— from Jay Inslee, Governor —
My first interaction with an orca whale took place when I was 5 years old. I was fishing on a boat with my dad in the San Juan Islands, a place known for some of the most breathtaking water views in the country. The fog circled our boat like it does most Washington mornings. It was quiet.
Suddenly, an unearthly sound enveloped us—I heard a deep whoosh that sounded like a giant creature breathing. I asked my dad what it was. He said the fog was too dense to tell but he imagined it could be a killer whale.
He was right. The orca started to glide next to our boat. I felt its sound vibrate deeply in my chest and it swam around our boat two or three times. To my delight, I watched its black dorsal fin rise out of the water like an apparition. The fin was almost 6 feet tall. As a young boy, I was impressed—the fin was taller than me.
That was the first time I connected to a life force bigger than myself. When I heard that orca breathe, my reverence for the wild truly began.
Read the rest of the op-ed on the governor’s website.
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Want to understand Climate Change? Please occasionally visit UW Atmospheric Sciences professor at http://www.cliffmass.blogspot.com, particularly his 12/9/19 entry. Try to distinguish emotional hype from best available science. I’m a bit reserved about giving much credence to the Squad, AOC, or Time Magazine’s 16-year-old Person of the Year, from Sweden, for reasoned advice based on context/objectivity.
But it’s great that at the age of five our Governor got awestruck and emotional about orcas!
Hi Carl, I understand you to say you are dismissing ’emotional hype’ regarding our earth’s warming. I agree, facts are so important in any discussion. Are you also saying that there is nothing to be concerned about regarding the environmental effects of a warming climate?
Hello Edith, and Thanks! True, I’m skeptical when this emotional groundswell feeds on itself, and facts become secondary as a “Chicken Little”-type hashtag supersedes objectivity. When Cliff Mass gave his presentation in the Madrona Room a few years ago, he did suggest that a Stevens Pass season ski ticket might not be happening 75 years from now, but it’s just silly to tear (what’s left of) my hair out and feverishly look for a snorkel for my cat!
Hmm…seems a bit churlish to go after Greta and AOC because they are young and correct. Since Orcas are clearly more intelligent than homo sapiens you might want to give them the benefit of the doubt instead of reverting to that persistent trope of the old, At least I won’t be around to see it.”
If you enjoy shellfish, you should care about the increasing amounts of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere.
The ocean absorbs approximately 26% of the CO2 added to the atmosphere from human activities each year.
Ocean acidity has increased by 30% since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. …
Business as usual scenarios for CO2 emissions could make the ocean up to 150% more acidic by 2100.
Besides, driving an electric car is lots of fun.