I finally saw Al Gore's movie this weekend. It was everything I expected. Depressing, disturbing and maddening. Clearly we have a problem, but it seems as though if we act collectively, we can change the disasterous course that we're currently headed down. And what I kept thinking about while I was watching the movies was there's going to be a point, sometime in the not too distant future, where it's going to be too late. We might act, try to change our behavior, but we have passed the tipping point and all efforts will be futile.

The other thing that I always think about when these stories come up, when there's a debate about the science or I hear our morornic president say that the jury is still out on climate science or how he won't sign the Kyoto Treaty because it will be bad for business is that we have a two choices, do something or nothing and there are two possibilities, that the climate is getting warmer, we're causing and it's a problem or the climate is not getting warmer, we're not causing it and there's no problem.

From here you can build a basic four box matrix where there's a problem and we do nothing or we do something and where's there's not a problem and we do nothing or we do something. Or if you look at it another way, we can do nothing and there's either a problem or no problem or we can do something and there's either a problem or no problem.

It seems to me that looking at this matrix, that the benefits of doing something far outweigh the costs of doing something or doing nothing. There is no benefit to doing nothing, even if bamboozlers like Senator Inhofe are right and there's no problem. Regardless of whether or not there is a problem, the efforts that we would make to reduce greenhouse gasses, reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and general become better stewards of the environment, would greatly improve our quality of living. And while there is no real debate amongst experts as the the cause of Global Warming, there is great debate about the cost or benefit to the economy of acting.

The head in the sand crowd would have you believe that placing environmental restrictions, improving fuel efficiency, and seeking out alternative sources of energy are going to be detrimental to economy. The truth is the exct opposite. Change is inevitable and there is going to be a new paradigm for living beyond petroleum and coal. Either we are going to stick to our guns or we're going to lead the way. New technologies are coming whether we like it or not. Are we going to be the innovators and bring new technology to the world or is the rest of the world going to innovate and bring us along kicking and screaming? That's the really the only question that matters at this point.

We have a huge opportunity as a country to lead the way, investing in new technology and change the way we live. We need leadership that recognizes this fact and challenges the country to find solutions and solve problems. Sadly, we lack that leadership. This brings the Inconvenient Truth story back to the messenger. Who out there thinks that the US and the world wouldn't be better off if the Supreme Court didn't install the current president in the White House and we'd had someone with the heart, the work ethic and the morality of someone like Al Gore, jr. leading this country and the world?