Stu Dent just turned 18, so when the Red Cross blood drive set up at his school he figured he’d give donating a shot. It would be a great excuse to miss a class or two! Stu headed to the gym, read the materials, got his temp and blood pressure checked, settled onto a cot, and rolled up his sleeve. Then it struck him; he never did like needles all that much. Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea after all. He watched in fascination as nurse Wanda Yerblud scrubbed up his forearm.
“First time giving?” she asked sensing some apprehension. As she readied the needle Wanda advised, “Now’s a good time to look the other way.” Stu took her advice and turned his head as the needle pierced his skin.
Later, in Current Events class Stu’s favorite teacher, Homer Wurck, handed out a news article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. It had to do with some unexpected, sudden changes to the Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources webpage. “Most of the references to climate change, as well as the specific words 'climate' and 'climate change,' were no longer on the page," the article noted. Also missing were academic citations to research on climate change and its impact on the Great Lakes region.
“I don’t get it.” Jess Wundering commented as she finished reading the article. “Wouldn’t even those people who aren’t quite on board about climate change at least want to be able to learn more about it?” she asked. “It seems like whoever made those changes thinks that by pretending something’s not there it will somehow magically disappear,” Bea Reese Onable added. “Yeah, the DNR is in charge of protecting our natural resources. Even without complete agreement on all the details about climate change, we should be trying to understand how it’s affecting Wisconsin’s resources,” Ed Scratcher pondered.
In Biology class last hour Stu learned it was just a myth that ostriches avoid danger by sticking their heads in the sand, but he wondered about humans. Earlier, when he had looked away while donating blood it made him feel a little better, but it didn’t change a thing about what was actually happening. “We shouldn’t be playing games trying to hide from reality,” Stu thought to himself. “After all, this planet is the only home we’ll ever know. We’re here forever…Earthbound.”
“First time giving?” she asked sensing some apprehension. As she readied the needle Wanda advised, “Now’s a good time to look the other way.” Stu took her advice and turned his head as the needle pierced his skin.
Later, in Current Events class Stu’s favorite teacher, Homer Wurck, handed out a news article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. It had to do with some unexpected, sudden changes to the Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources webpage. “Most of the references to climate change, as well as the specific words 'climate' and 'climate change,' were no longer on the page," the article noted. Also missing were academic citations to research on climate change and its impact on the Great Lakes region.
“I don’t get it.” Jess Wundering commented as she finished reading the article. “Wouldn’t even those people who aren’t quite on board about climate change at least want to be able to learn more about it?” she asked. “It seems like whoever made those changes thinks that by pretending something’s not there it will somehow magically disappear,” Bea Reese Onable added. “Yeah, the DNR is in charge of protecting our natural resources. Even without complete agreement on all the details about climate change, we should be trying to understand how it’s affecting Wisconsin’s resources,” Ed Scratcher pondered.
In Biology class last hour Stu learned it was just a myth that ostriches avoid danger by sticking their heads in the sand, but he wondered about humans. Earlier, when he had looked away while donating blood it made him feel a little better, but it didn’t change a thing about what was actually happening. “We shouldn’t be playing games trying to hide from reality,” Stu thought to himself. “After all, this planet is the only home we’ll ever know. We’re here forever…Earthbound.”
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