Earth Hour hopes to shed light on climate
So are the St. Louis Gateway Arch, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Eiffel Tower, Egypt’s Great Pyramid of Giza and many other iconic structures.
The lights will be going out for Earth Hour, organized by the World Wildlife Fund to draw attention to global warming, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday local time around the world. That’s when organizers of the event, which began in Sydney in 2007, want everyone to turn off non-essential lights.
About 2,800 cities in 83 countries — including 250 in the United States — had signed up, according to Dan Forman, a spokesman for World Wildlife Fund, an international conservation organization that boasts 1.2 million national members and close to 5 million globally.
Forman said organizers want to send a message to Congress and to global leaders working this year on climate change legislation and a treaty to limit greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming.
“It’s all about the symbolism,” he said. “We fully recognize that one hour does not put a dent in the climate crisis.”
The effort has its critics.
“We think Earth Hour, even if you are super-concerned about global warming, is a little lame, and we are making fun of it,” said Eli Lehrer, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), a Washington, D.C., think tank that supports limited government and decries global warming “alarmism.”
CEI has announced a “Human Achievement Hour” to counter Earth Hour. The group says millions of people will participate by turning the lights on, going to a concert or seeing a movie. “It’s obviously tongue-in-cheek,” Lehrer said.
Many companies, however, are serious in support of Earth Hour, Forman said. Coca-Cola, for example, has pledged to turn off its big signs around the world, including a marquee in New York’s Times Square.
Schools and universities across the country are also participating, including the University of Louisville.
“We are trying to change the cultural attitudes and behavior,” said professor Barbara Burns, chairwoman of the university’s Sustainability Council. “And one of the first steps is awareness.”
Lights on!
No “Lights = 0” for me!
Um, so I’ll be turning on all my lights, running my dishwasher, laundry machine, drier, stove. I’ll leave my car idling as well.
In the past Hong Kong has refused this type of thing. Its bad for tourism not to have the city wide light how at 8.
If only the great “Doomslayer” Julian Simon was still around.
“We are trying to change the cultural attitudes and behavior,” said professor Barbara Burns, chairwoman of the university’s Sustainability Council. “And one of the first steps is awareness.”
Awareness? Well then present us with the real story. MSM drives me crazy. Fight eco-terrorism, maximize your power usage, idle your vehicle Sat Mar28, 830pm-930pm est
““It’s all about the symbolism,”
I will have all mine on. Maybe even start up the cars and turn the headlights on too.
Every winter I give up electricity which means no heat, no lights, no water, no TV, no music, etc for 1 to 7 days. This is not voluntary, but the electricity does cut out for days every winter. I figure I have contributed many lifetimes of Earth Hour. In every poll and article on Earth Hour I suggest that they make it Earth Day or better yet Earth week or Earth month. And don’t be such sissies about it, have Earth Week in Jan or Feb when the impact of having no electricity really hits home.
I’m going to check to see if the self cleaning option in my electric oven works. Then run an air conditioner check followed by a complete test of all the lights in my house. I should have a big load of clothes ready for my electric dryer around 9:00.
Every light I own will be on for that hour. ANd I won’t just be idling, I’ll be out driving like a maniac.
They should be able to pick out my house from the Space Station. But not to worry, I only use CFLs.
I don’t see the need to rub people’s faces in my beliefs, so I’ll just ignore it. Honestly, if I wouldn’t have read this, I wouldn’t have even known.
It’s another scam. I will have lots of power devices and lights on.
Here in Australia I’ve been saving a few heavy duty arc welding jobs for this evening.
This also necessitates a lot of angle grinding and disc cutting -oh, and the big tank needs refilling from the three phase pump on the river– ;>)
What me worry? (35 years ago) http://www.witchymom.com/Mad0774.htm
I am turning all my lights on! And possibly starting up my lawnmower… 🙂
I wonder if Hansen’s vigilantes will be out enforcing it?
I will charge my electirc toothbrush..
LK
One of my co-workers asked me if I planned on observing earth hour. I snickered and said “I keep my heat off in the winter, I ride my bike to work every day, my electric bill is under $40/month, and I’m not going to play that silly little game to appease radical politicians and environmental extremists with far-reaching agendas.”
My co-worker just stood there with her mouth open.
I’m usually soft-spoken 🙂
Hold hands and follow the bouncing bucky-ball:
I’d like to teach the world to think
with perfect clarity…
I’d like to buy the world some coal
and burn up every green…
OT: Kind of an odd spec on the sun isn’t it? Can someone tell me what kind of spec/spot/tumor that is or what it is called?
Christmas lights back up!
I refuse steadfastly to be drawn into any of these supra-national egofests for has-been entertainers and failed politicians.
In the 1980s we were mugged by Band Aid and Live Aid to sort out food shortages in Africa. Well, what a huge success that was. Lots of old quasi-musical careers restored; massive appearance fees charged ever since by some of the loudest mouthes involved. And look at Africa, the same problems remain almost a quarter of a century later.
They were too busy feathering their own nests for twenty years, then along came Live8 in 2005 because a new generation of so-called popular entertainers had blown their easily-gotten fortunes on Colombian nose talc and needed a leg-up. More bluster, more “look at us, we are so virtuous”, more nothing of substance.
“Earth Hour” is from exactly the same camp of vainglorious empty gestures. An utterly pointless exercise organised to massage the delicate egos (and, in time, the bank balances) of the current breed of self-appointed saviours of the world.
My first reaction was to turn FatBigot Towers into a festival of light and heat in protest, but why should I? Electricity and gas cost money. Money I have to pay. No, it will be an ordinary hour here, an hour like every other hour, an hour lived trying to act sensibly and fairly, an hour devoid of meaningless posing and enjoyed for what it is – one of the few in my brief time on this planet, one I should use to live my life as I see best, not one wasted on futility.
