Now first, don’t get me wrong. I’m not one of these people who thinks global warming is nothing more than a fabricated theory. I also don’t litter, try my best to keep my own pollution levels down, and rarely use much electricity if I can help it. That’s right, I think the earth is great, and I try not to destroy it whenever I can. But I won’t be one of the countless blind sheep around the world, flicking off my lights and sitting in the dark tonight at 20:30 simply to make a “statement”.
I understand why the World Wildlife Foundation organized this event, and continues to promote it every year. It is not, in any way, meant to actually conserve power. Even if you turn every single light and appliance in your house off for an entire, grueling sixty minutes, your efforts will never be reflected. This is because, as it is pointed out here, much of the world still relies on coal-burning power plants for their energy. These plants cannot simply be shut down for an hour; they continue to produce electricity for the public demand. So Earth Hour is just a statement, meant to bring awareness to our use of energy. Fair enough, right?
There is nothing wrong with bringing awareness to climate change, energy consumption, and the whole lot. But Earth Hour really misses the mark.
While the average person sits in complete darkness tonight, large corporations everywhere will still be going full blast, lights ablaze, machines running on full, and, on a good night, spewing enormous amounts of toxins into the air all the while. Now call me completely insane, but doesn’t that seem just a little backwards? Why should it be the average person who does their best to be “green” (a popular feel-good buzz word that has grown exponentially since the time it was coined) all year round, sitting in the dark? They are already aware of these very real environmental threats. Telling them to sit in darkness for an hour just to prove a point to others like them, does not make the slightest bit of sense. It is nothing more than a very hard slap in the face to the general public who have actually done their part in conserving energy. Earth Hour accomplishes nothing.
So, given how pointless it is, I am always shocked to see how many people willingly support it, and even promote it. This is where my “blind sheep” comparison comes in. As usual, far too often, the general public buys into a concept or a movement without fully understanding it. Especially in today’s society, after all, there’s simply not enough time for most people to consider what this Earth Hour actually accomplishes...they barely have enough time to join the Earth Hour group of their choice on Facebook. Here’s the scary part: Earth Hour goes unquestioned by the majority, and they blindly follow along with the rest of the crowd, so that at the end of that long, seemingly endless hour of darkness, they can give themselves a solid pat on the back, feeling deep inside that they “did their part” to single-handedly end global warming as we know it! Hopefully that feeling lasts through the following five minutes, as they proceed to switch on all their lights, computer, TV, stereo, microwave, oven, dryer, and furnace.
This Earth Hour, I’ll be doing the same thing I did last year: turning on every light and appliance in my house. It definitely makes a statement, and I’m proud of it. You can barely see any lights on in my house from the street view on roughly 364 days of the year. Tonight is my night to splurge on electricity, where I can give myself a well-deserved, pat on the back for my energy savings through the past year. I invite all of you to join me in this celebration. Shower yourselves in light—you deserve it. Why not? After all, it makes more sense than Earth Hour...and a lot of people will be taking part in that.
- Posted on
28 March 2009 - Posted by
spncr