By Howard Sachs

High-school student Jamie Margolin testified recently before Congress. She was horrified that climate change, unless addressed by destroying the energy supply of the West, will essentially soon annihilate the world.

Here is my response to her:

I listened to your testimony in Congress. As a father of two daughters around your age, what you should be really angry about is the people who have put such foolish ideas into your precious mind. Your testimony was not “woke.” It was an ode to the brainwashing of our kids that is occurring.

I also would have been ashamed as a parent watching a kid of mine lecturing Americans on how to go about their business. I am very proud that the young people in my life have views and basic characters quite opposite of yours. They would never speak to people older than them in a rude, arrogant, disrespectful manner.

You are also profoundly wrong and deeply arrogant thinking you “speak for your generation,” me, or any other person but yourself. The kids I know and raised have no worry about the future regarding the climate. Second, the young people I know love planet Earth not one iota less than you. Third, they are mature, wise, good, strong, and very intelligent young women and men. They understand the truth of what is happening with this climate business. It’s a grand lie being perpetrated against our young like you.

The lie began long before you were born. It began in 19th-century Europe with the rise of an ideology and value system called leftism. Then it came roaring to America in the 20th century. It left in its wake a destroyed Europe and over a hundred million innocent people murdered by the climate and social-justice warriors of those times. Now it has taken over large parts of our great country — most of our schools, colleges, the Democrat Party, Hollywood, and the mainstream media. You won’t learn any of this vital history in your leftist Seattle community.

Now the Left continues on its driven path to undo America and the American Revolution. It is basically a religion. That religion preaches relentlessly that the West, capitalism, our Judeo-Christian value system, et al. basically suck. What does not suck to them is power — the power of the state to bring us to a utopia of human existence. It was tried with Communism and Nazism. That won’t attract enough followers anymore, so the tools now used by the priests of American leftism are environmentalism and the apocalyptic fear that the world is about to end.

The priests of this religion talk all the time about the climate and about their utter hatred and contempt for America and the West. The climate story is just a tool to shove their religion down our throats.

Jamie, this is the lie that has given you such fear. The truth is the opposite. The truth is this is a great, noble, and good country — the greatest that has ever been created in human history. We are a good, decent, kind people, always striving to reach the ideals our founders put there in the Declaration and Constitution. We thank God for fossil fuels, which are a wonderful gift that has allowed America and the West to flourish.

It has cleansed massive amounts of poverty from this planet. It has cleansed centuries of short life spans and regular deaths in infancy. It has cleansed the waters of the earth fouled by disease and toxins. It has cleansed hunger for billions of people. It has cleansed massive amounts of destructive bacteria and viruses that have ravaged our bodies. It has cleansed cold and hot homes and workplaces that humans have had to tolerate for thousands of years. It has cleansed a lot of cancer and other bodily afflictions with our wonderful drugs, hospitals, doctors, and nurses.

No windmill or solar panel will take over cleaning such a massive horrid mess.

So I’d ask you to reject false gods and lies — namely, things like The New York Times, NPR, your typical school teacher, and YouTube channels showing the foolish talk of Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris. Encounter some truth at places like Prager University or even in the real Bible.

Meanwhile, as a parent myself, I encourage you to sleep well and soundly regarding climate. The only fear you should have — and it should, indeed, be a great fear keeping you awake at night — is if the men and women embracing leftism get their way through their lies and poisonous ideas.

Another fear you should have is a healthy fear of the older people who surround you. Your tone of lecturing Congress and America was a sign of very poor character. I don’t intend to be mean, but the truth is you know little more about life, justice, history, climate, government, and America than does my grandchild still crawling on the floor.

I hope someday you gain some wisdom and humility. Good luck to you. You are a good person. But as you’ll find in life soon enough, good people often have terrible ideas. It’s too bad that most colleges you are likely applying to will do nothing for you but enhance your lack of wisdom and knowledge and feed you more of the poison of leftism.