Environmental Talk

Biggest event ever staged. And the concert was big too…

In case you were living without electricity or newspapers in an effort to reduce your carbon footprint, you probably know that the Live Earth concert took place over the weekend. The concert billed by organizers as, “the biggest musical event ever” set records for attendance, Internet coverage and hypocrisy.

Madonna, fresh off being voted Least Green Celebrity in a recent poll, headlined the London concert. Also performing at the Wembley Stadium concert was the hip new group, Duran Duran who, if I’m not mistaken, have a hole in the ozone named after them due to their heavy use of hairspray back in the 80’s.

The series of concerts was designed to raise awareness of global warming. And, it’s a good thing, too. Because before this weekend, you almost never heard anything about the whole “climate change” issue. By that yardstick alone, you’d have to judge the concert as a hugely redundant success.

According to Reuters article, “The Live Earth global pop concerts on Saturday broke a record for an online entertainment show by generating more than 9 million Internet streams.”

The Reuters article went on to explain, “An Internet stream is when a person watches on a computer.”

Maybe the next concert should be to raise awareness of Internet terminology.

Early estimates by critics of the concerts indicated that organizers would need to plant over 100,000 trees to offset the carbon emissions generated by Live Earth. So, be sure to add “having a massive concert series to stop global warming” to the oxymoronic list of “bombing for peace” and “screwing for virginity.”

Still, if the concert served to make just one more person aware of the purported dangers of global warming and what we each can do to stave off the coming Apocalypse, it would have been worth it.

As one concert-goer at a pre-concert tailgating party at the Meadowlands concert venue noted, “I’m drinking a beer for global warming.”

Now, that’s the kind of social activism we can all get behind.

global warming, climate change, Live Earth, Wembley Stadium, Madonna, Duran Duran, beer, Apocalypse, Al Gore, streaming Internet,

myLot User Profile

Author, vice-president, dad …

Al Gore has had a stellar year.

He has a new book out, he has a series of global rock concerts coming up and he has an Academy Award on his coffee table. He has succeeded in bringing global warming into the public consciousness as an issue and is enjoying more adulation and respect than he ever garnered as a politician. The former vice-president has been on a pretty good roll.

It will come to no surprise to anyone that I don’t always share Mr. Gore’s ideas on the issues and tactics surrounding the climate change debate.

I do find myself in agreement with him on at least one point: his view that his son’s recent problems should remain a private matter.

There will be the requisite number of jokes from late night talk show hosts and blow-hard media commentators about how Al Gore III was driving a Prius as a carbon offset to pot smoke and other such nonsense.

Through it all, many people will choose to ignore that, despite his stature as a public figure, Al Gore is also a father whose son is in trouble. My own opinion is that this should buy him all the time and all the slack he needs to take care of his family without having to deal with potshots from smug right-wing knuckleheads.

I understand that political debate (hell, pretty much all debate) in this country has coarsened over the past several years. The Rosie O’Donnells and Anne Coulters of the world have shown that gratuitous vileness and nasty hyperbole can be a profitable niche in the world of punditry.

If I’m going to argue that we need to halt the tide of spiteful and malicious debate, I suppose I should throw out the first sandbag.

So, FWIW, Al Gore gets a pass from me on this topic.

I hope Mr. Gore and his family can figure out what needs to be done to help a young man with some problems. Gore deserves the chance to do that on his own terms and in his own time.

But, Al, like the German Shepard in the old Richard Pryor routine, when it comes to the climate change debate, “You know I’m going to be chasin’ you again tomorrow …”

The Master

global warming, climate change, Al Gore, Prius, Rosie O’Donnell, Anne Coulter, Richard Pryor, monkeys, German Shepards

Susie over The Accidental Environmentalist nominated Environmental Talk for a “Bloggers For Positive Global Change Award.”

The nomination made my day and I was honored that Susie was the one to nominate me. Susie and I are kind of like the Mary Matalin and James Carville of global warming blogging. We don’t always agree, but we admire each other’s work and commitment.

Part of the deal is that I have to nominate five other bloggers for the award. Out of the many deserving sites and people I considered, I’ve chosen the following five:

1). Objectivism Online - If we are going to change the world for the better, it will be through philosophy. This site features articles and links to some of the best and brightest our country has to offer.

2.) Carnival of Climate Change - The Carnival is always open! The guys over at the Carnival website give a voice to global warming skeptics with an extensive array of links and articles. They rarely miss any cogent article and have links to a number of brilliant writers.

3.) Lez Keep It Real - Lyndsey D’Arcangelo’s 451 Press site and her professional writing site were instant favorites of mine when I discovered them. She’s a passionate and intelligent advocate for gay and lesbian rights and one helluva writer.

4.) Lighter Footstep - Chris Baskind and the crew have more tips for organic and green living than you can shake a recycled papier-mache stick at. No haranguing here, just tips and technology for those who want to take advantage of the myriad of green lifestyle choices. Looking for green suggestions with a lighter touch? Check out Lighter Footstep.

