My vehicle is a diesel, but not electric. If it was electric, it may not help much. The electricity has to come from somewhere… and Power Stations carry a large burden on Climate Change and CO2 production. So does Concrete production, actually.
I recycle, heavily.
But let’s be brutally honest… We ALL, every one of us, suffer the Same Self Problem. I sit here enjoying technology, typing on this computer and this interwebs.
If we Truly cared about climate change, we would be getting horses and buggies.
We all know that this is true. We all know what it is that Really Motivates us.
I honestly fear that is what is coming, actually. I suspect steam, powered by Nuclear- will become the future, like it or not. And I, for one, support it.
But we love our modern conveniences Too Much. Tossing a steel Beans can into the recycle bin is a fine thing and all, yet I still go to the store where shelves are covered in Thousands of wasteful cans and packaging and my little efforts mean little when I know that 92% of those cans will end up in the landfill.
What we have truly done is painted ourselves into a corner. While this is not political, it is made out to be. And just like in politics, our developed human nature plays a very large role in how we confront issues.
Capitlaism, is evil. It’s what gave us poisoned food, exploitation of the working class, jobs being moved overseas and poverty- and let’s not forget the Radium Girls.
Socialism is evil. It gave us oppression, tyranny, corruption and greed as elites exploit the working class… Oh wait. There’s that human nature, again.
Of course, a person who has strong beliefs on one side will blame the other side. It does not matter which side you consider yourself aligned to, you end up with the same thing.
And whereever you go, most places, politics is banned from discussion. Even at the dinner table in many homes. Especially on forums on the web. Moderators dislike having to break up arguments and heated debates and it is … Easier… To ban it. Yet, now in the USA, it seems a nation heavily divided by groups that can no longer communicate, seek each other out for validation and confirmation and no one understands each other anymore, no one communicates and tests ideas for merit anymore… It is Our Fault. We wanted Easy and we created this division. We wanted peace for the moment and things have been less than peaceful now.
Climate Change is like that.
It is our fault, but we have done this to ourselves and cannot just Jump Back Out of the corner we painted ourselves into.
For some, they want peace without thinking long term. For others, they just want the Easy Approach and it really is a Lot Easier to think that everything is fine and there is no problem.
Conserving Energy is easier than burning it. We have developed and evolved to do so. For a million years of human history, we learned to take the easy appraoch as often as possible back when life lacked modern convenience and was Much Much Harder. We do not fit into the world we have created. We created it to be easy and now, easy is what people want, more than those of us willing to take the Hard Road.
We cannot fix what we have done to ourselves or the climate Quickly nor Easily. Not by tossing a can into the recycling once a week.
Not by surrounding ourselves only by people who agree with our views.
Not by hating or labelling those that disagree as an enemy.
Not by banning cars and power stations.
It is a dangerous balance, but we need to Slowly open the lines of communication. Improve education. Uplift others and mitigate what we can. We cannot force or order people to do what is right, because they will resist- It is our nature. We like our easy and convenient lifestyle so much better than the olden days.
What I learned the hardest in the US Army was that leadership is not about barking orders or telling people what to do. It is about inspiring others to want to follow your lead.
You are right, Zab, solar and batteries can be “greener” but they are not “green” either. And solar is great if you have the time, but a solar powered generator won’t do you much good at three am. There’s the Patriot Power Generator- which is NOT a generator but a portable battery; it does not perform as claimed, weighs a ton and charges by being plugged into the wall (With the 12 hour option of charging it outside if it is a bright sunny day using the included solar panels.) It costs more than a Small Used Car coming in at USD $2,500.00
How many people really are gonna jump on that opportunity?
When you look at How We Are… How if one political party supports an idea- then that idea becomes anethma to the opposing party, regardless of the Merit of the Idea, if gives me Little Hope for our future. The new normal? We have not changed in many thousands of years. Only our tech, did.
And what did our tech do?
It increased the human lifespan by decades. Helped treat and even cure hundreds of horrible diseases. It allowed chances to be given to those who would have never survived in the past that contributed in amazing ways to society- like Stephen Hawking. Our technology has shrunk our world and played a huge role in combatting xenophobia, racism and sexism. We now have the ability to touch knowledge with our fingertips; unlike the great Library of Alexandra, the internet has openly shared its bounty for all to read.
And our dark side knows no bounds- as some exploit that as a means to spread propaganda and misinformation, to inspire others to want to follow their lead… With deception, geared toward greed and self-driven gain. “Good,” “right” and "evil became subjective terms. In true fashion of Emergence, complexity increased. How do we know who to believe, anymore?
Ok, well… I know how. But who listens to me, anyway.
I believe that normal is going to get worse for a while.
People in the USA are startled. A bit… uncertain. But we are not Afraid. We should be, but are too proud to be. Until we are… Until we are Truly Afraid, I do not think anything is going to change.
. They say the rain is supposed to let up on Tuesday and Wednesday.
