Earth Hour?

[Lote-Tree]

Chaps and Chapsess,

What do you think of this:

http://www.google.co.uk/intl/en_uk/earthhour/

[Lily Adams]

Cool. I'll do it.

[papayahed]

I'll give it a whirl.

[Pensive]

Hmmmm... Pakistan should be given some award concerning electricity conservation. In some areas here, twelve-hours per-day of electricity break-down have been announced....

[Niamh]

I had my lights off!
My mam thinks its such a great idea, shes threatening to make us do it every night.

[Virgil]

I saw it here in the states. Silly. Very silly. Poor people have to keep the house in the dark. Or people who lived prior to the 20th century. We are consciously lowering our standard of living.

[papayahed]

Damn, I forgot about it.

[Shalot]

I didn't do it. I didn't forget about it, I just didn't do it. I am hopped up on caffeine (it's the American way) and I had to get to Wal-Mart. If Wal-Mart doesn't observe Earth Hour, why should anyone else? Gotta stay caffeinated. 24-7. Go go go.

[Niamh]

We reduced electricity use in Ireland by 1.5% during earth hour.

[Lote-Tree]

I saw it here in the states. Silly. Very silly.

How so?

Poor people have to keep the house in the dark.

And why do you have poor people?

Or people who lived prior to the 20th century. We are consciously lowering our standard of living.

1 hour less playstation playing is not lowering living standard!

We reduced electricity use in Ireland by 1.5% during earth hour.

Well done Niam!!!

You have staved off Ireland being under water for an hour ;-)

[Virgil]

How so?



And why do you have poor people?




1 hour less playstation playing is not lowering living standard!

This is a picture at night from a satallite of North and South Korea. The dark half is North Korea. The lit up half is South Korea. North Korea is not in the dark because it wishes to "save" the environment. It's in the dark because it can't afford to be in the light. I've seen such pictures of the entire world at night and the places that are similarly in the dark are also third world nations. I choose to live in the modern world. To live in the dark when one doesn't have to, is not just silly, it's asinine.

[TheFifthElement]

My first reaction is that it's just another gimmick, like Live Earth was. Yes people might turn their lights off for an hour a year, but won't walk or use a bike for short journeys, give up their 24/7 365 days a year availability of seasonal foodstuffs and foodstuffs not available in their locality, cheap clothes imported from the far east, or their annual foreign holiday, etc, etc. So what difference does it make, really, other than make people feel they have been socially responsible when in fact they've done very little? Neither does Earth hour increase the availability of environmentally friendly technology, or make it cheap enough to be used in the average home - for example availability of wind turbines/solar panels/heat exchangers for home use (at a reasonable price or, here's a thought, perhaps the Government could pay for them to be fitted to homes out of the extortionate tax on fuel (shock horror!)).

If people believe in climate change, and if they want to make a difference, then the difference is going to come from big lifestyle change, possibly a lifestyle change beyond that which most people would accept or, and this seems the more likely avenue, the development of better technology. Switching the lights off for an hour does nothing but turn us back to the 'dark ages'. It doesn't seem to me that moving backwards is the answer.

[Lote-Tree]

[QUOTE=Virgil;548909]

This is a picture at night from a satallite of North and South Korea. The dark half is North Korea. The lit up half is South Korea.

Lighted areas shows the amount of pollution!

I choose to live in the modern world.

I choose to live in the Real World where every action has consequences. And Standard of living is not measured by amount of electricity you have to play your wii consoles.

To live in the dark when one doesn't have to, is not just silly, it's asinine.

To live in the light while destroying everything else is stupid.

[TheFifthElement]

And Standard of living is not measured by amount of electricity you have to play your wii consoles.

Lote, Virgil doesn't play computer games, remember! I guess that makes him more environmentally friendly than you

[Lote-Tree]

Lote, Virgil doesn't play computer games, remember!

But you should know well by now...my remarks are never directed at anyone personally ;-)