I also admire Al Gore's presentation in "An Inconvenient Truth." It spells out what's happening with an array of animated illustrations that make a very convincing and scientifically sound argument about the imminent threat of global warming. Through our cars, factories, farming, transportation and other industrialized activities, we are emitting record levels of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere -- levels that have never been seen in the history of our planet. If this trend is not immediately reversed, devastating results are inevitable.
As Al Gore explains in the movie, receding glaciers and the melting of ice caps on the planet will lead not only to rising ocean levels around the world -- threatening literally hundreds of millions of people who live in cities close to sea level -- but also altering ocean currents and causing weather patterns that will result in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of humans and animals. This is all spelled out in great detail with the aid of overwhelming scientific evidence.
In the film, Al Gore addresses and refutes many of the myths and counterarguments about global warning, such as the ridiculous idea that we have to "balance the earth with the economy" -- a misleading phrase used by pollution apologists who narrow-mindedly claim the only way to grow the economy is to destroy the planet in the process.
There's a bit of humor in the film, a whole lot of insight, and regrettably, more than a few slow moments that delve into Al Gore's personal history. Although these moments provide some interesting insight into the motivations of Al Gore as an individual, they didn't lend much to the primary purpose of the film, in my opinion.
He did not have to do that. It could even be argued that there were many reasons why it was against his interest to do so, yet he chose to pursue this activity, and I applaud him for that. If only other leaders -- both inside and outside the political arena -- would have the courage to stand up and do what's right, we might not have so many of the problems that are facing our world today.
Lastly, I admire Al Gore's communication ability. As a communicator myself, I'm more than a bit impressed to see someone who has mastered the art so successfully. Of course he's had a lot of practice, not only in politics but also in giving this particular speech over a thousand times. You would hope that anyone giving a speech a thousand times would be very good at delivering it, and he is. I'm also glad to see a former professional politician doing something that's actually useful for humanity rather than sitting around in Washington pretending to represent the will of the people (the favorite pastime of professional politicians, it seems).
I strongly recommend that you see "An Inconvenient Truth." It is a wake-up call to America -- one that would be ignored at our own peril. If we fail to recognize what we are doing to our planet, then we will suffer dire consequences that will inevitably include a massive population correction.
Make no mistake about it: The earth doesn't need humans in order to survive, but humans absolutely need the earth in order to survive. If we, through our actions, unleash unprecedented climate change, then we're going to suffer the results. It isn't nature's revenge and it isn't punishment -- it's just cause and effect.
Overall, in "An Inconvenient Truth," Al Gore paints a grim but highly educational picture of the ecological challenges facing humanity from today forward. It is a movie not to be ignored or trivialized.
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