Melvyn S. Montano
New Mexico’s soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines volunteer their lives in the defense of this great nation, and we understand the risk involved in our chosen career. However, some of the danger our armed forces face can be prevented.
Every day, the U.S. pays $1 billion for energy, much of it to hostile regimes that funnel the funds to terrorist groups. And while America’s oil money fuels enemy nations and their extremist allies, the carbon pollution caused by that same dirty fuel leads to the floods, famines and droughts that dissolve already-volatile nations into the perfect breeding grounds for terrorist groups.
The U.S. Senate’s failure of leadership this summer to achieve comprehensive climate and energy reform has allowed the perpetuation of roadside bombs falling into the hands of Iraqi insurgents and bullets into the AK-47s of the Taliban. However, New Mexico now has the opportunity to bypass the deadlock in Washington and help minimize the risks faced by our men and women in uniform. New Mexico must lead America toward a cleaner, safer future through the limitation of dangerous carbon pollution.
It is time for New Mexicans to stand up with these military and security leaders to solve this appalling national security debacle. We as a nation must stand strong on our own, and we can start at home by promoting clean, domestic energy in New Mexico.
Connection between energy and our military sacrifices is clear
Army Pvt. Charles M. High IV from Albuquerque died Aug.17 in Kunar province, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device caused a military vehicle rollover. The improvised explosive device that hit Pvt. High’s vehicle was an EFP, or Explosively Formed Projectile. The EFP is the new, deadlier breed of IED, or Improvised Explosive Device, dirty explosives that pierce our thickest armor. Every soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan is gravely familiar with these roadside bombs, which have killed or injured thousands of our men and women in uniform.
These EFPs, which rip through our heavily armored vehicles and have caused hundreds of American casualties, were introduced to Iraqi and Afghan insurgents by oil-rich Iran. The connection between energy, our national security, and the sacrifices made by our military could not be more clear. Not only are we effectively funding both sides of the war through our dependence on fuel from hostile nations, we are creating the conflicts of the future through our rampant consumption of dirty fuel.
In the face of the droughts, famines, and floods caused by climate change, unstable countries around the world are crumbling into terrorist safe havens. Recent massive flooding in Pakistan, and the effect it has had on a government unable to cope, should open our eyes to this real and present threat. Even the CIA, under the previous president, nonetheless, has opened an office to track the impacts of climate change. The Department of Defense considers global climate change such a strategic threat to our security that it is now part of the military’s long term planning; every branch of the military has committed to reducing their carbon footprint over the next decade.
Veterans are coming together
From both sides of the aisle and all corners of this nation, veterans are coming together in support of clean energy solutions that would liberate our country from oil dependence, provide a long-term solution to this economic crisis, and prevent the destabilizing effects climate change. As a member of Operation Free, I am proud to stand with them.
I know that my fellow New Mexicans would rather stand up with military and security leaders than to blindly accept the status quo. We need to put America back in charge of its security and its future by enacting limitations on our contribution to the devastating effects of climate change.
The right choice for New Mexico is clear: Defend our nation and de-fund our enemies through cleaner energy practices. It is time for the leaders of this great state to be heroes, to stand with our military men and women to prevent more oil-funded violence. After all our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines have sacrificed for this country, this is the least that New Mexico can do in return.
Major General Melvyn S. Montano, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), is a former adjutant general of the New Mexico National Guard.