It is very sad that energy conservation, which is an objective we should all share, it is good husbandry of resources, is being preempted by global warming alarmists.
I would take part in a world gesture to remind all of us not to be profligate with what we find ready, but I will ignore this wolf in sheep’s clothing.
Let’s keep our priorities straight.
This is March Madness. The Elite Eight. There’s a game on till about 9 PM EDT, but it’ll probably run over. And as a multi-tasker, I’ll be on-line.
WWF can take their candles and … better stop there; this is a family site.
Real simple … ‘Earth hour’ Starts in just under 2 hours in New Zealand… my lights are already on and the blinds are open… you can probably see my house from Google Earth…..
I have a question for them about this statement:
“We fully recognize that one hour does not put a dent in the climate crisis.”
How long would we have to go without electricity to put a dent in the crisis? From now on?
It would be more heart-felt if they only lit up these structure for short periods on special evenings, perhaps on New Years Eve. That way we would all understand the idea was sincere
Re Anna V
I totally agree. Doing it to symbolise an effort to reduce AGW is a crock of the proverbial. However if it is used to draw attention to the very sound practice of conserving limited and finite resources then great. For me I will be watching the Rugby League on the Telly (and charging my toothbrush !!).
Anthony Watts…
From your article:
Many companies, however, are serious in support of Earth Hour, Forman said. Coca-Cola, for example, has pledged to turn off its big signs around the world, including a marquee in New York’s Times Square.
I’d like to see Coca-Cola stopping its production chain around the world and the BBC et al silencing their broadcasts during that hour. Hah! I’ll ignore it completely. 🙂
“FatBigot (21:26:46) :
In the 1980s we were mugged by Band Aid and Live Aid to sort out food shortages in Africa. Well, what a huge success that was. Lots of old quasi-musical careers restored; massive appearance fees charged ever since by some of the loudest mouthes involved. And look at Africa, the same problems remain almost a quarter of a century later. ”
I will have to disagree with you there about Band Aid, and in particular, Ethiopia. Band Aid was, and still is, a great success. Ethipopia isn’t the dust bowl as portrayed back in the 80’s, it;s very fertile in fact. What Band Aid did, more than anything else, was to educate people that there really are better ways to do things, in particular, farming. There is still lots of corruption, lots of work still to be done, but attitudes are changing. I’ve been to Africa, Ethipoia, and seen Band Aid work firsthand, and it’s still working there. What I now see happening is large multinationals invading Ethiopia for it’s resources.
PS. My wife is Ethiopian and we married there too.
Earth Hour is a load of all hogwash, I’ll be doing what I usually do, I don’t need to participate in tokenism.
The reason for switching off floodlights etc should be to fight light pollution and for the return of the night sky (saving some money as well). And it should be done all night, every night.
Squidly (21:22:49) :
OT: Kind of an odd spec on the sun isn’t it? Can someone tell me what kind of spec/spot/tumor that is or what it is called?
NOAA Solar Wind Products Reports (SWPR) informed on a probable Class-B sunspot; however, few hours after, a new report confirmed that the solar disc “remained spotless”.
All lights appliances and electronics on here.
Modern Man’s existence is the story of triumph over darkness. It is a complete disgrace for humans to cringe in cowardly darkness given that we possess all of the knowledge to power our lives cheaply, cleanly and for centuries using uranium.
I will never submit. I’d rather live for only one more second than cater to the UN squads who seek to diminish our enjoyment and control our lives.
I wrote this yesterday
By the way, may I ask everybody here to support Earth Hour 🙂
I really mean it. Not for the daft climate change reasons, but to highlight that we do need to conserve energy and be as efficient as possible with our use of energy.
We’ve got a world that is, despite this recession, always developing. More and more are coming out of poverty and demanding use of electricity. The demand is growing while supply has problems because of partisan politics, activism and limited resources. This problem isn’t going to go away until we come up with a source of energy to replace everything we rely on today so we need to conserve energy whenever possible. Spreading out our use buys us time.
This is all politicians have needed to say to us, but instead they’ve chosen scare tactics and a method of maximising profits (carbon trading) from the dying breath of the carbon era.
So when someone asks you did you support Earth Hour, say yes and tell them your realistic reason for doing so while reminding them you don’t believe in the bogus reasons. Good idea for spreading critical thinking?
I understand everyone’s need to rebel, and there’s a big part of me that says screw Earth Hour. Hell, I used to live in Hollywood when the first one came along and hardly anyone there gave a toss about it apart from paying lip service to it and then consuming lots of power all year long.
But I hardly consume much in the first place. I believe in efficiency, not just in use of energy sources but in all areas of my life. So I’m going to support Earth Hour by having an hour’s nap. When one of those elitist bourgeois Champagne Socialist, Limousine Liberal, Caviar Left environmentalists ever asks me about my consumption, I’ll stick it to them for their hypocrisy. I’ve never met an environmentalist who is as economical, eco-friendly or efficient as I am. They talk the talk but can’t walk the walk.
And I will be going to the G20 protests on the 1st of April to cause disruption. I’m going to do my best to protect the police from protestors who want to pick a fight.
The 1kw ouside lights which light the neighbours yards as well as mine, and the 3 phase a/c unit (6hp) should do the trick in reverse cycle mode, although I’ll have to open the house up to release the excess heat into the atmosphere.
The silly part of this is that the grid will still need to be running at capacity, so no actual CO2 savings can be made (- if you really believe that makes a difference).
Disturbing to me is the fact that Wikipedia (Propagandapedia) will allow an entry for “Earth Hour” but is adamantly refusing to allow an entry for “Human Achievement Hour” (the opposite of Earth Hour).
If this doesn’t blatantly display their obvious bias, I don’t know what does.
What a joke. Just another example of why I disregard anything that comes from Wikipedia.
I am participating in Human Achievement Hour full bore!
