Irish Examiner View: A small, positive step shows we can change

Bord na Mona announcing that they are to end peat harvesting is an positive move in our battle with climate change. 

Bord Na Mona have announced the end of peat harvesting which will see the end of peat briquettes on sale in our stores. 

Even as Washington, in a surreal, almost Hollywood way, girds its loins to repel some of America's more strident citizens two reports dominated the week. One was a harrowing reflection on how cruel, hypocritical, and unspeakably unloving this society could be. The second was predictive, warning of the consequences of failure to realistically confront the practices that ensure devastating, human-driven changes in weather patterns and how we live — and die.

Those three pressing issues — America's incendiary divisions, the shameful legacy of our mistreatment of our most vulnerable sisters, and climate collapse — are joined by a critical fourth, maybe even a fifth issue that must be confronted. Those issues, in a pandemic year, generate a sense of powerlessness that challenges even the most optimistic individuals. So much so that it is tempting to look away, to disengage. This may be reflexive and comforting but it may be a betrayal on a par with the mother and baby home outrages - especially as there are indications that real, long-term, small-step-by-small-step change is not only possible but is being delivered.