Republicans and the environment

Oh, my! I read every review my books get, and on Amazon my latest, “Endangered Edens,” is doing great. Until recently it had a rating so high, it was almost unbelievable. Of the 40 reviews, 37 were 5-star, and none were lower than 4-star. Then some right wingers found my book.
For some reason the right wingers were shocked that a book called “Endangered Edens” would actually implicate the Republican Party for the damage they are doing to our planet. One reviewer called my book “A political far left book masquerading as a travel book” and said I was unable to “differentiate fact from fiction.” Another reviewer wrote, “People can watch Fox News or be a Republican and still be concerned about our environment.”
In response to the second reviewer: No, you can’t be a Republican and still be concerned about the environment. Nationally, the Republican Party is the anti-environment party, as during the past 15 years they have voted against the environment more than 90% of the time. In Montana, Republican Senator Steve Daines votes against the environment 99% of the time and Republican Congressman Ryan Zinke votes against the environment 97% of the time.
Being concerned about the environment and voting Republican is the equivalent of supporting women’s rights while being a member of ISIS!
That Republican reviewers got their panties in a twist about my book was not surprising, as they’ve done the same for Naomi Klein and other authors who have used their books to speak out for protecting our planet. And actually a few negative right wing reviews are good—as they tell those on the left to “buy now.”
Nevertheless, I continue to be amazed by the sheer willful ignorance of Republicans when it comes to the environment. They are the only major political party remaining in the free world that thinks global warming is a hoax. And though I had hoped that the photographic evidence I presented in “Endangered Edens”—of Republican and oil company-backed environmental damage—might sway a few right wing minds, that, apparently, was just wishful thinking.
The GOP has created an ingrained value system, were insatiable greed is more important than our children’s future. This was reinforced for me recently at a Barnes and Noble book signing in New York. A right wing customer came up to me and argued that he lived on this planet and it was here to serve him. When I responded by saying, “Other people—and animals—will follow us, and we must think of them too,” it didn’t even register to the man as a valid point. All he cared about was himself.
That’s Republicanism in a nutshell. Appeals to logic, reality, or morality are largely ineffective. The best thing anyone can do for our country—and our planet—is to come out in force on Election Day and let the GOP know that such self-centeredness is not acceptable in the modern world.
Marty Essen
Victor