“And don’t be such sissies about it, have Earth Week in Jan or Feb when the impact of having no electricity really hits home.”
Good idea Eve, but it started in Sydney 3 years ago (where it lack of impact was highlighted by a rival paper overexposing the image to look as if more lights were on!), the temperatures are in the mid 20’s C and we still have daylight saving. So not too much suffering here….sorry about the rest of the Planet.
The Paper in question produced a 24 page supplement with the usual gush about ‘vote for the earth by switching off’,’wars and hungry refugees could be some of the dire consequences of GW’, the obligatory Polar Bear photo op. ‘Polar ice is melting at such an alarming rate the rest of the world can’t help but feel the heat’, but surprisingly a quote from Nature on page 4,’2008 was the coolest year of the decade….’. The irony was lost on them.
This whole thing has a child-like ‘save the planet’ tone,and while energy conservation is indeed worthy ,it should reveal itself in dollar savings and not in religious fervour.
Flat screen plasma TV on the game, stereo cranking something loud and energetic, lights on. I am very tired of stunts designed to make me feel guilty about living. I garden organically and pay close attention to our power usage otherwise, but sometimes one must fly one’s flag.
I’ll be doing what I would normally do at this time of a Saturday evening. I’ll be out enjoying myself with my other ‘arf and our friends. With the lights on of course…
This is about population.
Remamber what happened the last time the lights went out?
Burn CANDLES people!!! The greenies don’t know this, but burning candlewax (C18H38) releases CO2 gas! So the candle campaigns just show how igorant these people are,, turn on your lights and make sure to build a lovely spring bonire to burn all the burnable remnants of the past dreadful winter…
Also wouldn’t it be interesting to point out (to those who claim to have “done their bit”) no decrease in CO2 concentration during and in the days after earth hour?? Just to show that even earth hour can’t stop runaway global warming 😉
Go onto the facebook earth hour page and you will see earth hour mugs, shirts, caps and other “earth friendly” produce for sale!
Note at the bottom of the page it reads.. ‘ a portion of the earnings will go toward conservation'(something to that effect)
A portion could be 20%, 1% or even 0.99%… the rest?? Into the moneymaker’s pocket of course! What a moneymaker, and the public is falling for it.
From Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound, written 2500 years ago.
CH =Chorus, PR = Prometheus.
CH. And didst thou chance to advance even beyond this?
PR. Yes! I prevented mortals from foreseeing their doom.
CH. By finding what remedy for this malady?
PR. I caused blind hopes to dwell within them.
CH. In this thou gavest a mighty benefit to mortals.
PR. Over and above these boons, however, I imparted fire to them.
CH. And do the creatures of a day now possess bright fire?
PR. Yes–from which they will moreover learn thoroughly many arts.
Squidly (21:22:49)
It’s a plage region, from the French word for “beach”. An almost-a-sunspot that a visible sunspot may or may not emerge from. If you look closely, there’s a weaker one at about the same latitude, just over into the right hemisphere, that has had a spot flash on and off for the last few days (but not for long enough to get an official number).
From Victor Hugo, Les Miserables.
To sum it all up once more, the Paris gamin of to-day, like the
graeculus of Rome in days gone by, is the infant populace with the
wrinkle of the old world on his brow.
The gamin is a grace to the nation, and at the same time a disease; a
disease which must be cured, how? By light.
Light renders healthy.
Light kindles.
All generous social irradiations spring from science, letters, arts, education.
Make men, make men. Give them light that they may warm you.
A talk-back radio host here in Sydney, Australia had a knock on his door earlier this week. It was a neighbour asking to borrow some of his electricity. On Saturday night after Earth Hour, the neighbours plan to have a celebration of Earth Hour by having a party including floodlighting. He was stunned and asked her to repeat her request. Yes, they want to celebrate Earth Hour by using loads more electricity than they normally would by floodlighting a party (partly with power from his house). Through his disbelief and in the spirit of neighbourliness, he agreed. I think he then closed the door to shake his head and laugh. I do wonder if his neighbours can see the irony of their gesture. I doubt it. 😉
ALL JOKING APART… You do realize that this is a very good opportunity
to quantify the heating effect of the “old” light bulbs versus the “new” energy-
saving ones that will? be enforced globally in a few years…And with 100% insulated houses we get rid of most of the UHI effects…GREAT NEW WORLD…
Meanwhile POTUS B Obama chats with Jay Leno…[on YouTube 6 days before
coming to our “Kanal 5” in Sweden…(one week’s delay for TV…)] about…basket-
ball…Weather here is midwinterlike, of course SMHI proclaimed “meteorological
spring” March 8 up to Uppsala 72 km [45 miles] N of Stockholm, thats a bad
joke since we’ve had a thin snowcover (3-20 cm) all month (March) So
7 consecutive days +0.1, +0.3, +0.2 etc and then 20 days averaging -5C means
that winter is NOT reinstated…not after Feb 15….BTW World Cup qualification
takes place tonight…”OK folks, let us all observe an hour of energy saving so
we can have clean environmental records before we turn the 50” flat screen
on…”
All our exterior house/drive lights will be on and am just connecting a load of LED ropelights for more visual impact. If only I had some searchlights – they would be on too, lighting the Surrey Hills. Will be burning all U2/Bono, Leonardo de Caprio tapes/DVD’s………….Ah! Just found our neon Christmas Reindeers and sledge……… 🙂
Hi,
Check out Tim Blair’s blog. This was sent in for last years event.
