Oh, I'm getting some awareness out of this, all right. This is heightening my awareness that the people who do stunts like this do not actually believe in the "climate change" emergency. Anyone who actually believed would oppose — among many, many other things — all the decorative illumination of the exteriors of public buildings. Just turning it off for an hour? Do you think we are idiots?
***
This reminds me of those churchgoers who pray for an hour a week — in public — and spend the rest of their time engaging in whatever nasty behavior they please. Why do they do this? Do they think they'll get absolution? Eh. You have to actually believe to think there's absolution. If they really believed, they wouldn't behave like that. I think they, in their selfish interest, hope to gain favor and to prompt other people to believe and behave virtuously.
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Some illumination of public buildings is required by the FAA, as noted in the linked article. But that reminds me: Why are people flying all over the place anyway? If we really believed in the touted emergency, we would limit flying to the truly essential. And what would be truly essential?
Business and government meetings can be done by video conference. Close down that that government building altogether! Think of all the carbon emissions that would save. (I will concede that in a representative democracy, officials really may need to mingle together in the flesh)
Recreational travel is a monument to disbelief in the seriousness of the climate change alarm. How can you go jaunting about to Europe or wherever and turn around and expect other people to buy tiny tin-can cars?
***
How about if everyone stays home and reads. Read until you figure out how to write English (or whatever language you think you know). The Wisconsin State Journal writes "to bring awareness to climate change." Like "climate change" is an entity that could be jolted into conscious thought.
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48 comments:
Gawd, that Earth Hour thing is so off-putting. It's advertised and promoted to get people to pressure their peers into conforming. And for what? For nothing but show, as you've rightly noted here.
And it is scary – the mass worldwide conformity is fucking scary!
As for religious people, how about those Stylite dudes in Byzantium that would live, exposed, atop pillars? Now that was religious! Let's see some of these Earth Hour people do something like that!
JRH - symbolism over substance. GW religion and all.
It is about the Democrat instinct for tribal identification; it does not matter so much exactly what cause it is for or what is supposed to be accomplished by the proposed action.
Non-believers go to church to send a signal that they conform and they're trustworthy. It's good for business.
I'm sure the same dynamic applies to the Church of Green.
Usually someone does the Gorewatch during that hour and notes that the lights didn't go out.
Thank you for this post Ann. Every single one of my friends/acquaintances that go on and on about the environment, and consider themselves "green", fly to far-off destinations every chance they get. Every. Single. One.
The hypocrisy is stunning and leaves me speechless.
To be fair, there is no God and there might be AGW.
"Oh Professor, don't compare Climate Change believers to religious people."
I'm comparing hypocrites to hypocrites.
Do you think we are idiots?
Yes. Yes they do.
"If they really believed, they wouldn't behave like that."
This just about sums up a lot of Paul's epistles.
Happy Palm Sunday, by the way. All those people waving palm branches at the triumphal entry---and in less than a week watching the defeated exit to the crucifixion.
Also for intimidating the opposition or neighboring tribes. See nature specials on the bonobos of Tanganyika.
Professor: Can Waxman and Stupak really subpoena these firms to come before their committee and demand that they bring internal documents from their companies to justify opinions they have expressed?
This is certainly an attempt to pre-emptively intimidate opposition, is it not?
Re those just for an hour on Sunday Christians who remain unconverted:
I have encountered many OSAS-therefore-it-doesn't-matter-what-I-do types.
Jesus covers all my sin, it's like a free pass! --that's what they think.
Their sin eats them alive and inflicts all kinds of damage on them, people around them, people they love, the greater society--there is always a price to pay in this cause and effect world.
But they got their golden ticket.
So no prob.
It's the same hardheadedness the prophets rail against in the OT.
No way I was going to power off during the Kentucky game.
Greens are idiots if they think they'll get hoops fans to turn off the tournament.
Awesome post, Professor.
We intended to turn all the lights in the house on for an hour to register our opinion of all this [...], but we forgot. It's doubtful anyone would've noticed, anyway.
