An Inconvenient Truth!
What else could be a more apt title for this post other than the movie (rather documentary), An Inconvenient Truth, on Al Gore's campaign to make the people aware about Global Warming and the consequent Climate Change Crisis.
For those who have not heard about Al Gore, he is the former Vice President of USA and the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for the year 2007. Forgive me, if I have underestimated your general awareness, but please understand, that recently I had the opportunity of watching MTV Roadies, where the level of general awareness of the participants, even though they were not selected on that criteria, made me think that the prize money of Rs. 5 crores on the show क्या आप पाँचवी पास से तेज़ हैं (an adaption of "Are you smarter than a fifth grader?" to be aired on Star Plus) will not be so easy to win.
The documentary which runs for about 100 minutes spells out the disasters that have already happened, those that are happening right now as you read this post and those that are waiting to happen on a much more destructive scale if the ecosystem plunder continues to happen at this rate.
The last line spells out a word which you would have read without actually realizing how important it is and how much importance we ought to give to it. The word is "ecosystem". At the first thought, the word means no more than eco-system or ecological system. Think for some more time and you will realize that it is a system where what goes in comes out, not necessarily in a linear fashion. It is a system which has its own way of maintaining the equilibrium which is fragile and will enter into a state of no return, once it exceeds the tipping point.
For e.g., you keep your electrical appliances running when you really don't need to, I take the liberty of stretching out my imagination to list down the following consequences that you face:
1. Your electricity bill shoots up.
2. The company generating the electricity will burn more amount of coal and consequently more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere there by increasing the temperature of the earth. This will someday, if you are of the better paid category, force you to install an air conditioner in your home (if you don't have it already) there by further shooting up your electricity bills.
3. Because of consequence number 2, the company burns more coal to cool your home there by releasing even more amount of see-0-two into the ecosystem. As a simple consequence of law of supply and demand, the price of the coal shoots up thereby increasing the input cost and hence the output cost of electricity which is passed on to you in your bill.
4. Because you were not careful enough to switch off your appliances, the temperature of earth increases and so do the number of diseases/pests due to change in the climate pattern. God forbid, if this leads you or your loved and dependent ones to contract one of these diseases, you spend more amount of money visiting the doctor.
5. The last but definitely not the least, floods, droughts and other ecological disasters that happened and in which you, rather we, played a major role.
I shall stop my flights of fancy here, but believe me, this is a possibility if millions of people start to behave in this fashion. Also, the worst part is, this is already happening.
And this brings us to the how? How do we stop it? Well, to keep it simple, you do not have to join any protest rally to stop it. You just need to have/copy/develop common sense. The underlying question behind all your actions should be, "How can I do this in a more efficient way that will save energy?"
I shall stop being a preacher at this point. Watch the movie; it is full of scientific facts and figures and will keep you interested till the end.
Also, here is the official website, http://www.climatecrisis.net that is full of much more information and simple tips to save the energy and consequently the ecosystem.
And please do find time to register your vote here to support the call for taking measures that would address this issue. It won't take more than a minute.
The best way to finish the post will be the way the movie ends, with the song "I Need To Wake Up" by Melissa Etheridge:
Have I been sleeping?
I’ve been so still
Afraid of crumbling
Have I been careless?
Dismissing all the distant rumblings
Take me where I am supposed to be
To comprehend the things that I can’t see
Cause I need to move
I need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
And as a child
I danced like it was 1999
My dreams were wild
The promise of this new world
Would be mine
Now I am throwing off the carelessness of youth
To listen to an inconvenient truth
That I need to move
I need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
I am not an island
I am not alone
I am my intentions
Trapped here in this flesh and bone
And I need to move
I need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
I want to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Oh, Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
For those who have not heard about Al Gore, he is the former Vice President of USA and the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for the year 2007. Forgive me, if I have underestimated your general awareness, but please understand, that recently I had the opportunity of watching MTV Roadies, where the level of general awareness of the participants, even though they were not selected on that criteria, made me think that the prize money of Rs. 5 crores on the show क्या आप पाँचवी पास से तेज़ हैं (an adaption of "Are you smarter than a fifth grader?" to be aired on Star Plus) will not be so easy to win.
The documentary which runs for about 100 minutes spells out the disasters that have already happened, those that are happening right now as you read this post and those that are waiting to happen on a much more destructive scale if the ecosystem plunder continues to happen at this rate.
