We are literally cooking our planet and our president is in denial about the whole thing. 2016 was the third straight year of record-breaking heat globally, and what actions do the president and his fossil-fuel industry beholden director of the EPA, Scott Pruitt, take? They have erased any mention of climate change from the EPA’s website, and propose crippling cuts to the agency. It’s hard to decide which of the president’s actions these days are the most insane, but with the maybe-not-so-long-term survival of our species at stake, this has got to be right up there.

Additionally, the Gulf of Maine is one of the fastest warming bodies of water on the whole planet, which could spell disaster for our state in just a few short years. At this rate, the shallow waters of coastal Maine might become too warm for our treasured lobsters to come in and shed their shells on the rocky bottom in the summers. They will have to seek refuge further north and in deeper waters. This poses a crisis to Maine’s economy and way-of-life, of which lobster fishing has long been a cornerstone. Meanwhile, Trump claims he is fighting for working people and rural voters. Apparently lobstermen don’t fit that description.

The fossil fuel industry and their elected sycophants in D.C. are like the tobacco industry of the 1990s, arguing against all evidence that their product didn’t cause cancer. Addicted to their profits, big oil and coal are going to the grave in denial about the destruction caused by their deadly habit. Only the consequences here aren’t just for one individual, they are for the entire planet.

Adam Williams

Camden