John Balentine wrote attacking children afraid for their future. (Oct. 4, “Climate-strikers fail to appreciate gains, elders”), Our society had an awakening 50 years ago to the environmental destruction industry and progress had wrought, with smog choking our cities and our lakes and rivers unusable, and we protested.

In response, the Nixon administration created the EPA and set us on the path to cleaner air and water. In the ensuing years, the EPA expanded to include regulating industries’ toxic waste dumps and chemicals. When industry failed to force Congress to water down these regulations, they moved their manufacturing overseas and exported our pollution. Now, our administration has cut 78 EPA regulations, including fuel efficiency, clean air and water protections. All 197 countries in the world, except the U.S., are in the Paris Accord. Industry has bought the Congress that is supposed to regulate them.

Indeed, most of the world is addicted to fossil fuels and also to smartphones. His focus on the 17% future carbon pollution from information and technology industries ignores the 84% current carbon pollution from manufacturing, agriculture, energy, and transportation. Last year carbon emissions worldwide rose 2.1 %.

Children are right to take us to task. We gave up on conservation, valued unsupported propaganda and devalued the evidence-based science. We have failed them.

Susan Chichetto

Bath