“In honour of Earth Hour, my friends and I will be hosting the first annual Carbon Party. To mark this solemn occasion, we will be running the space heaters and air conditioning simultaneously, while putting loads of clothing through the dryer and turning all the incandescent lights on. Dinner will be grain-fed beef cooked over a wood fire (none of that clean LPG barbecue gas), served with imported vegetables shipped in from overseas (whether or not they can be found at the local farmers’ market). Bog rolls for the evening will be of softest five-ply tissue paper. ”
We now call it the “Hour of Power”
Earth Hour is either utterly irrelevant or hopelessly inadequate depending on whether you’re a sceptic or a Believer. Either way it should be ignored, and I’d suggest it’s actually the Believers who should be getting bent out of shape and condemning the whole charade (R18 for for my less than sweet language – but then I am an angry exile 😉 ). I reckon it was dreamt up to sell greenwash and Fairfax Media’s newspapers, and on that basis I’m not going to avoid buying carbon credits, a wind turbine and a bunch of solar panels. Equally I’m not going to fall into the trap of turning everything electric on and putting my bills up just to spite middle class non-thinkers who’ve fallen for the Earth Hour hype. It’s a normal Saturday night for me, though since the Melbourne Grand Prix and the Aussie Rules season has just started there’s 12 straight hours of watchable TV. And anyone who reaches for the remote at 8.30 is getting both barrels in the legs.
“What are you going to do for “Earth Hour”?”
Probably be getting taxed :
“…trillions of dollars in wealth transfer… new taxes… new tariffs and subsidies… complicated payments for greenhouse gas abatement…”
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,510937,00.html
Now what would be really good to see would be if these climate alarmists could have the courage of their convictions and not produce any CO2 for the whole hour. See if they can go for the whole hour without breathing out!
I would pay good money to see that on TV!
The same thing we do every night, Pinky—try to take over the world.
I think its a great exercise to get folks used to the day when “the wind don’t blow and the sun don’t shine” and the dummies are relying on windmills and solar panels for their energy needs. We’ll all be wandering about the woods looking for something to take home and burn on a “three dog night”, in the tradition of our ancestors.
What am I going to do for Earth Hour? As I am not going to allow the New Scientist hijackers and their ilk to influence my thinking, I am not going to do anything (without their intent or influence!). In fact, as I am a human with all the frailties of that species, I am going to be intentionall vindictive (or natural) and change over all of my light bulbs from 60 watts to 150 watts, and then repair to bed with both a clear conscience and the lights burning away until I arise (and I intend to have a long long long lie in in the morning!)
Me? Not a thing different from my usual routine.
I do like the idea of “Celebrate Humankind’s Achievements” hour, though.
Also, I believe that the same people who signed the petition to ban dihydrogenmonoxide would probably both turn off their lights for earth hour and turn on their lights for “achievement” hour. Don’tcha t’ink?
You might like to see this: http://blog.aynrandcenter.org/earth-hour-and-atlas-shrugged/
Mr FatBigot. I am so happy to know that there is fleur de coin such as yee and I left in this pathetic world to fight the good fight! Bring back the public square burnings!
I’ll be working on building big transformers. Perhaps some testing to see if they can handle a few hundred MegaWattsUps.
=o)
As you can see I am still smarting from that argument about CME ending the world as we know it…
PS. That should have been ‘me’! I am girding up for the final battle against the opposition (I am a Biotechnologist) by repairing to my lab whereby I continue to work on my pet hobby of attempting to raise the average IQ from that of the early Cro-Magnon (Have hope folks, I am very very close! It is all to do with activation and silencing of genes!).
Dont forget that alarms soak up loads of power – please turn them off.
Next year – please think of our community and make the switch-off last for at least three hours!
I posted this on another thread which sparked some debate. I am reposting it here together with some of the comments, as this thread which has a political and idealistic strand seems more appropriate than a scientific thread to highlight what appears to be happening and of which Earth Hour is just of the stunts to ensure the IPCC/UN agenda becomes mainstream
I said
Crosspatch 06 55 08
has posted probably one of the most significant links ever to appear in this Blog. I followed it through to the UN paper which-if true-is dynamite and IMHO warrants a thread by itself so as not to hijack this one.
Here is the link right through to the UN Discussion document
http://www.foxnews.com/projects/pdf/032709_informationnote.pdf
it is indeed a UN document to reorder the world
Whilst everyone should scrutinise each line in order to see the agenda behind the IPCC (they couldn’t seriously believe all their models could they?) some of the highlights are
Page 6 item 17
page 8 item 25 and 27
page 9 item 34
page 10 item 37
page 14 item 60
Conclusions on p15
This is the ad hoc working group composition and its aims, that have fed into the UN report above.
http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2008/awg6/eng/08.pdf
These are the key chairs
Harald Dovland Norway –chair minister for environment http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-180526631.html
Mam Konate of Mali Vice chair http://www.iisd.ca/climate/cop11/enbots/enbots1704e.html
Chan Woo-Kim Republic of korea http://74.125.77.132/search?q=cache:py3_vPi45-wJ:www.unescap.org/esd/environment/mced/singg/documents/Programme_SINGG_Final.pdf+chan-woo+kim+republic+of+korea&cd=18&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk
Ms Christiana Figueres Costa Rica http://figueresonline.com/
Nuno Lacasta Portugal http://www.wcl.american.edu/environment/lacasta.cfm
Brian Smith New Zealand (also a Bryan Smith-same person?
Marcelo Rocha Brazil http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file50347.pdf
Talking about carbon markets and here
http://www.iisd.ca/vol12/enb12378e.html
Smokey commented;
After reading the relevant passages you posted, I have a few comments:
The UN climate proposals are more stringent than the changes imposed on the defeated nations following WWII, and they are aimed directly at the U.S. and the West. They are hostile, and they are based on fraudulent science as a means to an end.
Following the end of WWII the Soviets expropriated not only massive amounts of industrial equipment from Germany, but also tens of thousands of highly educated engineers and scientists, and made them slaves of the Russian state. Almost none of those individuals were ever released or repatriated. The immediate result was the detonation of the Soviet Union’s first atomic bomb, less than one year after the war ended. Russia’s first hydrogen bomb test occurred only a matter of months after the first U.S. test.
