The bare bones truth is that as disconnected as we may be from nature, the earth and its cycles (water, nutrient, etc.) fuel our lives. There are plenty of issues to consider when choosing the next leader of our country: Civil rights, health care, foreign policy, education and more. While I wouldn’t encourage anyone to be a one-issue voter, I do think that there are certain topics that must be paid great attention. One is a candidate’s environmental policy, domestic and international, and the way he plans to address global climate change.

When looking into the issues portion of both Obama’s and McCain’s Web sites, I thought there might be a compelling argument for environmental policy from each candidate. I was wrong. Obama has a holistic view of policies relating to the environment and his plans include social and economic ramifications. McCain’s environmental policy proposals are directed more toward helping businesses maintain profits than protecting the natural world. A direct quote from his climate change plan is that he would permit “’banking’ and ‘borrowing’ of permits so that emission reductions may be accelerated or deferred to more economically efficient periods.” It is clear to me after a couple economics classes and therefore, should be clear to John McCain that businesses will always choose to be “economically efficient” over being environmentally friendly. That is not to say that businesses everywhere are morally flawed. It’s simply the way capitalism works: Profit reigns over goodwill toward the environment. Both Obama and McCain support a cap-and-trade system, where businesses need to have a permit for each ton of carbon they emit and would be allowed to buy or sell these permits to other businesses if they needed more or did a good job of reducing emissions. However, a voluntary cap-and-trade system — McCain doesn’t say that businesses would be required to participate — is not enough to curb the greenhouse gas emissions contributing to climate change.

Obama’s cap-and-trade proposal is not only more aggressive than McCain’s, calling for 80 percent rather than 60 percent reductions under the 1990 levels by 2050, but it is also supplemented by excellent policies that combine concerns for a healthy environment, a stimulated economy, and an educated, self-supporting workforce. There is a section in Obama’s energy plan, found on his Web site, www.barackobama.com, labeled “Invest in Our Secure Energy Future and Create 5 Million New Jobs.” In it, he proposes a $150 billion 10-year plan that will help “…to ensure that American workers have the skills and tools that they need to pioneer the green technologies that will be in high demand throughout the world.” Obama’s effort to balance social and environmental concerns in his energy plan is only one example of his awareness of the complexity of the issues facing our country. Barack Obama’s careful consideration of intricate issues is easily discerned when reviewing his policies proposals. His tendency to create and to favor balanced policies is important to evaluate when deciding to whom you should give your influential Iowa vote.

Emily Eggleston

Senior

Agronomy

Environmental studies