Since I'm poor I can't afford to jaunt off on a plane somewhere to show my support of modern technology, so last night my friend and I turned on all the lights in the apartment and then went out to see a play at the high school.
"Why do they do this?"
"I think they, in their selfish interest, hope to gain favor and to prompt other people to believe and behave virtuously."
I think there's also a fair amount of guilt assuagement going on. A lot of people do half believe, enough to be aware their actions aren't in keeping with what they think is true. So, they do just enough to stave off crippling guilt. Listening to an oft boring lecture and putting money in the passed plate is just enough penance to get them through another week. This doesn't rid people of all the guilt, though. It's like an overflow valve, getting rid of just enough to keep from making some radical change.
"I'm comparing hypocrites to hypocrites."
And just when I thought I couldn't love you more.
You left out the McMansion. Anyone who claims to be concerned and then lives in a house with more than 500 Square Feet per person is a complete hypocrite. Even if they have a Prius parked in the three car garage
Those few who are not hypcites are called "saints." There are damn few of them.
The mighty power of Global Control is the sole issue in the heart of every Green Doctrine contained in every warmist indoctrination spiel that has or will be made. Why argue truth and facts around these believers? Those are irrelevant categories when Global Control of all that touches air is the sole issue at stake. They are insane and proud of it.
Glenn Reynolds still has the best take on it:
I will buy that this is a crisis when they act like it is a crisis.
Ann Althouse said...
Anyone who actually believed would oppose — among many, many other things — all the decorative illumination of the exteriors of public buildings. Just turning it off for an hour? Do you think we are idiots?
I do believe you answered your own question, Madame.
Althouse:
Your chrystal clear logic in this post is one reason I love this blog.
Why don't you run for the U.S. Senate where you'd run circles around those dim bulbs? You may even embarrass them into dumbfounded silence.
Oooh, oooh! Some people engage in Earth Hour, and thus that means AGW is not a real imminent threat, oooh oooh
/liberal troll
wv: dempigs - self explanatory
I document that "Earth Hour" was a bust by using real-time electricity demand graphs: http://meteorologicalmusings.blogspot.com/2010/03/earth-hour-bust.html
My friend who was high up in business in Houston said that the businessmen that carried around their bibles were usually the most dishonest businessmen he knew.
And he also noticed that the bigger the bible, the bigger the crook.
"Why don't you run for the U.S. Senate where you'd run circles around those dim bulbs? You may even embarrass them into dumbfounded silence."
I don't play well with others, and I'm at my worst when bored. And I want to have fun. And I'm already a law professor, which is pretty fun... and doesn't stop me from blogging.
McDonald's in Hong Kong has (get this) a monthly NO STRAWS DAY to support the environment! On the second Tuesday of each month (or something like that), McDonald's does its part by not providing straws for drinks (unless requested).
It almost makes me think they are doing the Kotex thing--in this case, taking the piss out of the greens by making a ludicrously minimal effort. Now if only they made a bigger deal about it...
I don't know if they have the same thing in the US. I will try to take a snapshot tomorrow to share.
I think you should run for Senate and then do a Bloggin' Heads with Mickey Kaus. A new media senatorial debate of sorts. Even though you wouldn't be running against each other.
Every single day when I don't hop on a plane and fly off to Bali, or Costa Rica, or wherever, I count that as my contribution to "saving" the environment. So far my record is 100%. As pointed out above, that puts me substantially ahead of many, many of the most rabid green types in any putative quest for environmental sainthood.
Which reminds me, in an article I was reading about Earth Hour, some famous person of non-American extraction (I can't remember who) made the offhand comment that they would be in America for the event. With nary a trace of irony or self-awareness. As if flying halfway around the world to turn off lights for an hour is really going to "save the planet". Or even bring enough "awareness" to offset the trip to the airport, let alone the flight.
"If they really believed, they wouldn't behave like that."
The Church is not a hotel for saints, it is a hospital for sinners. If they really believe, they know that. They know that and they admit to their sinful inclinations, the strong allure and temptation of sin, and their fallen nature that clouds one's judgment and impairs one's will to do good.
