Forests Essays - Aftermath Of War, Deforestation, Forest Pathology

Forests Where Have All the Forests Gone? What is happening to the Earth? Our home is becoming a barren mass of sorrow. Most people in America are blind to what is going on. Could it be that every individual is just turning a cheek the other way. America is faced with an extremely serious problem, and if it is not acted upon there will be nothing left on Earth. Hopefully it will still be able to thrive after the numerous accounts of human destruction. Deforestation in America is a huge problem with devastating affects to humans. The root causes of this travesty are mainly the ongoing need to increase Americas economic growth, and the idea of frontierism. These two aspects of deforestation tie together well. Together they help define the thought process that Americans have adopted through the years. The essential part of a successful country is their economy. America is one of the largest consumer societies on the planet. Why? The need to gain more and more possessions is ridiculous. Since the nineteen fifties America has see n life through material objects. This has fueled the economic growth in America tremendously. Deforestation is affecting individuals in American society through their need to peruse the consumption of paper products, lumber for homes, heating systems, and furniture. The action that is being taken to solve the negative affects of this ongoing obsession is limited. Frontierism is an ignorant way of life that is adopted by many Americans. The fundamentals of frontierism believe, The Earth is a space of unlimited resources for humans to use at will. Humans are apart from nature and the laws of the natural land do not apply to humans. The well being of humans stems from controlling the environment, (Chiras 34). This is a cluster of ridiculous ideas concocted by the ignorant and selfish minds of humans that are blind to the consequences of future destruction. Frontierism plays a huge role in contributing to deforestation in America because it is enabling various logging companies to rationalize the need for wood. The demand for timber seems to be increasing in America as the rate of our forests decrease. The selfishness involved with this whole idea of frontierism is an outrage. Americans need to be further educated about frontierism and its persuasion on deforestation. This is one of the main problems why America is where they are today as far as the environment goes. An average student at UNH wakes up in the morning and takes a hot shower which uses wood energy from the campus energy source. We write on numerous sheets of paper for notes, waste energy by leaving our lights on, computers running, and music playing. Not to mention the posters on students dorm room walls. All of these everyday factors influence the necessity for deforestation. If just two hundred students shut off their lights when they are not needed and only use their computers when necessary than UNH would save thousands of dollars in energy use. For years upon years companies have wormed their way into the minds of Americans to consume. The companies mask all of the real problems. Many logging companies associated with larger corporations have failed to make Americans aware of the pollution and the increase in toxic gases and waste that is being dispersed every where. All that matters to them is the flow of money that the businesses are making. What do these companies think would happen? Nothing. Economic growth is thriving on consumerism. It always has in America. The corporate world has wrapped the minds of Americans around their fingers. In the view of one businessman, he admits, Our own government is viewed with mistrust and suspicion when it makes pronouncements on environmental matters, (Schannon). Propaganda is displayed everywhere we turn, forcing Americans to want more and more products. The Christmas season is upon America for another year of crowded malls, mounds of wrappings, and excessive consumption. Over half of America will not recycle wrapping paper or question buying products that promote deforestation. It now makes me sad to walk through the malls and see how people wastefully spend. But this is utter bliss for logging and wood dependent companies as well