I was having one of those conversations yesterday, in the warm January air, about global warming, the endless war in Iraq, the lack of health care, et cetera, et cetera.

My conversational partner expressed the incredulity we’ve all come to live with: “How can these people be so blind? How can they think that all of this will not reach out and get them, too? Sure, they have health care and their kids will never go off to fight in a war, but global warming? Doesn’t Dick Cheney care about the world he’s leaving to his grandchildren?”

The answer is: yes, of course he does, but to understand Dick Cheney, we have to see the world as he sees it.

Let’s assume Mr. Cheney is rational, even if it’s in an evil way. His grandchildren will have health care, as he and his children have it. They will not serve their country, as he and his children have not served their country.

(Yeah, yeah, I hear the protests – he and his children are public servants. No they’re not. They are cynical manipulators of civil service for the singular purpose of enriching themselves and their cronies.)

And yes, global warming will affect Mr. Cheney’s grandchildren, but since he is not the only selfish manipulator out there, he surely calculates that altruism has no value. Global warming, he may believe, is inevitable and therefore he can best provide for his grandchildren by ensuring they are as rich and powerful as they can be, because wealth and power will insulate his grandchildren from the effects of global warming and its attendant catastrophes as long as possible.

The poor and powerless will suffer first and most, so Dick Cheney’s grandkids probably don’t need to worry. His great-grandkids do.