Do You Realize?

by Kevin A. Kuhn

Again George felt he was being set up, but he forged ahead. “Yeah, I’m concerned. We’re pumping more and more of it into the atmosphere and it’s destroying the environment and overheating the planet.” “You do realize they’re talking about carbon dioxide, not carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is a noxious, poisonous gas, but carbon dioxide is the elixir of life. It’s the one element that all life on Earth is based on. It’s what every plant on the planet needs for life, and what they need to produce our oxygen. Scientific evidence suggests that the increase in carbon over the past forty years has led to a ‘greening’ of the planet.” Shiloh was on a roll. The conductor walked by, checking passengers, and George and Shiloh flashed their monthly passes. As George watched the conductor punching tickets, the process designer in him kicked in. There has to be a better way to collect fares. How are they still hand-punching tickets this day and age? Shiloh continued, “Now, we should be worried about the greenhouse effect of carbon, as there