Comments on: Stay Simple: Green Acts Add Up

By: Margaritte

Margaritte — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:26:08 +0000

I agree completely with the second comment. Consuming is not going to get us off the environmental hook. Recycling is a way for everyone to feel good, but, guess what? It takes a great deal of energy to recycle and materials can’t be endlessly reused (paper breaks down, plastic bottles wind up as lawn furniture, etc.) The answer, if there is one at this point, is to change our consumer driven throw away culture. Who decided single use was a good thing anyway?

By: CatLady

CatLady — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:19:50 +0000

Sandy, you are so right. It is refreshing to hear from someone who can accept scientific evidence. I was born in the Depression and was a child during World War II. I really doubt that the real sum of human happiness has been greatly increased by much of the increased consumerism since 1945. Every small, simple step we take to reduce our carbon footprint (lowering the thermostat by two degrees in the winter, raising it 2 degrees in the summer, recycling aluminum, reusing rather than buying new, buying a fuel-efficient appliance/car, limiting our offspring to two, composting household waste for our own vegetable garden–whatever is appropriate for your own conditions) is a positive step. It is far better to be part of the solution, rather than contributing to the problem.

By: Laurel P

Laurel P — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:32:22 +0000

I liked your article because I think the target reader is an environmenetal newbie–and there are millions of them. I call them light-green as they begin to be aware and to start re-thinking every action, purchase, trip and concept of how they live and the impacts up and down stream (the neighbor effect in economics). It all starts small.

There are always people who criticize articles and suggestions like these as not big enough, but I say to those folks, you go work on the Senate now, get that Climate Bill passed, because you get it. And, that is great.

But, I know too many people who just aren’t green at all–they don’t read and watch shows that hit on the subject and the subject doesn’t connect with them (I’ve really no idea how it doesn’t water, air, life??). Or, they listen to Rush Limbaugh and buy his talk that global warming is a total joke, the earth has been this warm, how could we humans possibly impact the huge globe and my favorite is we’ve really done a lot to clean thigns up (now it’s what you can’t see…).

And I agree with you every small action changes a person’s way of interacting and re-thinking the environment; no bottles and 100% recyling moves to composting, then CFLs, then new appliances, add in some attic insulation, then the electricty bills drop big time and all of a sudden–they’re green. And, then they buy a hybrid, drive less and even write their representative and tell them “stop this madness and pass the damn legislation–I acn’t do this on my own!!!!”
So, don’t skewer the messenger–go skewer your congressperson or senators!!! :) GO GREEN

By: Linda A.

Linda A. — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:08:50 +0000

Terry T.,

While your post is amusing, cutesy, and Thoreaunian (remember, Thoreau exhorted us to “Simplify…”. Excellent advice, but difficult to follow in our society), it is definitely, unfortunately, NOT practical, unless, perhaps, you’re one of those survivalists. In Thoreau’s time, perhaps, but not today. Besides, if we’d turned off our computers, we couldn’t have read your post in this thread. HA! HA!

Good post, Karen S. I especially like the quote from Sydney Smith you used. We each need to exercise as much responsibility as we individually are able. As the old song says, “Little things mean a lot.” They DO add up.

Everyone concerned about the planet should watch the wonderful animated movie, “WALL-E,” if you haven’t already, and, if you have, watch it again. The movie may be set 700 years in the future, but if we’re not careful and start taking the stewardship of earth seriously NOW, it’ll take a lot fewer than 700 years for the earth to reach the point it reached in that movie. Every once in a while, I’ll get to thinking that, if we had taken environmentalism seriously back at the time of the first Earth Day — 39 years ago! — how much further ahead of the game we’d be today. We might very well not be in the predicament we’re in.

By: linda

linda — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:39:31 +0000

i agree 100% doing a little by one person is only a little (but a very important little) but multiply that little by many and that little makes a lot. Just start! do something! it does matter! what it cost is a little time and effort . will it save the planet? i quess it depends on how many of us do a little. im doing my little and learning everyday how to do more.