The last line spells out a word which you would have read without actually realizing how important it is and how much importance we ought to give to it. The word is "ecosystem". At the first thought, the word means no more than eco-system or ecological system. Think for some more time and you will realize that it is a system where what goes in comes out, not necessarily in a linear fashion. It is a system which has its own way of maintaining the equilibrium which is fragile and will enter into a state of no return, once it exceeds the tipping point.
For e.g., you keep your electrical appliances running when you really don't need to, I take the liberty of stretching out my imagination to list down the following consequences that you face:
1. Your electricity bill shoots up.
2. The company generating the electricity will burn more amount of coal and consequently more carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere there by increasing the temperature of the earth. This will someday, if you are of the better paid category, force you to install an air conditioner in your home (if you don't have it already) there by further shooting up your electricity bills.
3. Because of consequence number 2, the company burns more coal to cool your home there by releasing even more amount of see-0-two into the ecosystem. As a simple consequence of law of supply and demand, the price of the coal shoots up thereby increasing the input cost and hence the output cost of electricity which is passed on to you in your bill.
4. Because you were not careful enough to switch off your appliances, the temperature of earth increases and so do the number of diseases/pests due to change in the climate pattern. God forbid, if this leads you or your loved and dependent ones to contract one of these diseases, you spend more amount of money visiting the doctor.
5. The last but definitely not the least, floods, droughts and other ecological disasters that happened and in which you, rather we, played a major role.
I shall stop my flights of fancy here, but believe me, this is a possibility if millions of people start to behave in this fashion. Also, the worst part is, this is already happening.
And this brings us to the how? How do we stop it? Well, to keep it simple, you do not have to join any protest rally to stop it. You just need to have/copy/develop common sense. The underlying question behind all your actions should be, "How can I do this in a more efficient way that will save energy?"
I shall stop being a preacher at this point. Watch the movie; it is full of scientific facts and figures and will keep you interested till the end.
Also, here is the official website, http://www.climatecrisis.net that is full of much more information and simple tips to save the energy and consequently the ecosystem.
And please do find time to register your vote here to support the call for taking measures that would address this issue. It won't take more than a minute.
The best way to finish the post will be the way the movie ends, with the song "I Need To Wake Up" by Melissa Etheridge:
Have I been sleeping?
I’ve been so still
Afraid of crumbling
Have I been careless?
Dismissing all the distant rumblings
Take me where I am supposed to be
To comprehend the things that I can’t see
Cause I need to move
I need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
And as a child
I danced like it was 1999
My dreams were wild
The promise of this new world
Would be mine
Now I am throwing off the carelessness of youth
To listen to an inconvenient truth
That I need to move
I need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
I am not an island
I am not alone
I am my intentions
Trapped here in this flesh and bone
And I need to move
I need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
I want to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Oh, Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
Now
Labels: Al Gore, Climate Crisis, Global Warming
posted by FailedGod at
12:32 PM
5 Comments:
your points may be right but there is a whole lot of bullshite being thrown arounod for the name of 'global warming' be it cattle fart (believe me they release methane a big time greenhouse gas) to de-odorents
global warming and terrorism are the new fadsl, elements of new paradigms used by people for their own prejudice (e.g. a lady was arguing against eating non veg because of global warming!)
@thequark: Your point is right. But not everything being thrown is bullshit is my point. At the end of the day, what matters is, where do we draw the line?
even i believe in preserving the ecosystem and hence in my own way i switch off the chargers of my electronic devices when they are not plugged in to charge the devices. [the habit to switch off the lights when not in use is in the process to be inculcated].
But an interesting point raised by milan kundera is being read by me in a novel named by milan kundera by public 'dancers' [slowness]. People who stand for morality of huge invisible crowds for their own personal vanity.
My point was that using these broad ooncerns people 'seedhi there own ullu'
environmental and health concerns are the near morality for the god is dead then who shall we invoke the fear in men to follow?
Read this
http://www.tehelka.com/story_main39.asp?filename=Ne030508what_men.asp
It sucks (the article)and wonder on these points ...
The article informs, suggests, accuses but without considering something that is often termed as rational ignorance. Can you explain this ?
1. Why would a government take environment related initiatives when it faced by a larger looming threat of energy insecurity?
2. I am a normal man and if I am asked to feel worried about energy insecurity or environmental disaster, I would choose the former. I think a man driven by rationale (not logic though) would do so.
3. "India must clamp down on deforestation ...." (Page 35) - If people don't have spaces, in the cities, to live; would they realize this
and think "Hey there is no space here, and since if I don't migrate the government might cut down the trees. Now if that happens that would affect my environment. Ah, so should I go back to where I came from? (A long pause)
Is this public choice theory or a rational view of the short term survival that everyone has to deal with?
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