge of our era. Our grandchildren depend on it.
Steven Regen, Williamsburg
Scapegoats
I was just listening to Marc Short, former Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff, blaming “gender dysphoria” for mass shootings. Right-wing outlets and social media are losing their minds that the Minneapolis school shooter was reportedly a transgender woman. Are we really going to start blaming the unending mass shooting crisis in this country on a population that is so much more vulnerable to violence being perpetrated on them?
According to the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law, transgender people are four times more likely to be victims of violence than cisgender people. According to The Violence Project, out of 200 mass shooters between 1999 and 2024, 97.7% were male. Only one was transgender. So, gosh, the amount of mass shootings committed by transgender individuals has doubled, meaning 2 out of 200 instead of 1.
The Republican Party has been quite eager to scapegoat this population. Families with transgender teenagers just want privacy so their kids can enjoy a middle school or high school experience. These people know that this community will not fight back because they do not want to draw attention to their lives or loved ones. Bullies always look for someone that will not fight back. And scapegoating minorities is so very 1930s Germany.
Mary Flaherty, Yorktown
Gun safety
This year, the Virginia legislature passed many gun safety laws that the governor vetoed. These bills would have prohibited certain types of firearms, such as assault weapons; addressed “ghost guns” and rapid-fire devices; increased and promoted secure firearm storage and safe storage practices; and strengthened laws to keep guns from domestic abusers. Gun violence claims about 1,200 lives in Virginia every year. It is the leading cause of death for young people ages 1-17.
So, there is a lot that can still be done, but my delegate voted against many of these protective measures. He voted no establishing a five-day waiting period for gun purchases. He voted no to prohibiting the manufacture, sale and possession of assault-style weapons. He voted no to limiting the sale of assault-type weapons to individuals 21 or older. He voted no to requiring the secure storage of firearms in households with minors. He voted no on the manufacturing and sale of ghost guns. He voted no to prohibiting the carrying of assault weapons in public areas. He voted no to allowing universities and public colleges to prohibit guns on school property. And he voted no to prohibiting weapons in hospitals that provide mental health care.
This year I am voting for Liz Richardson in the 100th House District. It is time for a new approach to the problems of gun violence in Virginia.
Paula Nees, Chincoteague