BY SHARON MARTIN

I belong to a prepper group. No, I don’t believe in global conspiracies or the zombie apocalypse. I do believe we all need to be more self-reliant. I don’t believe President Obama is seeking a third term or that he is going to declare martial law. But I’m ready to bug out if I get caught between two wildfires again, like I did during the drought of 2012.

A recent poll showed that more and more people, most of them self-identified as Republicans, no longer believe in evolution. These same folks are convinced that human activity has no relationship to changing weather patterns. What is it about a person’s politics that gets in the way of logic?

We’ve seen it happen before. In the 17th Century, wise women [and some men] were routinely hanged or burned at the stake. They were called witches if they could help you remove a wart or cure a cough.

Then, there was Mao’s Cultural Revolution, where college professors and other educated people were sent to work on farms as part of their “re-education.”

If 98% of scientists agree on something, it can still be wrong, but it is highly unlikely that it is. Human activity and rising carbon levels are changing the face of our planet. Evolution is accepted as fact. Science and knowledge are not the enemies.

If you don’t believe the scientists, believe your own experiences. If you are a gardener, you’ve seen the changes. It’s time to quit looking at the calendar, planting and harvesting according to Grandma’s formula. Instead, pay attention to the jet stream. Some springs will come early and others late. This isn’t your grandmother’s planet.

Ignore the talking idiots on your corporate-sponsored channels and start thinking for yourself. Artificial fertilizers and constant churning of the soil do not make healthy food. The climate is changing, and there’s a pretty good chance that human activity is at least partially responsible. Humans can deny themselves into famine and destruction.

There may be a time when martial law is declared. It won’t be because we elected a black president who wants background checks for gun buyers and insurance coverage for everyone. It will be because our water is too foul to drink and our food distribution system has broken down.

It won’t be because we refuse to post the Ten Commandments in every courthouse but because we have allowed ourselves to be hoodwinked into believing that the rights of a few are more important than the rights of us all.

Start thinking, folks. Embrace logic. Don’t let politics and corporate sponsorships usher in our dark ages.

– Sharon Martin lives in Oilton, OK and is a regular contributor to The Oklahoma Observer