By Peter Christensen

Op-Ed Commentary

How many times have we heard doomsday prophets ask if we believe in climate change? Putting the question this way immediately suggests that climate change is a religion not a matter of science or measurement. It is something that one either believes in or not. That’s why it’s so easy to ignore.

Gospel stories about fires in the Arctic, firestorms in California or land clearing fires in the Amazon Basin are given as proof that the works of humans are evil and that we must therefore reject modern civilization presumably including modern medicine, longevity of life span, refrigeration, insulated homes, air conditioning in our cars, the internet, education and hot showers.

Climate change prophets follow this repertoire of disaster stories by condemning the “cancer” of modern civilization followed up with an admonishment to give up materialism. Then, and only then, they promise miraculously we will fix things. It is the ‘fix things’ part that I am on board with; however, once we have gotten rid of modern civilization and materialism I am not sure what we would use to fix whatever is left?

Local fires have been a yearly summer phenomenon; at least since the time I worked as a firefighter in the eighties. While those fires were natural occurrences present day fires are kindled by a lack of faith in the Church of Climate Change. They are evidence that the end is near. (I do agree that the end is nearer, especially for those of us over 70.)

One could note that the Doctor Creek fire, for instance, is very small by comparison to say the fires set in Kootenay National Park by the feds as ecosystem restoration projects less than a decade ago or the Kootenay Valley Fire of the late 1920s that burned both sides of the Upper Kootenay valley and Beaverfoot Valley from Canal Flats to the Trans-Canada Highway east of Golden or the vast Bow Valley and Eastern Rockies fires of the 1950s. However, making actual comparisons in size of these fires would lessen the impact of current fire fear mongering and the probability of gaining converts to the Church of Climate Change.

A good news story for these Prophets of Doom is that a lot of people are currently living lighter on the land and rejecting materialism as a result of the service industry having tanked, creating high unemployment. What better time to preach the gospel of guilt?

All kidding aside, one might consider that it is through adaptation that earthbound species have survived and thrived. Our hope is in innovation, not belief systems. Beware the prophets of gloom, their dour faces, and seemingly good guy organizations. The old bait and switch game is being played; the bait is the Church of Climate Change, the switch is to power.

The end.

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