[The West, despite what is portrayed in history books, took similar actions. For example, the giant cranes and gantrys lining Long Beach harbor were dismantled in Germany at the end of the war and moved to California; taken with no compensation as the spoils of war.]
The UN now demands nothing less than the complete surrender of the West to its version of world socialism, with the UN as world dictator. The spoils of this undeclared war are in the posted documents; industry will be forcibly relocated to other countries, with no compensation. Taxes will be raised as high as necessary to enable this theft — all in the name of “combating climate change.”
It is all there in the UN documents. IMHO, simply evicting the UN from the host country is completely inadequate. The UN is the enemy. They are extremely hostile, and must be destroyed. It is quite clearly them or us.
It should be pointed out that the latest move in this concerted effort is toward a single world currency. Why? Because along with a world monetary system, there must also be a world police force to prosecute financial crimes, and a world court to adjudicate financial crimes. Note that financial “crimes” were high on the list of Soviet offenses committed by the kulaks [the Russian middle class, which was forcibly exterminated].
Climate alarmism is just part and parcel of the deliberate move toward a dictatorial world government. It is simply a means to an end, as is the demand for a world currency. And in the approaching world government, there will be zero sympathy for Western values, because those involved in the UN agenda do not possess Western values.
I desperately want to be wrong about this.
But I am not wrong. Look, and you will see it happening.
Aron said
You forgot Agenda 21.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agenda_21
http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/documents/agenda21/index.htm
“Agenda 21 is a comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the United Nations System, Governments, and Major Groups in every area in which human impacts on the environment.”
Note how they have planned to act on such a vast level without asking any population for approval. Aren’t agendas and manifestos supposed to be presented by representative politicians to a voting public instead of being crafted by faceless unelected bureaucrats who make the decisions for everyone
Thanks to those who have taken the time to read this. Those of us who did not believe the science always matched the reality will recognise that it is the politics that are now to the fore and the science is a façade.
I have always been very reluctant to accept the IPCC/UN had an agenda, but this document clearly describes the world order they seek to put in place through scaring everyone with tales of catastrophic climate change.
“H.L.Mencken wrote:The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.”
Please could other people read this important document and comment.
TonyB
Here in Europe, one is anxious that power plants could not react to a total loss of demand on the grid at 8:30 PM local time. If the success would be overwhelming, the whole European net could black out! Automatic switches would shut down power plants, which would require many hours to come back on line.
The most delicate moment would be at 9:30 PM local time when all participants will turn on their lights again. Then, the production of electricity would be not at all in line with the sudden increase in demand of electricity.
Will the WWF-action trigger a total black out in the European net? That’s the question.
I’ve got a lot of tree cuttings, I think I’ll make a bonfire.
Oh, and no “Guy Fawkes” effigy on top, I’ll make a “Gore Fawkes” instead!
Fatbigot says it all. And in the UK the gesture SHOULD be being used to draw attention to the UK government’s cavalier attitude to our energy needs. Unless we have a programme of nuclear and clean coal generators running in 15 years our lights will go out, but not out of choice!!
Porch Lights against tyranny.
I make sure my porch light is turn on as a symbol of my resistance to socialist tyranny and eco-fascism.
Pass it on.
“We are trying to change the cultural attitudes and behavior,” said professor Barbara Burns.
BURNS: Simpson! get those fuel rods out of that reactor now!
HOMER: Righto Chief! CLAAAANGG Doh!
“it was not the same as seeing that clean white line across the sky. He’d forgotten how beautiful that could be.
Tim waved solemnly at the plane. “you can fly,” he said. His voice rose “you can fly. But we control the lightning.”
from Lucifer’s Hammer, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
The folks who controlled the lightning in the story were the ones who saved the nuclear power plant from the forces of ignorance and darkness.
Fight for the Light!
Isn’t it amazing how electric companies, who tell us to save money by conserving, can go to the utility boards and demand a rate increase because they are selling less electricity.
Here in central, Ohio our electric rates are projected increase by 30% over the next 3 years without the CO2 cap and trade.
I think the readers are completely missing the point. You should be planning on cutting the power to the big cities (where the liberal majorities lurk).
My favorite part is when the looters take over after a couple of days. I guess the point where everyone runs out of food after a week or so is also fairly satisfying.
This is so stupid what they are doing.
It really looks like a form of religion…
I wonder how many sheep are going to turn their lights out.
Earth Hour has just finished here in New Zealand. I happened to be driving back from somewhere at 9pm and noticed very few houses with lights off, in fact it looked exactly like it does every Saturday night.
The Sky Tower had its floodlights off, but most businesses in my area had their lights on as usual, including offices, retail stores, bill-boards and the like. I counted about 1 in 5 or 6 houses to be dark, but that’s not very unusual, especially as many people are out on a Saturday night.
No doubt though the TV news will be trumpeting how all New Zealanders have joined the billion people around the globe making a stand against climate change.
I drove up and down our little street, and I was interested to note that 100% of the houses had their lights blazing as usual, including the bloke across the road who works for the Department of Conservation.
TonyB, thanks, I noticed that article too, could you shorten your post to put the point across succinctly but with necessary refs?
I say, not Earth First, but Truth First. Then we can discern the true place of Earth. So I shall be keeping a “Truth Hour”. Evidence for this will be between me and the Spirit of Truth, which is also apparent in real science.
Turned on my one Energy saver bulb early this morning – it failed! Is this a portent? It has lasted barely six months of infrequent use………..
Fitba. Holland v Scotland in Amsterdan. Kick off 19:45. Turn the lights aff for the second hauf? At’ll be right, pal.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/internationals/7966837.stm
Tony,
I just don’t see a conspiracy. When I read UN documents I see a form of high minded idealism mixed with true ignorance. I see the same kind of risk taking that resulted in the sub-prime fiasco. In other words, they don’t know what the f— they are doing.
