Memorial Day, BP, and us

Memorial Day, BP, and us

By
Bob Sommer
Uncommon Hours

Today, Memorial Day, is also day 42 of the BP oil leak. Tens of thousands of barrels of oil have washed up onto the Gulf shores and infiltrated the fragile wetlands. The much anticipated (and over-hyped) “Top Kill” effort to stanch the flow has failed. Massive underwater plumes, comparable in size to the combined states of Delaware and Maryland, threaten to destroy undersea life and the seabed for generations to come, and may soon enter the tidal loop that will carry oil into the Keys, around the Florida peninsula, and up the East Coast.

We’re choking on our addiction to this stuff.

And the tragedy in the Gulf bears a direct connection to the most recent of the military deaths that we commemorate today.

Over 5,500 American service men and women have died in Iraq and Afghanistan since the inception of these wars. Memorial Day honors them, but not the uncounted lives of Iraqis and Afghans who’ve also died as a result of our presence in these countries, perhaps as many as a million, most certainly in the hundreds of thousands.

'Coal, Coral, and Climate Change: The Kansas Connection': The Sierra Club's Kanza Group holds its annual fundraiser

“Coral, Coal, and Climate Change: The Kansas Connection” was the theme for the Sierra Club's Kanza Group fundraiser.

Marine biologist Dr. Judy Lang described the devastation to Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico coral reefs and waters as a result of herbicides and pesticides that have travelled down the Mississippi from the Heartland.

Dr. Judy Lang (right) discusses climate change with Sierra Club member Chet McLaughlin.

Congressman Dennis Moore (D-Kan. 3rd), on the right, was recognized for his career-long commitment to the environment with the Sierra Club's "Teddy Roosevelt People's Conservation Award." Moore will retire at the end of this term. His wife, Stephene Moore (center), has announced her candidacy to fill his seat. Steve Baru, the Kanza Group Chair, is on the left.

Sierra Club member Marty Kraft (left) received a "Lifetime Achievement Award" for his lifelong commitment to environmental causes. A teacher and writer, Kraft was described by the editor of Earth Times as "one of the best examples on how to [think globally and act locally], and his ideas can work anywhere a person decides to make those connections." Dr. Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg (right), the Kansas Poet Laureate, began the evening's program with a poetic invocation.

Stephanie Cole (left) coordinates the Coal Campaign for the Kansas Chapter of the Sierra Club. Lynate Pettengill (right) is the Chapter's fundraiser.

Executive Committee member Joe Spease and Sierra Club volunteers Carol and Joe Wagner (left to right) were ready to check in guests at the Lenexa Conference Center.

Becky and Jim Graham baked some outrageously rich brownies and helped coordinate food for the event. Jim is on the Kanza Group's Executive Committee.

Johnson County Commissioner Annabeth Surbaugh and Mr. Doug Airey.

Auction Chair Craig Wolfe rounded everyone up for the program. Wolfe serves on the Executive Committees of the Kanza Group and the Kansas Chapter of the Sierra Club.

Linda Meisinger (right) was recognized for her work in attempting to stop construction of a major railyard in Gardner, Kan. Linda's daughter Gretchen (left) was there to represent her sister, Lisa, who was also recognized. Emcee Steve Baru made the awards.

Sharyl Kennedy and Bob Fritsch. Bob is on the Kanza Group Executive Committee.

Sierra Club member Doug Stecklein (left) received the "Bright Idea Award." Doug has shown dozens of businesses in the Kansas City area how to save thousand of dollars by switching to compact fluorescent lightbulbs. Auction Chair Craig Wolfe made the award.

Joe Spease (right) was recognized for his exhaustive work chairing the Legislative Committee.

All photos by Bob Sommer. Share freely, but please credit.

Thank you.