"Anti"-Earth hour

[Talon]

So last night was Earth hour, where everyone was supposed to kill their lights between 8:30-9:30.

I generally think displays like this amount to little more than a gimmick, but I participated anyway. Then this morning, this gem caught my eye:

http://crooksandliars.com/bob-cesca/...hour-stupidity

Apparently some folks over at redstate.com wanted to "counter" earth hour by turning on all their lights. A different website poorrichardnews.com offered other brilliant suggestions to counter earth hour, such as burning tires and leaving ovens on.

Regardless whether or not you feel climate change is a hoax, how is this "demonstration" anything other than a pitiful act of spite?

[IDrinkaRum]

I think the suggestion of burning tires is a little much, but otherwise, I think it's fine.

There are people who will participate in Earth Hour.

There are people who think it stupid and will not participate.

How the 2 groups participate is really none of anyone's businesses except their own.

Personally, I did not participate. We sat around the house, eating a late dinner, running the dishwasher & playing our various handheld gaming devices while our daughter watched DVDs.

Does that make me a bad person?

[JuniorMintz]

No, it only makes you a bad person if you purposely set off every single light and energy sucking devise with the sole intention of being assy.

Otherwise, you're fine. I didn't participate, btw, I was watching tv and doing laundry all evening.

[tabbyblack13]

I agree that burning tires is a little much. The fumes that come off burning tires can be toxic depending how the tires were manufactured. Other then that it doesn't really matter to me. The earth has always gone through periods of hot and cold temperatures. As for me, I didn't do a single thing different then usual. I had one set of lights on, the TV, and my laptop on. I use as little as possible because I'm cheap and don't want to pay for using it. My heat is set at 68 and my AC will mostly likely set between 75-78. I get told that I'm crazy one day then the next day I hear about the $100+ gas and electric bills for a two bedroom house. I may be crazy but I'm saving money.

[Greenday]

There was an Earth Hour? Who knew? I had no idea. Other than my clock, that was the only thing on last night. I was too busy at a semi-formal to use any energy. My compy was also in sleep-mode.

I dunno, not something I'd participate in as I don't like to sit in the dark. But having an Anti-Earth Hour? That's just plain stupid. Just because you think the other side is pointless doesn't mean you have to be a dick about it.

[Slytovhand]

Does that make me a bad person?

How about "yes... if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem"?

Why do we have things like Earth Hour? Because of the massive consumerism we've all grown used to... we're used to just turning on our electricity with no thought whatsoever to how it affects the environment... we don't care about what we do to the environment with our basic day to day activities. In the future, when everything is great and fantastic, they'll look back and think what a bunch of idiots we were not seeing all the damage we're doing....

These morons who want to suggest an anti-Earth Hour... just that - morons. As GD said, even if you think something is pointless, you dont' have to be a dick about it.

And, for that matter, the whole EA or any other similar thing is a token event, to show at least awareness. It won't make a hell of a lot of physical difference, but it just might make a psychological difference.

In the future, when everything is great and fantastic, they'll look back and think what a bunch of idiots we were not seeing all the damage we're doing....

[IvorTangrean]

While I support the idea of Earth Hour I think that 8:30 is just too late in the day. If I had turned off ALL the lights ( I made sure my family and roommates turned off any light they were not using ) I would have been in near total black. A far better campaign would be to promote day to day conservation, like not leaving 2 tvs and the lights in 3 rooms on when you are leaving for the next 24 hours.

[Fire_on_High]

To be honest, I'm extremely anti environment and would have participated with a smile, but for the sad fact I only got to bed 3 hrs before and I'm not a happy camper on 3 hrs sleep.

The sheer disgusting smugness of enviros is infuriating, and the utter delight in taking this away, changing that so it's not as good, etc...it's a small act of defiance, but it's about all that's left.

Now, don't get me wrong...I'm not at all against the existence of things like low flow toilets or showerheads, or CFLs. I'm against the fact that they're FORCED down everyone's throat, regardless if they're something you want, or that works in your lifestyle. The CHOICE of how you want to live is taken away by Green Dictators.

CFLs are a good example here. I can't be arsed to change lightbulbs often, and to me the light they put out is fine, so the extra cost is entirely worth it, for the hassle they save me. No coercion needed! And hey, on the side it's (maybe) better for things.

