On the recordMarch 19, 2013
Madam President, I want to comment on the comments of the Senator from Rhode Island. First of all, I know it is so heartfelt and so genuine, and I want to thank him for that. And I want to thank him for approaching it from a faith-based standpoint about this fragile ecosystem we live on called planet Earth. He has brought a perspective, with that chart he has of the Earth, that it is so beautiful and yet it looks so fragile. As a matter of fact, when you look at the rim of the Earth from the perspective in space, you see a thin film, and you realize that is what sustains all of life, which is the atmosphere. Even with the naked eye from space, you can see how we are messing it up. I could see, coming across Brazil, the color differentiation where they were destroying the Amazon. Then I could look to the east at the mouth of the Amazon and see the effects of the extra silt that discolored the waters of the Atlantic for hundreds of miles. So the Senator brings a great perspective, and I thank him for it. Madam President, I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.





