When I watched the FNC video that Denny posted, one of the things they seized on immediately was the fact that Gore came to the speech in SUV's or limosines. They were then saying, "Al Gore come to the speech in a SUV, but he is telling his supporters to drive bicycles and use public transportation." Gore is a former VP and presidential candidate. Is it really a good idea to come to the speech using public transit or a bicycle, no matter what your stance is on the environment? I think not. If you are a politician who has risen to the level that he has, you just don't do that. The reason is security. Watching the Dark Knight this weekend made me realize that there are enough crazy homicidal people out in public that not using a fleet of cars to get around just invites trouble. Think about it. All someone has to do is drive a car right at Gore while he is biking down the street, and he's pasted. Being in the car/truck offers more protection and privacy. The SUV is a bit sturdier than most cars, so incase someone did try to pull a fast one. Fox had some points to make in that segment, but talking about what he comes to the speech in is just silly and misleading.
Gore's an easy target because he doesn't really practice what he preaches. This isn't the only time the press has had a field day with Gore as "do as I say, not as I do" or hypocrite. And I'm not talking FNC, either. There's the story about his home, which uses more power than hundreds of ordinary folks' homes use. Or that he went green on his house (solar panels, the works) and it uses more power now than it ever did. Or that he flew to some global warming summit overseas in his private jet with a big entourage. Safety concerns are fine, though I have a friend who works for Gore in SF of all places, and it gets me to thinking that if someone wanted to off Gore, they wouldn't have to do it when he was on the road. BTW, I actually liked the guy in the video who did the mini-documentary about Gore's fleet of cars at that speech. Look at what he had to say about energy - it's 100% correct. That we have a supply issue and we should be addressing supply in EVERY conceivable way.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Denny Crane @ Jul 21 2008, 09:34 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Safety concerns are fine, though I have a friend who works for Gore in SF of all places, and it gets me to thinking that if someone wanted to off Gore, they wouldn't have to do it when he was on the road.</div> Another issue for Gore riding the bike or the subway would be the appearance of Denny Crane and having to deal with Denny out in public. I imagine that Gore doesn't want to be hassled by his loudest critics or demonstrated on in such an environment. In the trucks, he has his own personal space in which you can't confront him in. He can roll the window up if you start yelling at him about his home energy use.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Denny Crane @ Jul 21 2008, 02:19 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Yep, it sure is convenient to control the agenda and squash dissent.</div> My overall point is that him choosing to go to the public speech in the SUV's has more to it than meets the eye, beyond his position on environment and energy consumption. I'm sure he is also aware of the criticisms before they even hit the airwaves. Talking about the SUV's and framing it as Fox did is too simplistic. Also, I didn't know that the public could read the energy consumption for private customers. Where does one find out about how much Gore used in his own house? Where can someone find out about my own energy consumption?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...7022801823.html War on Warming Begins at (Al Gore's) Home By Chris Cillizza and Matthew Mosk Thursday, March 1, 2007; Page A08 Fresh off his victory lap at the Academy Awards, former vice president Al Gore -- who has not closed the door on a 2008 bid -- found himself in a more familiar position: on the receiving end of a political attack. The barb came via the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, a Nashville-based think tank that advocates "limited government through policy solutions," according to its Web site. "As the spokesman of choice for the global warming movement, Al Gore has to be willing to walk the walk, not just talk the talk, when it comes to home energy use," said the group's president, Drew Johnson, in a release alleging that Gore's house in the Volunteer State uses 20 times as much electricity as the average household nationwide. Kalee Kreider, a spokeswoman for Gore, called the statement misleading. "The power coming into their residence is green, renewable power," she said, explaining that the Gores participate in a program called Green Power Switch, which is run through the public Tennessee Valley Authority. Green Power Switch supplies energy from renewable sources to its members. Kreider added that a renovation of the Gores' house is underway to make it more energy efficient, an update that will include the addition of solar panels. Johnson was unimpressed. "The energy he receives into his house is no different than what I receive into my house," he said. "He doesn't have a green power line hooked to his house."
I do think the report is misleading. It claimed his house used more energy than 20 homes. But I think they compared apples to oranges - more energy in a year than 20 homes use in a month.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Denny Crane @ Jul 21 2008, 03:20 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I do think the report is misleading. It claimed his house used more energy than 20 homes. But I think they compared apples to oranges - more energy in a year than 20 homes use in a month.</div> I don't see a way that they can even measure it unless they somehow had access to his utility bill. Gore's spokeswoman says that Al is receiving power from some new Tennessee program that involves "renewable" power. Then the critic says just the opposite is true. Surely, the size of your home has a lot to do with how much heating is required, but who knows if Al has a wood burning stove or something else going on. We do know that he is using solar panels. He is at least mostly on the grid, like everyone else is, there is no debate about that. I can see how they can underline the apples to oranges stats to inflate the criticism. Is Al self-employed? Is it possible that he uses much of that extra energy to help make his living? He may very well be acting responsibly in ways that us more common people believe he should, like turning lights off when you are not using them, or keeping doors and windows shut to not waste heat. Those are some of the things they preach to us in California - the little things add up. Personally, my bills don't get that high because my home is small and I don't run any heating/AC where I live. In the winter, it doen't get that cold, so I just wear sweaters. In the summer, I just run small box fans, and my ceiling fan to stay cool. It's not as effective as AC, but I can tolerate it. Saves me a lot on energy each month too. I know some friends who live outside the city, and they have a big wood-burning stove that heats their whole house in the winter.