Now take another example...low flow toilets. Use 2-3 times as much water since one flush won't get rid of a generous crap, and furthermore it's far more likely to get plugged up. Doesn't seem like much savings at all to me there! Yet there are folks who think they're jim dandy and everyone should use them, by force of law. Use them themselves, sure...it's your water bill! Force them on *everyone*? Howzabout a big ol "no thanks" with a side order of "FU".

Keep things available and let folks freely choose. There are always going to be some folks who merrily hop on the bandwagon of anything new, just for the newness, some true believers in the cause, or some who just shrug and don't care...but there are also going to be folks for who the newest enviro-trend is just slap awful for, too.

From various things said on CS.com, I'm fairly surprised there isn't considerable shrieking about the forced use of CFL in some states. I'm pretty sure I remember several ppl who said they were bothered by them, it gave them headaches or so.

You guys should have the FREEDOM to buy your incandescent bulbs so you can read comfortably just the same as I have the FREEDOM to choose CFLs for convenience.

[Boozy]

Keep things available and let folks freely choose.

I agree.

But we should also tax the hell out of things that are bad for the environment so that those who choose to use these things are paying the full cost of the damage they are doing to the environment.

We can help the environment without taking away personal freedom. But people need to understand that certain choices are harmful to the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the climate in general. If they still decide they don't care, fine. But they'll need to pay up. We can use that money to fund research into alternative energy sources and waste disposal.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Sorry, but there's no way I'm sitting in the dark for an hour. For one thing, I only just moved into a new flat, and there's still odd boxes full of junk all over the living room. Turning off all the lights, only to get severely injured tripping over the cat/boxes of junk/kid's toys/etc just seems stupid to me.

In any case, I didn't know about it; I spent Earth hour with lights on in the living room, computer on, stereo on. XD Unknowingly supporting Anti-Earth hour. XD

[Talon]

How about "yes... if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem"?

Uh, that's a bit militant. Like you said in your own post, to participate or not really doesn't make much difference in the long run.

Fire_on_High,
I do agree with what you said about choice. But your other statements...

To be honest, I'm extremely anti environment and would have participated with a smile...

The sheer disgusting smugness of enviros is infuriating, and the utter delight in taking this away, changing that so it's not as good, etc...it's a small act of defiance, but it's about all that's left.

Anti-environment? I'm going to assume you mean to say you're not convinced that climate change is real. Whatever, I'm not looking to debate that. But you do understand that most of the power we use in North America is generated by burning coal? That translates to smog, which has real consequences for human health. Surely you cannot be blind to that?

Also just what sort of environmentalists have you been exposed to? Again, I agree that government mandates for CFL were over the top. But from the tone of your post, one would think gangs of tree-hugging thugs were rampaging through your neighborhood, harassing anyone who didn't comply with the earth hour. Did that happen?

Like I said earlier, participation in EA amounts to a symbolic gesture. Participate, don't participate, it's not going to make any real difference. I wouldn't blame you for being indifferent. But if you're going to go out of your way to mock EA, congratulations on cutting your own nose off to spite your face.

[Pedersen]

The sheer disgusting smugness of enviros is infuriating, and the utter delight in taking this away, changing that so it's not as good, etc...it's a small act of defiance, but it's about all that's left.

Like I said earlier, participation in EA amounts to a symbolic gesture. Participate, don't participate, it's not going to make any real difference. I wouldn't blame you for being indifferent. But if you're going to go out of your way to mock EA, congratulations on cutting your own nose off to spite your face.

Talon, put these two statements side by side. I happen to agree with Fire_on_High: The arch-environmentalists tend to drive me nuts. I don't mean the people who participate in recycling, or the people who make conscious choices to reduce their impact on the earth. I mean the people who insist on telling the rest of the world how awful they all are for not caring as much as they do. I don't feel like doing the googling right now (got code to write), but it should be fairly simple to find any number of examples.

Any number of groups of people exist who insist that nobody is doing as much as them, and nobody cares as much as them about the environment, and everybody who isn't being as wonderful as they are is just barely above pond scum at best.

If I wanted to be treated like that, I'd go and get my job back under my old manager and get paid for it at least.

Why do an anti-earth hour? Because arch-environmentalists insist on telling me what an awful evil person I am just because I'm not doing everything they are. It reaches the point where I wind up feeling like "Hey, I'm already an asshole according to them, and I haven't earned that. Let me at least earn it." They cause their own backlash, in other words.

