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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (June 24, 2015)
Page 6 New Prices Effective May 1, 2014 Martin Cleaning Service O PINION Diversity in the Workplace June 24, 2015 Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Residential & Commercial Services Minimum Service CHG. $VPDOOGLVWDQFHWUDYHO charge may be applied CARPET CLEANING 2 Cleaning Areas or more $30.00 Each Area 3UH6SUD\7UDI¿F$UHDV (Includes: 1 small Hallway) 1 Cleaning Area (only) ,QFOXGHV3UH6SUD\7UDI¿F$UHD (Hallway Extra) Stairs (12-16 stairs - With Other Services) Area/Oriental Rugs $25.00 Minimum Area/Oriental Rugs (Wool) 0LQLPXP Heavily Soiled Area Additional $10.00 each area (Requiring Extensive Pre-Spraying) UPHOLSTERY CLEANING 6RID /RYHVHDW 6HFWLRQDO &KDLURU5HFOLQHU Throw Pillows (With Other Services) ADDITIONAL SERVICES • Area & Oriental Rug Cleaning $XWR%RDW59&OHDQLQJ • Deodorizing & Pet Odor Treatment • Spot & Stain Removal Service • Scotchguard Protection • Minor Water Damage Services SEE CURRENT FLYER FOR ADDITIONAL PRICES & SERVICES Call for Appointment (503) 281-3949 Tepid Response to Stop a Cooking Planet World leaders fall short on climate change E MILY S CHWARTZ G RECO After a quarter-cen- tury of buzz over global warming, the climate talkers are at it again, doing whatever it is they do. Visitors to the next big climate change summit, in an act of glorious irony, will SDFN3DULVERXQGMHWVÀRZQE\$LU France — one of the meeting’s big corporate sponsors with deep ties to fossil fuels. The UN-organized meeting won’t take place until December, but Pope Francis is already doing his best to make sure global pow- ers give it plenty of bandwidth. Days before a conservative Italian newspaper leaked the Pope’s game-changing encyc- lical, the leaders of the seven richest industrial nations (G7) were already talking about the need for “deep cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions” and “a decarbonization of the global BY economy over the course of this century.” 7UDQVODWLRQ 7KH * OHDGHUV want expiration-date stickers slapped on the oil, gas, and coal industries. Identifying the culprits that pump carbon into today’s economy or promising to do something about it themselves would have been bolder. Failing to name names shows how cowed these presidents and prime ministers are. Still, collectively kicking the world’s fossil-fuel addiction means no more min- ing coal by blasting the tops off mountains. No more offshore oil platforms prone to bursting into ÀDPHV 1R PRUH WHOOLQJ FRP- munities they can’t ban frackers from operating near freshwater sources. “What is occurring is in many ways unprecedented in the history of international cooperation in re- spect to vision and scale,” chirped Christiana Figueres, the UN’s top FOLPDWHFKDQJHRI¿FLDO Figueres makes it sound like a big-fossil deal. As Pope Francis might say, Hallelujah. But wait. They’re talking about the year 2100. How old will you be 85 years from now? Oh, right. You’ll be GHDG 0H WRR , GRXEW ZLOO be the new 30 at the turn of the next century. No one writing this accord will get to personally de- clare the world’s energy matrix fossil-free. Probably none of their children either. Punting to a generation not yet born isn’t leadership. Real to-do lists are doable during your own lifespan. Did Abraham Lincoln promise when he delivered the Emancipa- tion Proclamation that all enslaved SHRSOHZRXOGEHIUHHE\" When the Supreme Court de- manded an end to the segregation of American schoolchildren with all deliberate speed, did the jus- tices add “so get it over and done with before 2039 rolls around”? And when Ronald Reagan shouted in Cold War-weary Ber- lin “Tear down this wall,” did he HODERUDWHZLWKWKHZRUGV³QRODWHU than the year 2072”? No, no, and no. Sure, re-wiring the global grid takes time. But given what’s at stake and the speed with which the costs of wind and solar power are dropping, 85 years is too long. How about some gumption and a bigger hurry? Apparently G7 leaders and VRPH FOLPDWH WDONHUV ÀLUWHG ZLWK a brisker pace that would have meant kicking the worldwide fossil-fuel habit by 2050. Both groups wound up saying — I’m paraphrasing here — “nah.” Aim- ing for 2100 is a compromise be- tween doing nothing and doing what’s necessary right now. Our country, the world’s No. 2 carbon polluter after China, can transition to full reliance on ener- gy derived from wind, water, and sunlight by 2050, half a century faster than the G7’s timetable. A group of researchers from several leading universities even drew up a state-by-state roadmap. As the mother of two kids still in elementary school, bequeathing this headache to them seems bad enough. Why are global leaders shunting this tough job to our chil- dren’s grandchildren? Emily Schwartz Greco is the managing editor of OtherWords, DQRQSUR¿WQDWLRQDOHGLWRULDOVHU- vice run by the Institute for Policy Studies.
