Wrong side of history?

Heat waves are more intense, longer lasting, and three times as frequent as 60 years ago. More areas are vulnerable to record-breaking temperatures each succeeding year. As a 72-year-old with a reasonably good recollection of the last 60 years, Montana summers are seldom as enjoyable as half a century ago.

My youth did not have the multiple 90-plus degree days, weeks, and months occurring year after year. Each summer is hotter than the last, and each fire season lasts longer and is more destructive, resulting in more deaths and forest and river closures.

For Montana farmers and ranchers, heat stunts the quality and volume of crops and feed. With the July we are enduring and the projected heat for the remainder of the summer and the fall, it will be hell on earth for these folks. Crops wilt in the fields while ranchers face the unenviable task of culling their herds.

The outburst of wildfires and the drawdown of streams, rivers, and lakes play havoc with Montana’s other big industry--tourism. With Hoot Owl (no fishing) restrictions in place for most Montana rivers, booking for guides is nonexistent. Lodging reservations are plunging with the never-ending summer heat and smoke that extends well into the fall. These problems did not exist half a century ago.  

Insurance costs have soared for homeowners, ranchers, farmers, industries, and everybody and everything else. Governmental programs for emergencies and disasters are tapped out, contributing to the bulging national debt.

Utility costs soar as we seek the comfort and safety of air conditioning indoors. Montanan’s reliance upon energy produced by our multiple dams receives a double whammy as the decreased water flow results in loss of hydro energy.

For those who cannot afford air conditioning, death rates increase in direct proportion to the temperature. More people and livestock die from heat and drought than all other natural disasters.

Yet the prevailing political party of Montana has overwhelming disdain and goes to great lengths to ridicule climate change. Sen. Steve Daines denies climate change exists and refuses to address the issue. To his credit, Rep. Zinke has stated, “I do not believe it’s a hoax,” in contrast to former President Trump. But Zinke downplays its effects.

Montana Republican lawmakers recently passed legislation barring agencies from considering climate change when permitting large projects that require environmental reviews, including coal mines and power plants. Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the bill, making Montana the nation’s most aggressive anti-climate state. Like former President Trump, they believe all our forests need is a good raking and thinning, and all will be well.

Republicans are urging Montana’s Supreme Court to overturn a landmark ruling that found the state is violating Montanan’s constitutional right to a clean environment by allowing oil, gas, and coal projects without regard for global warming.

The Republican Party is frequently on the wrong side of history, such as their America First and isolation position of the 1930s and early 40s. It was only the attack on Pearl Harbor that changed their position, allowing for our country’s united approach to winning WWII with our allies.

What unifying “attack” will bring the Republican Party and its members into the fold so that, as a country, we will unite and fight our common enemy? 

Regretfully, there will be no Pearl Harbor-like climate change “attack” upon us to change the Republican Party’s perspective.

The enemy before the gate is cunning, patient, and very persistent. Ignorance is like that.

Tom Muri is a 5th generation Montanan and a retired military JAG Officer, writing from Montana and Arizona.