5.) Discussing Breast Cancer - Karen is a breast cancer survivor and freelance writer. Her knowledge, caring and strength are a daily source of inspiration. My son’s mom is a breast cancer survivor so I’m appreciative of the information and sense of perspective that Karen brings to the topic.

It’s easy to participate in this meme. At minimum, you can proudly display the BPGC badge (it’s available in two varieties: Transparent GIF and JPEG with white background) on your blog and bask in the glow of our collective good will. If you are sharing the kudos, however, please make sure you pass this list of rules to the blogs you are tagging.

The participation rules are simple:
1. When you get tagged, write a post with links to up to 5 blogs that you think are trying to change the world in a positive way.
2. In your post, make sure you link back to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme.
3. Leave a comment or message for the bloggers you’re tagging, so they know they’re now part of the meme.
4. Optional: Proudly display the “Bloggers For Positive Global Change” award badge with a link to the post that you write up.

Cool. Very cool.

One of the good things to come out of the whole global warming discussion is the creative focus that is being applied across all disciplines toward creating more efficient ways to achieve various results.

Whether it’s manufacturing, architecture or urban planning, some very smart and talented people are looking for better ways to do all these things.

The building pictured above is a design for a mixed-use building in Khanty Mansiysk, Siberia.

(And, yes, I did give up trying to spell the city and just copied-and-pasted it into this post.)

According to the article in World Architecture News:

The concept is driven by a progressive environmental strategy that is expected to establish new benchmarks for the region. Set high on a hill in a densely wooded area, the tower rises above two podium buildings each facetted like a cut diamond, reflecting and refracting natural light to illuminate the interior. At the summit, a viewing platform and restaurant offer panoramic views over the city. The development will take advantage of a number of sustainable energy strategies and key to the energy performance of the building are its atria, designed to facilitate solar gain and to encourage daylight to permeate the complex. A sensitive insertion into the landscape, the design ensures that much of the site remains in its natural condition.

Our ability to think is what will ultimately carry the day and allow us to continue to flourish as a species. Even in Siberia.

Too cool for school

global warming, climate change, Siberia, cool buildings, green building, architecture

WANTED: For Grand Larceny

I visited some friends in Australia a couple of years back when I was in better partying shape than I am these days.

Billions of brain cells and hundreds of aspirin later, I came to the conclusion that the folks Down Under know how to have a good time. A really good time.

If Fosters is Australian for beer, then hangover must be Australian for snooze-alarm.

The Aussies are also known for their sense of humor, which is why I thought the article in this morning’s Sydney Morning Herald had to be a joke. A closer read of the article reveals it is about a study by some German scientists that was recently published in the journal of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

I think it’s a safe bet that anytime you mention “Germans” and “proceedings” in the same sentence, the first thing that pops into your mind isn’t comedy.

That could change if the National Academy keeps coming out with articles like this. You see, these scientists concluded that humans are using up too much of the sun’s energy compared to the rest of the species on the planet.

As the article explains:

Humans are just one of the millions of species on Earth, but we use up almost a quarter of the sun’s energy captured by plants - the most of any species … [the study] showed humans used 24 per cent of the energy that was captured by plants. More than half of this was due to the harvesting of crops or other plants.

Well, duh!

Of course, we use up more sun. Most animals don’t spend their time getting a suntan on their vacation. Many people will be surprised to find out that, throughout much of the world, most animals don’t even get two-weeks paid vacation. So, the real problem we need to address is how to get tigers, possums, crickets and all the animals that appear in Evan Almighty more leisure time.

Look for this to be a big issue in the upcoming Presidential election.

It’s all so confusing.

I thought I was supposed to help combat global warming by not eating meat (because meat comes from cows and cows produce methane and methane’s a greenhouse gas … yada, yada, yada …) but now, I can’t eat plants because I’m using up more than my fair share of the sun’s energy.

With the recent push by states like California and New York to pass laws against energy wasters and greenhouse gas producers, it’s only a matter of time before we’re each only allowed to go out in the sun on alternate days.

And, if I’m using up too much of the sun’s energy, then look for an arrest warrant to be issued soon for George Hamilton.

As a socially-conscious individual, I think it’s important to do my share so I’ve volunteered to track down one of the ruthless gangs responsible for using too much of the sun’s energy…

America’s Most Wanted. But not for the reason you think…

I’ll hold them until the environmental cops get there….

global warming, climate change, George Hamilton, Hawaiian Tropic, energy use, Evan Almighty, vacation, Sam and Dave

Assault on Reason

“Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, politicians gotta lie ’til the day they die…”
-music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein and Mark Jabo

An article in the Chicago Sun-Times this past weekend points out a number of scientific studies that contradict much of what a certain former next President would have us believe are some of the “commonly accepted” effects of global warming:

Here’s a brief synopsis of the global warming “facts” and some of the alternative science that contradicts them:

“Fact:” Himalayan glaciers are receding due to global warming

… the September 2006 issue of the American Meteorological Society’s Journal of Climate reported, “Glaciers are growing in the Himalayan Mountains, confounding global warming alarmists who recently claimed the glaciers were shrinking and that global warming was to blame.”

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