Thank you, Billy Fried, for your July 26 column “Fight Climate Change with Radical Collaboration.” The “radical collaboration” that you rightly summon has been underway for several years, largely due to the work of Citizens’ Climate Lobby, whose outreach is at once national, local, and bipartisan.
CCL is an international civic organization with 548 chapters in and outside the United States. It advocates for Congressional passage of the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (HR 763), now before the House of Representatives. This measure would put a price on carbon, charged at the well, the port, and the mine. Proceeds from the fee would be returned in equal monthly installments to folks with Social Security numbers. These dividend payments would in most cases more than offset the increase in the price at the pump for struggling families. The size of government would not grow, thousands of fewer people would die from air pollution, and economists conclude that if passed, this law would reduce carbon emissions by 40 percent (below 2016 levels) in 12 years and 90 percent by 2050. While doing this, it would create 2.1 million jobs. This is a real and necessary solution that deserves our support.
Locally, Tom and Ginger Osborne and Breene Murphy have recently organized a Laguna Chapter of CCL. You could help this effort by publicizing the above information and getting involved yourself, as I have, by contacting [email protected]. Laguna has always been at the forefront of protecting our environment, and we need Tom’s passion and foresight more than ever before to focus us on combatting the climate crisis. I look forward to listening to Tom and Ginger and Breene speak on Billy’s talk-radio show very soon. Thank you.
Charlotte Masarik, Laguna Beach
Billy, Free definitely went to private school in his opinion and insight to the grateful dead and dead and Company is the real deal! We have been fortunate enough to attend shows, including his first show the incredible red rocks amphitheater in Morrison Colorado. I know it’s sometime in the middle 70s also got travels with Billy in Hawaii and especially Maui. You folks in Laguna are fortunate to have a local residence that continue to make your local radio station invaluable ! I actually live in a smaller community in Aspen Colorado. We do have a local radio station that listen to from time to time and I firm believer music is the best mind altering substance on the planet all the best, Wolfie.