Many in the UN and our national governments genuinely believing in catastrophic global warming because they don’t have time to learn better and it has become a cash cow for those who have the ear of government. If information comes along that says global warming is exaggerated and there is nothing to worry about, who listens? The silent majority do! But the noisy minority, the activists and journalists, use every form of suppression they can. So government stays silent because they don’t want the hassle that comes from that noisy fanatical minority.
Most UN officials have no scientific learning at all so they’ll believe whatever the likes of Hansen et al say and pay lip service to the media. It’s a mutual sycophantic relationship in which everyone comes out looking saintly to the public.
If there is anything resembling conspiracy, just look at the G20 protests. There will be environmentalists and anti-capitalists (just about all of them young white upper middle-class kids who dream of power) protesting. About what? Our governments ARE acting like communists and in the interests of green ideology so what is the protest about? If anything, activists are going there because they are paid to by powerful lobby groups, organisations and businessmen who have government connections and stand to be rewarded with fat contracts to build wind farms, etc.
I feel sorry for the police who have to stand in between the protestors and politicians when both of those sides are working for the same interests. The cops are our working class heroes and they get shit on by shitheads for protecting other shitheads. If the police were removed from the protests it is guaranteed all that will happen is some broken windows. Activists will not seek trouble with politicians who are doing their dirty work.
Earth Hour or Blackout hour as I refer to it is simply a training exercise to force us to accept electricity rationing or restrictions. Here in South Australia the local electricity company (ETSA) is going to force everybody to accept control boxes in the meter boxes that will shut of major appliances such as Plasma TVs and Air-conditioning during peak loads which occur during heat waves. This also allows the supplier to postpone upgrades and maintenance on the infrastructure. George Orwell’s 1984 is here. What is next? No meat day and then food rationing.
if it wasn’t going to rain I was planning on putting every 1,500 W work light I have on my roof and turning them all on for an hour. If all goes well, you would have been able to see my apartment from space.
From 1994 to 1996 I managed the first stages of a project in central Asia. The climate there was not unlike many Canadian cities – freezing cold in winter and hot in summer.
Half-day electric power outages, lack of heat and lack of hot water were normal throughout the winter, in our city of several hundred thousand people. Our local employees lived under these conditions, and still managed to show up for work on time, clean and ready to work – how they managed I really don’t know.
I doubt that they, and people like them who lack reliable energy, will be celebrating Earth Hour. This foolish affectation will only be celebrated by those for whom 100% available-on-demand electricity, heat and hot water is taken for granted.
Most of these green imbeciles are so ignorant they think electricity comes from a plug in the wall – they have no idea what it takes to produce reliable energy in our modern world, and how difficult life is for those who have to live without it.
Sermon / off.
Regards, Allan
Will the WWF-action trigger a total black out in the European net? That’s the question.
I hope so. For days. It would be poetic justice to those who support this nonsense, and it would serve to rally those who do not.
TonyB (00:10:49) :
This does not surprise me in the least. If I can also recycle a comment:
Ellie in Belfast (05:16:54) : (3/15/09 Guardian ‘Al Gore says…’ thread)
“I am also convinced that governments know the science is not settled but are happy to keep quiet about it. The whole AGW movement suits them as it allows all sorts of developments that could not otherwise happen and it is for this reason that Climate Change will be pushed and supported for a very long time to come. On one hand it can be used as means of control, on the other it can stimulate sustainable development and technological innovation, with, crucially, others paying for it (industry, taxes).
I would be nice to have the sustanability without imposing such control, but it has not been happening fast enough so AGW is a convenient driver. Skeptics like us have the potential to spoil the well laid hopes and plans for change”
Those implementing the targets at local level have been indoctrinated with other hobgoblins, namely that without using AGW as a driver to attain ‘a smaller ecological footprint’, western society and the world with it is doomed in the longer term by a lack of resources. I have met this over and over again, in dealing with officials from various European countries. Regardless of their scepticism over AGW (and there are plenty, but they dare not admit)
they fervently believe they are playing a part in stimulating a very positive technological revolution.
Earth Day: BLUE PLANET IN GREEN SHACKLES
Dimming the lights is not a symbolic act, it’s their objective.
The WWF wants to stop human civilization in order to save the monkeys.
Now 2,800 cities in 83 countries — including 250 in the United States — have signed up to a doctrine of eco fascism. A real horror scenario is emerging.
WWF was started by fascists and if the ordinary people would know it’s real objectives they would stop donating money instantly.
Light is the the celebration of human civilization, darkness is the symbol of the Middle Ages.
World population was below 1 billion and life was hell.
@TonyB
Yes, this is a better thread to discuss that document… political, not science-based thread.
I was struck by the chart with the positives and negatives (about, oh, 2/3s of the way through the paper?). Many people can relate to that exercise if they are involved at their workplace in a purchase or process or policy change.
Maybe I missed it, but there were no costs associated with the positives and negatives. E.g., “I could buy a 25-room house on a 40-acre estate on my busdriver’s salary. The plus is that there’d be more room for the kids. The minus is that there would be a little more mowing.” Hello? What are the costs!?!? Can the busdriver afford the house? Can the world afford the UN plan?
Also in that chart, there were no negatives associated with “research.” Uh, if all one is going to do is fund more-of-the-same research, then I think “total waste of money” could have at least been penciled in the negative box.
Anyhow, the whole document can be condensed to “let’s screw around with the world economy to inflict maximum economic pain on productive economies.” The paper is definitely about control.
Damn!
Missed it!
Been reading this thread and the Ocean iron fertilization CO2 sequestration one and forgot about the dearth our! It’s now 9:40pm
Boo hoo
TonyB (00:10:49) :
Please could other people read this important document and comment.
