Support Our Veterans by Securing a Clean Energy Future

In honor of Veteran's Day, I would like to highlight and revisit a couple of posts by and about some of our nation's heroes, who are serving their country anew in efforts to secure a clean energy future.

Here's Jonathan Murray, a Marine corps veteran and now Advocacy Director for Operation Free, writing for us last February:

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As long as oil stays cheap and clean energy remains underdeveloped, America’s oil addiction will persist. In the short term, that means we’ll continue funding both sides of the wars we’re fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq. In the long term, the effects of climate change will deepen, leading to natural disasters, mass migrations, and uprooted populations where extremists can hide and recruit.

The Pentagon made the point quite simply in its 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review: “Climate change and energy are two key issues that will play a significant role in shaping the future security environment.” We hope Congress will take this to heart and do what’s right for the country; not what’s easy for the Senate.

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Murray included this powerful ad, that explains "why veterans are taking the lead on clean energy."

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6_PRzP0R88

Then there's this video highlighting Operation Free:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ovDNn7C2t0

About that tour, I wrote:

The goal of Operation Free is laid out plainly in military terms. Mission: Secure America with Clean Energy. A two-and-a-half month bus tour with over 70 stops at VFWs, American Legion halls, and veterans memorials across 17 states is the first leg of this mission.

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And, of their message:

The messengers of Operation Free offer a three-prong argument for clean energy security. First, climate change makes the world a more dangerous place. Second, America is depending on geopolitical rivals for a resource–oil–that we need to both defend our country and run our economy, and this makes us vulnerable. And third, we’re sending $1 billion every day to these countries that don’t like us very much, and a lot of that money winds up in the hands of terrorists or forces fighting our troops abroad.

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We can think of nothing more Patriotic on this Veteran's Day than working to secure our nation's clean energy future. It's absurd that driving gas guzzlers and wasting natural resources is somehow seen as "being a real American." The real Patriots are fighting to keep our country safe, secure, to protect our liberties and to ensure a peaceful, prosperous future for future generations. There's one clear pathway to that future: clean energy.

Related: Check out Sierra Club chariman Mike Brune's post, wondering "Is Veteran's Day the New Earth Day?"