And they know that, because they have been so infected with the disease of sin, that they cannot heal themselves -- they cannot simply "believe" or "really believe" and then suddenly they are without sin and are, instead, perfect saints. If they really believe, they know that they cannot do it by themselves -- they need help, they need grace, they are in need of a divine physician, which is why they are there, in the hospital for sinners, in the first place.
We could turn off the lights in the law library..better yet..not turn them on. They are, in fact, without need or merit.
Until there is another constitutional amendment the law is the law and ... well nothing new.
Ann could easily unplug her laptop as a symbolic gesture for the conservation of ions...if she didn't write we wouldn't read and then have to attack the lack of understanding of symbolic actions.
I LOVE you, Ann! You say what needs to be said (written) - boldly going before us to call out this b.s. Thank you for having the balls...I am behind, beside and with you all the way. Haven't had time to comment in a long time - nor really even reading as much...but every time...you sink it, corner it - slam dunk it!!
Ha! Last night, I had the kitchen at work going full bore power consumption, while leaving the lights on at home!
I pay for it at home. But my overwhelmingly liberal/green customers paid for it at work.
I love it!
Earth Hour used to be a low key, harmless way to bring awareness to our earth and our energy consumption.
Shame on this Madison newspaper for spinning it into something else.
No matter what they do, I still choose to look at Earth Hour for what it was originally intended to do.
It's better to light one candle than to sit in the darkness & pretend to have accomplished something thereby.
BTW, I understand that all the clerics watched the basketball Elite Eight game in their rectories or refectories in darkness last night on their energy eatin’ plasma TV, eating pizza heated in a energy eatin’ cooking device. Gotta start somewhere, I guess. It's the feeeeelings, oh, oh, feeeeelings.
"The Church is not a hotel for saints, it is a hospital for sinners."
A hospital where no one got better would not have a very good reputation either.
Certainly, Paul thought there was something about improvement involved in churches. He addressed his letters to the saints, and seemed to expect them to act that way.
Some illumination of public buildings is required by the FAA,...
With the proliferation of cellular towers have come the unearthly bright flashing lights. I wrote a letter to my Congresswoman complaining about this.
The new bridge over the Ohio River near my house, and the smoke stacks at the power plant across the river have gently blinking red or white lights. The cellular towers have lights that flash like a strobe on Zeus' camera.
None of these towers are more than 75 to 100 feet tall. What airplane that is not in the process of crashing going to fly into one of these. It's ludicrous.
For more ludicrousness, watch as more and more elements of the health care bill are implemented.
There are already some neo-Puritans in the environmental movement who do indeed think overseas travel should be licensed and rationed. But of course, none of them propose to encompass government slugs or NGO do-gooders in their rules.
"...a low key, harmless way to bring awareness to our earth..."
I prefer my planets non-sentient, thank-you-very-much.
Paddy -- do you mean the same Paul (formerly Saul) who was an accessory to homicide and other acts of unjust persecution of the Church?
Turning off the lights hi highrises saves migrating birds, that otherwise would drop by the shovelfull onto the streets: http://www.terrain.org/articles/15/kousky.htm
Imagine if we were not hypocritical and actually stopped doing everything that is "destroying the planet". Virtually all of us would be out of work either directly or because our customers were. It's either the planet or us, one has got to go.
If Paul were around today he wouldn't fool around writing letters; he'd be racking up frequent-flyer miles to Corinth and Ephesus so he could personally deliver his PowerPoints to the carbon sinners.
Paul Z 3/29 @704 AM
Bingo. Am gonna send this to some Highly Moral Libs with Large Carbon Footprints who follow the "Do as I say..." rule.
"do you mean the same Paul (formerly Saul) who was an accessory to homicide and other acts of unjust persecution of the Church?"
Yep.
Well, it wasn't homicide. He had all the proper paperwork.
Even still... he apparently didn't keep it up after being a Christian, saying it was a sickness and whatnot.
This morning I read the very relevant to this post sermon by John Wesley titled "The Almost Christian".
Seems there's a lot of "Almost Environmentalists" out there too.
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