Shortly before President Trump announced that he was pulling the U.S. out of the Paris climate agreement, Hemant Mehta (Friendly Atheist) brought us the story of Erick Erickson, a conservative who wants us to know that he does not care about climate change because...you guessed it...Jesus! I'm glad Hemant highlighted the very real possibility that this sort of attitude might impact Erickson's children. Not only do I think he's probably correct about this, but it gives me an idea.
I don't have kids and I will not do so. I've never wanted children, and I'm old enough now that it would not make much sense even if I were to have an abrupt change of mind. It just isn't going to happen, and I'm okay with that.
Now, based on what I see from Erickson, it occurs to me that I could decide not to care about climate change because I won't be around long enough to experience any of the negative effects myself and do not need to worry about how it might impact children I don't have. And since I am not a Christian, I have no reason to worry about being "good stewards of the planet" either. It sounds like I don't need to care at all. I could easily be one of the idiots shouting "Drill, baby, drill!"
Of course, I don't really feel this way. I do care, and I do think President Trump is making yet another mistake here. Like Hemant said, climate change is already affecting people. Even if I don't personally anticipate experiencing much of a direct impact, I'm not prepared to turn my back on the rest of humanity. Once again, I have to ask what makes many Christians think that they are somehow more moral than we atheists.
