Climate change has been a controversial problem for a long time. Many people agree that although rising temperatures will have serious consequences if left unchecked, we can avoid disaster if we adopt clean and renewable energy sources. Eduardo Porter, on the other hand, paints a different picture, believing instead that the effects of climate change are inevitable. He uses several techniques to argue his point, mainly word choice, authoritative sources, and statistics. Porter begins his essay with three short, straightforward sentences proclaiming that climate change is “bearing down upon you now” and that there is “nothing you-or anyone else can do to prevent the hit.” The directness of these sentences emphasizes the bleak prospects for humankind and succinctly summarizes the author 's main argument, that the negative consequences of climate change are inevitable. These three sentences also set the pessimistic tone of the essay which is reflected in Porter’s word choice. The use of “cataclysmic” in the next paragraph to describe future weather conditions immediately invokes the image of the “end of the world,” an unavoidable and disastrous event. He then uses the word “our” to describe the “stark” future to emphasize that no one will be spared from the effects of “our” changing climate. Next, the author describes the situation we are facing with the phrase “impending peril,” once again emphasizing our inescapable fate. The author’s word choice appeals to the reader’s