Day 164- The Saudi Arabia of Lithium

Dear Mr. President,

The news of huge mineral deposits discovered in Afghanistan is mixed blessing; surely a country with a GDP of $12 billion can benefit from the discovery of trillions of dollars worth of industrial metals, though I think the people of West Virginia might have a few cautionary tales about the dangers to workers and to the environment that come with an economy based on mining. I'm eager to see the situation in Afghanistan improve; the decades of suffering, war and poverty that the Afghani people have survived could break the hardest heart, and if mines represent a way out, than I am glad for their sake. On the other hand, I fear that the Pentagon's statement that Afghanistan could become "the Saudi Arabia of Lithium" might prove to be prophetic; that the wealth of the land and the poor will be exploited to create a wealthy (and corrupt) ruling class. And, while I know full well that write this on a machine using many of the minerals I'm referring to, the reality is that there isn't an infinite supply of these resources; at some point we will run out the things we have been so quick to tear up the earth for. Will we look back on the mountains of West Virginia, or the Great Lakes, or the Gulf of Mexico and wish we had learned to live without the resources we destroyed them for? Will Afghanis look back on their own land one day and wonder if their wealth came at too high a cost?

Clearly, neither you nor I are qualified to make the decisions regarding the future of Afghanistan's mining industry. The risk of the Taliban, or of another foreign power controlling the mineral-rich areas is no excuse for exploitation by American interests. The land and its resources must be controlled by the Afghan people and their elected officials, though, I suppose, even that will be problematic. My concern for the snow leopards aside, I wonder if the cost of destroying a country's ecosystem can be quantified, let alone measured against the economic benefits. But no matter what I think is right, I have to believe that the decision is best made by those who will suffer the results directly. I hope that my government can restrain its eagerness to preach the correct way to handle Afghanistan's resources and respect the Afghani people enough to let them determine their own destinies.

Respectfully yours,

Kelsey

Day 119- Strung out

Dear Mr. President,

The oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico has prompted a number of questions about our off-shore drilling policy. I think it's tragic that it takes the loss of 11 lives, a looming environmental crisis and a direct threat to the economies of coastal states for people to begin to seriously question the system of consumption we've created. We're like addicts begging for one more fix; we've just got to finish this bottle or this carton or this last source of oil, and then we'll get clean, no, really, we'll stop using and develop alternative energy this time, we promise. We can't lie to ourselves anymore; we have a problem. It's a dangerous descending spiral, one which will leave us, at best, ill-equipped to compete in the global economy, and, at worst, unable to support basic agriculture, transportation and defense.

It is time for real solutions; clean energy is not an abstract issue, it is a national security issue, a prosperity issue, an environmental issue, and a values issue. We must fund research and development in this field, accordingly. If the government does not take an active role in this, it will not happen fast enough- we've seen, in this latest crisis, just how much obfuscation the oil companies are capable of if in the name of protecting their own interests. The only way to decrease the dangerous and damaging oil drilling operations around the world is to eliminate demand through alternative solutions; this will not happen overnight, either. We must start, today, with an increased effort that demands the contributions of all of us, be those in the form of higher taxes on energy consumption, more sacrifices of convenience for conservation, and the diverting of funds from other areas towards developing cleaner, more sustainable energy sources.

A mine collapse in West Virginia and an oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico should not be required to wake America up to the dangers of our short-sighted, arrogant lifestyles. We cannot continue living the way we always have, and we all must accept the responsibility for making the necessary changes in our energy policy. If we are very lucky, this, right now, is our rock bottom. Please, Mr. President, do not allow these tragedies to continue in vain. Circumstances are demanding change, and you have to lead us to it, before it is too late.

Respectfully yours,

Kelsey

Day 100- On death, without exaggeration

Dear Mr. President,

I had planned so much to say in this, my 100th letter to you. A beloved Supreme Court Justice is retiring. Sudan is going to the polls. The lights have been out in Gaza for days. The mining accident in West Virginia demands a new look at the way the industry protects its workers. But my heart is heavy for the people of Poland today. The magnitude of their loss is staggering; I don't understand how a country recovers from such a blow. Everything feels a little less safe, our fragility never more apparent than when tragedy strikes those we want to believe are somehow protected from it. Of course, Presidents are not granted a higher degree of immortality just because they are elected to high office. Of course, death does not care about a person's job, or a country's history of struggles. Of course, tragedy like this can unite divided people and urge nations to stand together despite all that they disagree on. It is the only way we make it through.

And so, humbled by this reminder of our own rapidly approaching ends, frightened by the realization that none of us have power over death, we will light candles and put aside our differences and stand together as the people of Poland grieve, and, slowly, move forward. How lost, they must be feeling, right now. It seems especially unfair that this has struck a country that seems to have, throughout history, had to overcome more than its share of tragedy and despair.

I don't pray, Mr. President, but I often, in my conversations with the universe, wish for your safety and security. I will do so, again, this evening. We would be so lost without you, sir.

Respectfully yours,

Kelsey

On death, without exaggeration

by Wislawa Szymborska

It can't take a joke,

find a star, make a bridge.
It knows nothing about weaving, mining, farming,
building ships, or baking cakes.

In our planning for tomorrow,
it has the final word,
which is always beside the point.

It can't even get the things done
that are part of its trade:
dig a grave,
make a coffin,
clean up after itself.

Preoccupied with killing,
it does the job awkwardly,
without system or skill.
As though each of us were its first kill.

Oh, it has its triumphs,
but look at its countless defeats,
missed blows,
and repeat attempts!

Sometimes it isn't strong enough
to swat a fly from the air.
Many are the caterpillars
that have outcrawled it.

All those bulbs, pods,
tentacles, fins, tracheae,
nuptial plumage, and winter fur
show that it has fallen behind
with its halfhearted work.

Ill will won't help
and even our lending a hand with wars and coups d'etat
is so far not enough.

Hearts beat inside eggs.
Babies' skeletons grow.
Seeds, hard at work, sprout their first tiny pair of leaves
and sometimes even tall trees fall away.

Whoever claims that it's omnipotent
is himself living proof
that it's not.

There's no life
that couldn't be immortal
if only for a moment.

Death
always arrives by that very moment too late.

In vain it tugs at the knob
of the invisible door.
As far as you've come
can't be undone.