I don't think I've ever really mentioned much about my background short of having served in the Navy but I thought I'd give everyone a little more info. There was actually one point in my life when I had spent literally 10% of my life underwater and over 15% on and/or under the water. I was in my late twenties at the time to give you an idea of how long that translates to in years.

Not long after I got out of the Navy, where the vast majority of my time was spent in the undersea community, I bought a dive shop here in Hawaii. I've logged over 3,000 dives including more than 500 deeper than 200'fsw and over 150 deeper than 300'fsw. I've dove in eight different countries in the open ocean, in caves and on some of the most amazing reefs and shipwrecks anywhere on the planet. I'm rated as an instructor trainer in everything from mixed gas decompression diving to cave and wreck diving to rebreathers.

Needless to say I have a very personal relationship with the ocean which is one of the reasons I live on an island in the Pacific. (And y'all probably thought it was because its a tropical paradise with perfect weather and lots of hot chicks in tiny bikinis!)

I have dove on some of the most beautiful reefs in the world from the Federated States of Micronesia and islands such as Palau, Chuuk and Pohnpei to the waters of the Caribbean around the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico and even off the coasts of Cuba. So when I saw the above movie, it really struck a chord and its difficult to describe how sad I became. Please pay attention to the relevant facts and assertions made in this video. This is not about industrial pollution or over fishing or even the introduction of foreign or toxic elements.

There is only one possible explanation for what you see in this video. The warming of our planets' oceans. The same thing that explains the raw naked power of storms such as Katrina and the fact that last year we had so many hurricanes that we ran out of letters in the english alphabet to name them.

In the coal mines the miners used to bring a little canary in a cage with them into the mines. Canaries are ultra-sensitive to noxious and toxic gases so if any of the miners looked over and saw that the canary was dead it meant there was a dangerous build up of methane gas and it was time to get the hell outta Dodge. Coral reefs are the "Canaries" of Mother Earth... And The Canary is Dead!

One degree... Just one single little degree Fahrenheit can cause monster typhoons and hurricanes, massive flooding and tornado activity and continent-wide heat waves. It can kill off entire species and key elements in the symbiotic cycle of life that so delicately balance our planet.

So I ask you this favor on Independence Day. Please start opening up your mind to the possibility that you can make a difference. That even the smallest thing you change... The smallest thing you effect at a personal level can make an enormous impact.

I know this is different than most of my posts but seeing this video made me decide that Get In Their Face! was going to be more than just a "political" blog. It is the place for me to speak my mind and to share with the world the things that I have learned... The feelings that I have... And my hopes and dreams for humanity at large.

You can learn more about the Planetary Coral Reef Foundation on their site and watch more of their fantastic films and videos at their media center, Studio of the Sea. Please consider making a donation while you are there. There work is so worthy of it.

Aloha and Happy Independence Day!
Nate