By: Sandy

Sandy — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 01:55:48 +0000

Cheryl,
I hear you say you want to do the right thing, but it is not that easy. I would encourage you not to let the “road-blocks” get in your way. Find a way around the difficulties. I think it is that important, and it sounds like you do, too. Keep trying to do all that you can, and be the example for other people to follow.

I also wanted to try to connect with you about the global warming idea. It really is not something to believe in or not to believe in. Global warming is a description of the scientific evidence. There is overwhelming evidence that the climate is changing and that the average temperature is increasing, both at a rate not seen before. It is just scientific evidence. Some people refuse to accept the evidence, but overwhelmingly, scientists do. And science is not built on opinions or beliefs, but on testable, repeatable, natural, consistant bits of data. So you can accept the evidence – the idea of global warming – based on real research. It is what it is. Not to accept it would really take blind faith!

By: tim

tim — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:07:18 +0000

Boy some harsh comments so far, while I agree with the second comment, if we all just purchased and consumed less this would be a much better planet. Education and making informed decisions is crutial to our sustainability, from the food we consume, do the way we travel, and communicate. Our conspicous consumption has created a number of issues we have to deal with and we only have to look back a couple of generations to find some simple solutions. Victory gardens during WWII, along with recycling and rationing to keep society free, we have come a long way with iPods, iPhones, and tons of electronic gadgets to make life easier. This has lead to an overweight out of shape, pill popping society…not really a “better” quality of life. Maybe the next article should be “Less is More in Greening the Planet”.

By: Karen Straney

Karen Straney — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 18:42:11 +0000

This article is excellent. While I also appreciate one’s “balance sheet” I also know that the smallest of efforts is meaningful. We have lived in a world of convenience and been sold on it unabashedly for at least two decades. If you ever find yourself in a dilemma, should I recycle that plastic bottle or just toss it, should I bu that organic tomato or save that extra 13 cents, remember this quote: “It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do a little.” Wise words from an Ensligh writer and scholar Sydney Smith, spoken at the turn of the 19th century, universally applicable and inspiring. Stop making excuses and start being responsible.

By: terry thometz

terry thometz — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 16:51:08 +0000

You started off with a good idea–simplification–and then lost your way, relapsing into the mantra of materialism: Buy Buy Buy.
You seem to think we can spend our way out of the problem, a common conceit. You’re working off a bogus assumption –that if you’d made better choices at Target, you can save the planet. The Inconvenient Truth is that we’re neither going to conserve nor build our way out of this but you can feel better on the road to doom by reducing your consumption. Stay home. Stay out of Target. Plant a garden; read a book. Turn off your computer.

By: Cheryl Anderson

Cheryl Anderson — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:59:40 +0000

You know, this is ok, but some places don’t want to recycle glass but recycle plastic bottles…. To buy frozen is cheaper, but there is waste….. Unless you are going to make juice yourself, a bottle is helpful….. I think in saying lower plastic bottles, you have to consider, which is more recyclable. Some may have poor water quality…. they may need bottled water…. Though it is nice to reuse, what if their only source is they need bottles… Filters eventually are tossed…. It costs at times to pay someone to take something…. For now it is cheap to toss… Will it always…..Who would have thought one needed to pay to toss a light bulb $1 each? I think people should weigh it up and consider because just becuase one wants to save the world….. another may not have the money, wisdom, oppressed in their own life and at times saving the earth is more important than the person themself….. I don’t know…. I personally don’t believe in global warning…. but I do think reusing is a good thing….. Eating natural food is a good thing…. But being in debt….. I think decisions should be weighed carefully, because everyones balance sheet is different….. I try to buy bulk at times… Then I see a kid spit in the bulk bin…… Waste (food, petroleum to ship it, etc.)…… There is no easy answer… Difficult times we are all in…..In the end.. someone will capitalize….