Comments on: Stop Reading About Climate Change - It’s Not Helping!

By: Metyu

Metyu — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 02:28:28 +0000

“we have lost an entire generation to careless consumerism”

Are we now losing a generation to mindless environmentalism?

By: nadine sellers

nadine sellers — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 00:58:16 +0000

you have portrayed the mental dichotomy of ordinary humans.
what is internalized is not necessarily fully digested and externalized as behavior.
the overwhelming nature of complex scientific data may slow the average consumer’s conscience to hum.
we have lost an entire generation to careless consumerism, the task appears heavy now. how to retrieve and redirect.
workplace stress and economic concerns are shadowing ecologic awareness in much of the blue color sector.
the fortunate middle of society must modify their green behavior just a little longer until positive reinforcement take effect. then the media, marketing and fashion will have successfully turned the colors of the profit margin to GREEN. oh happy world?

By: Gavin Hudson

Gavin Hudson — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 14:13:53 +0000

Also, kudos to all the people who’ve commented here and shared real things that they’ve done! Keep up the excellent work!

I will say that environmental activism is one thing that I don’t procrastinate about either.

By: Gavin Hudson

Gavin Hudson — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 14:11:23 +0000

This is really interesting. It’s related to something that I’ve noticed in myself. When I have something that needs doing, I can successfully procrastinate by thinking about that thing for a moment and then going back to whatever it was that I was doing before. By thinking about what it is I need to do, I’ve satisfied that nagging feeling in my brain without having actually done anything. I wonder if this issue is a similar situation.

By: kamran

kamran — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 23:21:02 +0000

what makes me very scared is that, while a massive global environmental destruction (not only GW) has been giong on for the last decades (read the new WWF report), people don´t seem to understand what is actually happening. WE DON`T HAVE A CHOICE!! we have to change the way we live drastically (and especially you Americans!). this is not some political issue or a little crisis, it´s the SURVIVAL OF THE PLANET WE ARE LIVING ON! GET IT! if we don´t get it right, you can just forget about every little stupid, irrelevant problem you have in your everyday life, because you will be DEAD! if the ecosystem of this planet Earth stops functioning, it´s goodbye! it´s not about if you want to do something or not, or if it´s a little inconvenient, there is no choice. I read quite a lot about these things (from well informed sources) and the situation IS that bad! a lot of people who study the situation up close are VERY worried. it´s not only GW. for example, did you know that a part of the Pacific as large as the USA is completely covered in plastic waste, and it´s disolving into smaller and smaller bits and entering the food chain through fish and birds. nobody knows what effect that will have on our bodies. this is just one example. so you just sit at home in your cosy sofa, and try to decide whether to buy a solar panel or using the money for a new TV.. sorry, but it´s time to wake up and grow up! get informed and do something NOW! tomorrow will be to late, maybe it´s to late already..

By: Mark

Mark — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 22:38:19 +0000

I was also pretty surprised by these results.

Some years ago, before I knew much about the subject, I would have been shocked if anybody had suggested that I would set this site up and bore people for hours on the subject of climate change.

Although I guess feedback here and in the environmental weboshpere is going to result in some population bias

By: MPS

MPS — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 22:33:53 +0000

Of course they don’t want people finding out the facts on climate change. If people are informed, they will see that a lot of what the “media” is putting out there is junk, not based in any facts. That a lot of it is just some crackpot theory by some scientist that doesn’t have even one published study.

KEEP READING PEOPLE! FIND OUT WHAT THE MEDIA DOESN’T WANT YOU TO KNOW!

By: Michelle Bennett

Michelle Bennett — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 22:22:00 +0000

Well the more I learned about Global Warming, the more I did about it. I’ve changed my lifestyle as much as I’m able at the moment. I cut way down on my meat consumption, I try to buy organic/ fair trade, I shop at responsible companies (as much I’m able), I drive efficiently (like my grandmother), I don’t use plastic bags, etc. etc. I’m still very concerned about Global Warming but at the moment the most I can do is change how I live, stay active, and vote. I’m doing those things. Am I an exception to the statistical rule?

By: ClimateHeretic

ClimateHeretic — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 20:54:44 +0000

I have to disagree, I for one, and I am sure there are a lot of people like me out there.As I became more informed, it actually made me look at my lifestyle and make minor changes that really did not impact my energy use, but just made sense. Even though I do not accept the mainstream AGW rhetoric.

Yet all the things I found I could do I was doing for the most part and had been doing since a child. None of these things are NEW.

Not Wasting Electricity
- my Mom used to yell at me for that!
Using mass transit when available.
- Rode a bus to school, now take a train to work
Recycle.
- Been doing this all my adult life
Energy Star appliances.
- This standard is over 15 years old, improving the levels, I think 8 times in that period, I do not even really see non-compliant appliances anymore.
CFLs are the only really new tech
- but I have had flourescent lights in some high use rooms, like my kitchen and office for years. I install them if I move to a new place without them.
Fuel Economy
- I buy the car I like to drive, not based on economy because I do not commute in it, If I had to I would use it as a factor. This is more about a standard not increasing in step with other parts of world.
Building standards
- in my country these are high, because it is cold here.

So then you get hit with the extremists. The 100 Mile Diet, Do not eat red meat, take cold showers, do not flush your toilet, ride a bike all year, use 3 squares of toilet tissue, no air travel, etc.

Do %50,000+ home energy retrofits with Geothermal,solar or wind to save $30 a month until the next energy rate increase. Never mind the cost! Your equity in your home is all for spending never mind you lost 30% of your home value ( US comment, anyone read the newspapers lately )

I am not prepared to make these lifestyle changes, nor are the general public.

So I think that is what you hear from most people, you do not hear that they want to do nothing, but that there is a limit they will accept as a cost. Most do what they can.

As you get more informed you realize that even if everyone does it, it will have an insignificant impact on the total GHG emissions of the planet.

When we are in an energy deficit the best we could do is hold back demand for a short time, there are no reductions to be found here on the time scales we are discussing.