And now you add in comments like this:

But if you're going to go out of your way to mock EA, congratulations on cutting your own nose off to spite your face.

Which only serves to throw fuel on the fire. Instead of allowing FoH (and me) to be upset at the people who are so over the top and calling the rest of the world horrid people, we're just cutting our noses off to spite our face.

The part that sucks is that your message is valid. But your presentation makes people like me unwilling to listen to it. Boozy's response I can agree with, since she is advocating people bearing the cost of what they do. Your response says I'm an idiot.

I highly recommend rethinking the way you present your message.

[Cat]

Meh, if people want to participate in anti-earth hour, let their bills go up.

I would have participated this yr, but my bf and I were out ( I have a rather dull dinner...of well)

Last year we participated....trust me, there is nothing wrong with being in the dark for one hour with your SO ;D

[Talon]

The part that sucks is that your message is valid. But your presentation makes people like me unwilling to listen to it. Boozy's response I can agree with, since she is advocating people bearing the cost of what they do. Your response says I'm an idiot.

I highly recommend rethinking the way you present your message.

I'm sorry you feel that way. Nevertheless I stand by my point.

I understand your feelings. I too have very little patience for sanctimony. My mother used to preach at me for any number of trivial things. If I closed a door with too much force, she'd whine "Waah! Don't slam the door! We're renting this place! If you break it we'll have to pay! You think money grows on trees! Etc etc etc..." Even though she was technically right, she was still being a jerk about it. I came to take great delight in promptly slamming the door even louder to annoy her. But if she tried that crap with me now, I'd give her an annoyed look, tell her "Take your preaching act elsewhere", and that's it. Her song & dance no longer gets a rise out of me, nor do I care to get a rise out of her.

See where I'm going with this?

I'm not denying that extremist nut-jobs exist in the environmentalist movement, as is the case with any group. They would probably call me a hypocrite because I own a car. The facts that I walk and still take public transit as much as possible would likely be lost on that crowd.

Do I care what they say or think? Not even remotely.

Why? It's been my observation that people and groups who preach their virtue the loudest are the ones who hold the least claim to it. As this man so wisely put it: "An unloaded weapon always shoots the loudest." Smart money says the type of people you describe could care less about the environment. They get off on belittling other people, and are using an issue they see as "trendy" as a club. They also likely get off on any kind of attention, negative or not.

So yes I participated in earth hour. But I sure as hell didn't do it to please the nut-job crowd. I don't care what they think. Do you?

[protege]

I didn't support Earth Hour either. Call me crazy, but I'm not about to sit in the dark. Too many things (books, model kit boxes, etc.) piled up in certain rooms. Oh, and there are the kitties who just love to trip me

Locally, we have quite a few enviro-wackos who want to get a certain power plant shut down, because it's supposedly a "dirty" plant. Almost all of their protests are during the summer. Nobody hears a peep out of those fools all winter--maybe because the plant is...oh, I don't know, keeping their asses from freezing?

As much as I don't agree with those fools, I've done my part. I do use those swirly lightbulbs, simply because they last so long. Well, that, and because I've seen my electric bill literally *drop* because of them

I also recycle what I can--plastic and aluminum gets collected twice a month, and all of my discarded paper, plus phone books, catalogs, junk mail, etc. goes to charity. (There's a non-profit that collects and recycles it.) Also tossed into the recycle bin, are any plastic and metal computer components. I reuse as much of the electronic bits as I can. Meaning, very little actually goes into the trash.

As if that wasn't enough, I have an older car to play with. It's since been fitted with a "green" cylinder head, so I'm no longer putting leaded fuel in it. Even though it's cost me as much as a used Miata to restore...environment-wise, I think I came out ahead. How? Well, the energy to build the MG has already been accounted for. Cars consume a crapload of energy to build--that little fact tends to drive the wackos nuts. They all seem to think that "new" = "better" and try to pass legislation forcing people to buy new cars. Uh, doesn't that just use *more* energy? Screw that. For every old sports car that the hobbyists fix up, that's not only one less to recycle, but also one less that's rotting away in a field somewhere.

To sum up, I do what I can. However, it pisses me off that even with all this, to some enviros, it's still not enough. To them, I say "fuck you, and get off my porch"