You will be happy to know Keith and I participated in full with our Earth Hour night. We not only turned every thing off we unplugged everything other then the fridge and deep freeze.
We didn't go into the fridge at all during the evening nor did we use any electronic device even if it was not plugged in. That had been my choice. In case you are wondering what I am talking about..just google earth hour for all the information but the gist of the matter was every single person was to turn everything off by unplugging for one hour.
Keith and I got the emergency candles out throughout the house and then we got our Domino game out. We played in the candlelight and had a blast!! and even when it was past the hour we kept going. It was nice for a change, no TV, no computers, no cells or phones ringing 24/7.
But do you know what saddened me the most? Was the fact that we have treated this planet so badly that we now have to do this to try and put a band aid to over the owie. I think this Earth Hour needs to be advertise more and earlier so others can participate. But all I can do is do it myself, help my family do their part and go from there.
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This isn't a band-aid solution. This will do nothing to change any environmental effect industrial society has had on the Earth. Only long-term, permanent changes will make any difference at all.
I think it was done to make people aware of just how much electricity one uses needlessly in the course of their day. That we do not need all our lights on or so many appliances on, we don't need to always be doing something that uses energy. If enough people make a stand for it, the larger picture will become clearer to the corporations. The mall nearest us turned all but their emergency exit signs off for the entire night. They did have in house security in over night to deter would be looters but they kept true to their goal of turning all their non essentials off for the night.
I think of New York City in Times Square with all their flashing billboard signs and how much of a drain that is on their grid. I watched a documentary a couple of months ago where it showed the progression from space of the planet from some time ago to the present time. You could watch how much of the planet was pretty dark at one point and over the years was now lit up. Kind of like going to camp in the wilderness and seeing clear star lit skies and trying to see darkness in the city.
The inhabitants of this earth have to make a stand and do it loudly. But you are right that you and I aren't going to make a change just by turning off our kitchen lights but big corporations can. It is our job to make them understand this.
"it was done to make people aware of just how much electricity one uses needlessly in the course of their day."
Nope. It was done, because it is very easy, requires next to no sacrifice, and appeases the conscious of most Westerners.
"I think of New York City in Times Square with all their flashing billboard signs and how much of a drain that is on their grid."
Precisely why residents turning off their lights won't make a difference.
Every single law that was ever passed was because of one person making a stand for what was important. Earth Hour started in Australia and now it is world wide. You are right that compared to corporations, the general public doesn't make a big difference in the whole grand scheme of things. But as more and more "Joe Schmos" get involved and take a stand, corporations will begin to as well.
20 years ago there was no Green party now there is. It began with one person deciding they had to stand for what was important and they convinced one more person who convinced another one etc etc.
Automobile companies came out with Hybrid cars because consumers demanded something that had less of an impact on the environment. It will come together if people come together and demand that corporations listen to them.
I have to believe that. I do believe that. Does that make me Polyannish? Maybe. But I have grandchildren and one day (WAYYYYYY later) I will have great-grandchildren and I want some earth left for them.
PS. What are you doing with your mouth so wide open like that?
Participating in Earth Hour is not taking a stand. It's a copout.
It doesn't produce less energy, and thus doesn't use up less coal, the most popular method of generating power; it doesn't use up less farmland for windmills; it doesn't save more forests from being razed to make room for power lines; and so forth.
And that is saying nothing of the use of other resources (minerals, fossil fuels, water, trees, etc) or the littering of the environment with landfills, nuclear waste, retaining ponds, sewage wastes, and so on.
"Automobile companies came out with Hybrid cars because consumers demanded something that had less of an impact on the environment."
No they didn't. They came out with hybrids because they could finally produce them at a cost that would make them more affordable to the public, and thus increase their profits.
Postponing the use of a resource for an hour isn't change.
I've made more of a difference in my backyard compost bin over the last year, than I did in the hour I had my lights turned off on Saturday night.
Even then, how much difference am I making at diverting 500 lbs of garbage from the landfill in a year, when the landfill receives that much in an hour?
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