I don't see the point in spinning this on Gore's behalf. At the time of the article I posted, his house had no green energy. Articles I've seen since is that he did retrofit his house with solar panels and other things, and now he uses even more energy than before. Amazing how that works Regardless of the apples/oranges comparison, Gore's energy and carbon footprint is mindbogglingly large for any one person or family.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Denny Crane @ Jul 21 2008, 03:46 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>I don't see the point in spinning this on Gore's behalf.</div> I do. It keeps the thread going, and keeps me from doing my work. I know that I will never get the last word in, so there is infinite possiblity for distraction at work.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7599810.stm Wilson row over green 'alarmists' <!-- S BO --> <!-- S IIMA --> <table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="226"> <tbody><tr><td> Sammy Wilson's view on climate change has angered environmentalists </td></tr> </tbody></table> <!-- E IIMA --> <!-- S SF -->The Environment Minister Sammy Wilson has angered green campaigners by describing their view on climate change as a "hysterical psuedo-religion". In an article in the News Letter, Mr Wilson said he believed it occurred naturally and was not man-made. "Resources should be used to adapt to the consequences of climate change, rather than King Canute-style vainly trying to stop it," said the minister. Peter Doran of the Green Party said it was a "deeply irresponsible message." <!-- E SF --> Mr Wilson said he refused to "blindly accept" the need to make significant changes to the economy to stop climate change. "The tactic used by the "green gang" is to label anyone who dares disagree with their view of climate change as some kind of nutcase who denies scientific fact," he said. The minister said he accepted climate change can occur, but does not believe the cause has been identified. "Reasoned debate must replace the scaremongering of the green climate alarmists." John Woods of Friends of the Earth said Mr Wilson was "like a cigarette salesman denying that smoking causes cancer". "Ironically, if we listen to him Northern Ireland will suffer economically as we are left behind by smarter regions who are embracing the low carbon economy of the future." It is the latest clash between Mr Wilson and green groups since his appointment as environment minister in June.
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/news/2008-09-09-farmers-almanac_N.htm Old Farmers Almanac: Global cooling may be underway By David Tirrell-Wysocki, Associated Press Writer DUBLIN, N.H. — The Old Farmer's Almanac is going further out on a limb than usual this year, not only forecasting a cooler winter, but looking ahead decades to suggest we are in for global cooling, not warming. Based on the same time-honored, complex calculations it uses to predict weather, the Almanac hits the newsstands on Tuesday saying a study of solar activity and corresponding records on ocean temperatures and climate point to a cooler, not warmer, climate, for perhaps the next half century. "We at the Almanac are among those who believe that sunspot cycles and their effects on oceans correlate with climate changes," writes meteorologist and climatologist Joseph D'Aleo. "Studying these and other factor suggests that cold, not warm, climate may be our future." It remains to be seen, said Editor-in-Chief Jud Hale, whether the human impact on global temperatures will cancel out or override any cooling trend. "We say that if human beings were not contributing to global warming, it would become real cold in the next 50 years," Hale said. For the near future, the Almanac predicts most of the country will be colder than normal in the coming winter, with heavy snow from the Ozarks into southern New England. Snow also is forecast for northern Texas, with a warmer than usual winter in the northern Plains. Almanac believers will prepare for a hot summer in much of the nation's midsection, continuing drought conditions there and wild fire conditions in parts of California, with a cooler-than-normal season elsewhere. They'll also keep the car packed for the 2009 hurricane season, as the Alamanac predicts an active one, especially in Florida. But Editor Janice Stillman said it's the winter foreasts that attract the most attention, especially this year, with much higher heating prices. So, in line with the weather and economy forecasts, the Almanac includes information on using wood for heat: the best wood, how to build a fire in a fireplace, whether to use a wood stove and how to stay warm — all winter — with a single log. Here's the secret, popularized in 1777: Throw a log out an upstairs window, dash down the stairs and outside, retrieve the log, dash upstairs, throw the log out the window and so on. "Do that until you work up a sweat and you'll be warm all winter," said Stillman. Last year, the Almanac correctly predicted "above-normal" snowfall in the Northeast — an understatement — and below-normal snowfall in the mid-Atlantic states. New Hampshire, home of the Almanac, saw the most snow in 134 years and missed an all-time record by 2.6 inches. Established in 1792, the Old Farmer's Almanac is North America's oldest continuously published periodical. The little yellow magazine still comes with the hole in the corner so it can hang in outhouses. Boasting 18.5 million readers, this year's edition contains traditional tips on gardening and astronomical information and tide charts so accurate the government considered banning them during World War II, fearing they would help German spies. The Old Farmer's Almanac is not to be confused with the Maine-based Farmer's Almanac, published "only" since 1818. The 217th edition also predicts social trends such as sofas that measure body temperature, shopping carts that sound an alarm when filled with too much junk food and closet shelves and hangers that talk to give advice on matching shirts and ties. "I would really hate that," Hale said. "What do you mean these don't match? Of course they match! You kidding me? Pink goes perfectly well with yellow," he joked. Upholding its tradition of being "new, useful and entertaining," the Almanac offers tips on how to keep gardens alive, even in snow, and how to keep people alive, even for 100 years. (Some examples: Take it easy, use your brain, laugh and flirt!) As printed publications fold around the country because of falling readership, Stillman says the Almanac is keeping pace with the 21st Century with a website that offers the printed version and supplements that can be personalized based on a reader's ZIP code. Hale said the magazine with the familiar features remains popular in a digital age because, well, it's an almanac, and readers have said they like it being predictable. "'Oh good,' they say, 'Not everything is disappearing."' This year, after 154 pages of words of wisdom from scientists and other experts, the 2009 edition closes with words from children — letters to God from first- and second-graders. One, signed Joyce, shows little kids know not to be ungrateful, even when faced with a big disappointment. "Dear God," she wrote. "Thank you for the baby brother, but what I prayed for was a puppy."
