Gore proposes ‘carbon freeze’ movement
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Posted on December 12, 2006
Filed Under Global warming/Climate change, Deep ecology, Greenhouse gas emissions, Ecological hope, Consumer culture, Fossil fuel dependency, Environmental disasters, Earth spirituality
Fostering Ecological Hope
Today from Margaret Swedish:
Always looking for signs of ecological hope. So here’s one. Al Gore intends to initiate a ‘carbon freeze’ movement, beginning next month, that would be modeled on the Nuclear Freeze Movement of old.
Here’s the article where I found this news. Gore has said before that a movement is needed, but he is now apparently ready to help get it launched.
That Gore wants to bring his considerable public visibility and leadership to a grassroots movement is indeed encouraging. As this article says, he is attracting the support of environmentally-oriented entrepreneurs.
I find it ironic that the Bush administration official quoted in this article is complaining about Gore’s morally righteous tone. Agreeing that there is a moral imperative here, he remarks: “what we lack in abundance is the ability to listen to one another and engage in civic discourse.”
Excuse me Mr. Bush Official, and Mr. Bush himself, but talking is what we have been trying to do for 6 years. You don’t listen. You don’t want to listen. You keep telling us the market will take care of everything and to put our trust in corporations and your programs for voluntary targets to reduce carbon emissions. Under your leadership, we have wasted 6 crucial years, while the evidence of disaster manifests all around our world.
In fact, this administration has no commitment to reduce carbon emissions, to address the causes of our climate crisis, to promote the science that shows global warming gaining steam and already altering nature forever. So it is long past the time for more conversation. It is time for action.
One recommendation for Mr. Gore. I watched your recent performance on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Your presentation was terrific, as usual, but the proposed five things that people can do was woefully inadequate. If we keep passing on the message that the situation is dire, but we can fix it with different light bulbs and wraps around our water heaters, people will be lulled to sleep — that somehow we can fix the crisis without major changes in how we live. This is not real, and is a dangerous delusion, given how little time we have to act.
Mr. Gore, I did not make this up. Several people have expressed their frustration to me that you laid out such a scary scenario but proposed such tepid solutions. Different light bulbs, sure; more recycling, yes. But we have to completely rethink our way of life, how economies work (we have to be bold enough to propose the end of “growth” economic models and stiff restrictions on development), and how our society functions.
If we are going to scare people to death, we should call them to responses commensurate with the fear. Believe me, if they can deal with the fear, they can deal with the needed changes.
So, this movement, which MUST COME FROM THE GRASSROOTS, not be imposed from above by elite environmental groups or businesses, is a very encouraging sign. So let’s make sure that this movement is bold, brave, prophetic, and truly grassroots.
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