TonyB
TonyB,
I am warning people for the UN and Chapter 21 (http://green agenda.com) since I am visiting this Blog.
What is necessary now is to observe the acts of our Government Representatives like the Obama Administration and build opposition as fast as we can.
Obama is 100% devoted to the UN and I am sure it is his objective to become the first World President after the first Global Revolution.
We have to be fast because Obama is building repressive instruments to curb any resistance.
http://tbirdnow.mee.nu/the_hitler_youth_updated
We are fighting an ideology here.
This will end up very bloody.
I do not believe that we should be wasteful at any time. My personal energy and fuel consumption is well below average. That use in moderation has nothing to do with concerns about global warming but rather a prudent life style coupled with a realistic respect for that which life and the earth provide us. However, in response to ‘Earth Hour’ I intend to waste as much energy has possible, a counter statement.
The decision to do so is about politics. Politics is the true force behind the AGW issue. The reason for the IPCC and the Al Gores of the world. Out of respect for Anthony & WUWT I will not elaborate beyond that statement here. My more direct, perhaps at times radical, comments are made on my blog and elsewhere on the Internet.
…………and God said, “let there be LIGHT”……………….well no, not if your Green.
Environmentalism, as Earth Day highlights, gives a whole new meaning to phrase The Dark Ages; a return to which would bring severe hardship to many millions of people.
I wonder if the climate modellers will swith their super-computers off. Should save a dollar or two on the electricity bills.
I accumulated days of power-outage after hurricane Ike, as did millions of my neighbors. It compels one to appreciate the technology that normally makes life pleasant.
It has been snowing here. I have a central heater and will turn it up a notch 🙂
I will treat this as any other marketing campaign, ignore it. I don’t buy that product anymore. It is known to cause
legionslesions, incontinence, chronic fatigue and psychotic episodes.TonyB (00:10:49) :
When I read the links you first submitted yesterday, I was absolutely stunned!
They can’t be serious – I thought – but they are. These proposals to switch roles between First and Third World countries are mind-numbingly staggering.
When conjugated with proposals for a world currency and the ‘elevation’ of Carbon Dioxide to be a pollutant, we should be very, very afraid.
Afraid for, the lifestyles we hoped our children, and their children, would enjoy.
Afraid of, a future where the blessings of the information age, will be used by fundamentalist ideologies to control the masses.
Afraid for, a future that disregards the endeavours, ambitions and sacrifices made by those who pulled us up through the cave, the hut, the tribe!
To those who sincerely believe that Man is adversely affecting the climate, I would make this plea! Let’s examine the evidence together and look for measures that can be implemented without consigning us to a bleak and sterile, Orwellian future.
@TonyB There is indeed a process going on to create some form of world government. You can also see http://www.worldforum.org/ which specifically calls on governments to use global warming.
I don’t think they are socialist, they are well-meaning egalitarian thinkers. But the problem is, most of the world doesn’t share their egalitarian values. There is a simple nested structure of levels of development. Very broadly speaking, human culture goes from tribal to nation states to global. Some people in the West now think globally, but most of the world is still tribal. And that’s why a global government is not possible yet, at least in any sense of a healthy way. Most of the world is still moving from tribal to nation state.
That’s why the Iraq project to create democracy was doomed from the start. Iraq and Afghanistan are tribal feudal lands. The people ignore the national “government” and instead listen to their tribal leaders. Moving to a global government involves the same problem. You can’t give the likes of Mugabe an equal vote of influence on the world stage, because he doesn’t think or value global ethics. He doesn’t even value nation-state democratic ethics. He’s a despot. And much of the world is like that to some degree. I think it will take 200 years to achieve a truly united, functional global system, because that’s how long it will take for the third world to develop far enough such that their own ordinary citizens have moved from tribal to nation state to global thinking.
When you have like-minded people you can indeed create a healthy community. You can’t create a healthy meeting of 6 people if three people in the room are nazis. But in the meantime egalitarian politicians and interest groups will continue to push for world government, and I hope the lessons learnt along the way are not too painful.
“It’s all about the symbolism,” he said. “We fully recognize that one hour does not put a dent in the climate crisis.”
It might put a significant dent in energy use if the business world turned out many unneeded city lights at night every day. (with all due respect for the night bakeries and the janitors)
The recession has put a dent in energy use as factories worldwide have cut back or closed and shipping has slowed.
The AGW folks don’t want anyone to notice that we have probably already surpassed carbon reduction goals for the next several decades of expected unimpeded growth. As our depression deepens it will become obvious. Then the current cooling will be attributed to the worldwide recession.
We NEED our recession/depression and I resent the government trying to make us borrow and spend. We do not need 140 different brands of wild bird seed, pet food and shampoo in every grocery store. Every working person needs to pay off debt to save his own bacon, not borrow.
A time of fasting is necessary for human discipline and perspective. It used to be provided by nature, then the Church. Next it will be provided by inflation, thanks to the government.
Many thanks to WWF for the opportunity to show my contempt for this scam. I’ll be putting all my lights on at 8:30 tonight.
The frightening thing is that, if these idiots have their way, in a few years the lights will be going off regularly due to power cuts. It’ll be Earth Hour for hours at a time, several times a week.
I believe that strong AGW is a delusion that may cause governments to squander trillions of dollars chasing imaginary demons. The irony is that I’m probably more green than most people. I use public transport or my bike and I don’t have a car. I have wall and roof insulation. Normally I only have one 60W light bulb on. Except tonight, of course….
Chris
High-rise apartment apartment in Miami here: shows in most skyline postcards and views of the Brickell area.
As traditionally, every single one of my 21 lights will be on at full power (all are dimmer-controlled), together with washer, drier, A/C, and dishwasher tonight at 8:30pm
I kinda whish I knew how to use the oven…
This event is so inane on many levels. Even though people will turn off their lights, do you think the power plants producing the CO2 will shut down for an hour? What if you get your electricity from solar or wind systems – are you exempt? Perhaps these people can hold their collective breaths for an hour so as to prevent themselves from exhaling the dreaded gas.
