What is it about the Green Movement that bothers me?
I mean, I think of myself as an environmentalist --
These are my thoughts, and I may be off base, I've never read anyone else being critical of Green -- but it just seems -- off -- somehow.
1.) I have a sneaking suspicion, it's more about selling me something than about the environment.
2.) There is an off-putting, "do-gooding, holier than thou", tone to it all.
3.) My own thought is that instead of making things Greener, we would be better off making less things.
4.) Unintended consequences. So many Green solutions don't make much sense to me -- it seems like they over expend energy to save a little energy.
5.) I think the environment is way too complicated to try to figure out in small units.
6.) Just consume less. Period.
7.) I'm betting that a few very strong measures, which would be utterly unpalatable to even most Greenies, would have the most effect. Have a .10 gas tax. Limiting the size of houses.
Urban Growth Boundaries that are really boundaries, instead of expansions. That kind of thing.
This is just off the top of my head.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
6 comments:
Duncan,
As part of it you can eliminate physical items such as books, comics, graphic book, etc. where the content can be sent electronically. Just think of all of all of the chemicals, trees and energy used in paper production, printing and all of the fuel used in packaging and distribution.
May a tax of 50 cents per book would provide a good incentive.
It can be a very interesting slippery slope.
I've often thought you could build a house with all the extra books.
Just take all the DaVinci hardcovers floating around, for instance.
A .10 gas tax would be pretty meaningless (lost in normal gas price volitility). If you want to effect behavior it would need to be an EU level gas tax that atleast doubles the price of gas.
"1.) I have a sneaking suspicion, it's more about selling me something than about the environment."
I'm with you 100%, Duncan. Just look at this story on KTVZ-- http://www.ktvz.com/video/25780481/index.html .
Now you probably knew the Steel boys growing up just like everyone else in Bend did. Let's just say, they weren't the greenest bunch in town. Now look at the clip and you'll see the amazing trasformation of brother Scott. I have a sneaking suspicion that he pushes that green crap to sell more building plans. He, Nagelhout, Charley Miller, Todd Taylor, Latham, etc., etc., are all cut from the same "If you build it, they will come," cloth. The "green" gimick just opens new doors for old Scotty.
The article a couple of weeks ago in the Bulletin about the couple building the super green Leed Certified house exemplified this well.
What really caught me was that they tore down two old houses on their lot so they could put up the new one. While the old houses were certainly less energy efficient, they had already been built, and it would take minimal additional energy to keep them built. As is, they spent a whole bunch of energy demolishing the old houses, and will spend a whole bunch more building the new house. And last time I checked, heavy equipment operated on diesel, and most construction contractors don't drive Prius's to the job site.
Penny-wise and pound foolish.
It gets pretty ridiculous.
A few years ago, when gas prices shot up, I noticed that instead of one or two motorbikes in the garage at a time, there were 8 or 10.
Brand new!
And a year or two later, they're nowhere to be seen.
Gee, that really saved money and gas....
Post a Comment