Aron (22:35:51) :
“I wrote this yesterday
By the way, may I ask everybody here to support Earth Hour 🙂
I really mean it. Not for the daft climate change reasons, but to highlight that we do need to conserve energy and be as efficient as possible with our use of energy.”
If you want to do this, let’s organize an event for a ** different ** Saturday! I am all for energy conservation measures and using alternative energy sources when they make sense. To be a country which can be self-sufficient for its energy needs should be a national priority – indeed a priority for all nations.
It’ll be a good test of the Obama Administration’s energy policy…Frezzing in the Dark!
It’ll be in the high 30’s or low 40’s F here in Dallas tonight…I think we’ll turn on all the lights and the pool heater…And…Build fires in both fire places.
Earth Hour is akin to going to church Sunday morning to throw a quarter in the tray, then heading off immediately after for an afternoon of golf…
Tempting though it is, we should be careful not to “cut our nose off to spite our face”. If we react in any way to “Earth Hour”, we give it power. Earth Hour is a totally useless (from either an energy or a C02 standpoint) and completely symbolic gesture, meaning those who participate are simply idiotic “joiners”, like the ones who will sign the dihydrogen monoxide petition. Simply, do not participate. Ignore it completely, doing whatever you’d normally do. It is a farce, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
We had cellulose insulation blown into our attic last year, bringing the R value up from about a 19 to 49 (in theory, anyway). Why? Because we wanted to save on our heating costs. At the time, we were looking at oil prices in the $140+ range. Now that it has dropped significantly, it will take somewhat longer to pay off. We also discovered, early in the heating season that the added insulation had created a moisture problem due to less air flow, resulting in frost on the underside of the roof, meaning we had to have soffit and roof vents installed. So, it will take a few more years for the investment to pay off, but it will pay off eventually.
Saving energy should always be about saving money. The C02 freaks don’t see it that way, of course, meaning saving energy, and of course “cutting carbon” itself become the Holy Grail, regardless of the actual costs, or unintended consequences.
All I can say about symbolism and Earth Hour is that it is those beacons of freedom, Zimbabwe and North Korea, that lead the way on reducing our carbon footprint.
How can we ever be worthy of such a lofty goal?
@Aron :o)
Aron,
You are a good fellow. Your sincerity is touching. Your patience, too.
The problem, as it seems most of us see it (I think you, too,) is that the enviro-wackos, global-alarmist leftists are co-opting well-meaning, good-intentioned causes and people to do so.
It is very heartening to read the comments of our fellow WUWT fans.
Aron. Symbols are powerful. Symbolic acts move cultures and nations.
We little guys can use them effectively, too.
So tonight, to borrow and rework an anarchist’s phrase – my motto is:
BURN BABY! BURN!
Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged 1957
The Cult of Darkness
“New York City . . . rose in the distance before them, it was still extending its lights to the sky, still defying the primordial darkness . . . The plane was above the peaks of the skyscrapers when suddenly . . . as if the ground had parted to engulf it, the city disappeared from the face of the earth. It took them a moment to realize . . . that the lights of New York had gone out.”
All of my lights will be on!
Michael Ronayne
Nutley, New Jersey
I’ve been pimping my Alpha Proxima Day counter celebration for a month. Take a look–join the fun.
http://cbullitt.wordpress.com/2009/03/28/alpha-proxima-day-lights-camera-action/
No Rik, it won’t, because the vast majority of people either do not know about this action or do not care for it. I expect the effect to be minimal.
Tonight I will be turning off my lights and encouraging others to do so. Not in the name of global warming, but in the name of Astronomy. There is no doubt about light pollution. Go out side your house with the outdoor lights off, and find a constellation to look at. After your eyes adapt to the darkness (about 15 minutes), count the stars in that constellation. Now turn on your exterior lights and see how many stars you cannot see now. Or even stand near a car dealership and marvel how much you cannot see. Help celebrate the International year of astronomy! Visit http://www.astronomy2009.org/ and http://www.darksky.org. BTW, When you live in a Northern climate and it takes you 15 minutes just to get all your winter gear on before going out into the -20C to -40C “global warming” induced heat wave, you realize that if AGW were to be real, you wouldn’t mind warmer temps!
What do I plan to do?
The wife and I are leaving ina few minutes to look at used diesel Ford Excursions.
I am completely 100% not kidding either…
Maybe I will start those things that relish CO2 in trays and daydream or more likely evening dream of the tomatoes, peppers,onions and brocoli they will produce a few months from now.
Tomatoes love global warming, ripen nicely with the warm nights.
By the way, does anyone know what the chemical composition of the smell of such fragant flowers as lilacs, roses, and even marigolds? Or where I might start looking ? I would like to know if they contain chemicals that might be banned in that certain state on the West Coast.
Granted, this is from last year, but the spirit of message still holds firm…
http://thepeoplescube.com/red/viewtopic.php?t=1845
Especially in light of the ’09 election results.
PS–TonyB, don’t forget to turn a spotlight on Maurice Strong…Algore’s cohort [and fellow eco-profiteer] at the UN. He gets nowhere near the scrutiny he deserves.
Edward Mitchell, you are trying to hijack devotion to astronomy to the cause of AGW and UN-owns-the-world. I checked your site and this is what I found:
Enjoy dark skies locally when cities across the world turn off lights for one hour in a collective action to reduce energy consumption and protect the environment during the last night of GLOBE at Night. So far, over 2,800 cities around the world are planning to participate in this event. Observe Earth Hour in your home by identifying and turning off all unnecessary lights for one hour, and be part of a worldwide movement to reduce energy and support natural skies. Learn more about Earth Hour >>
You are in cahoots to destroy human achievement and the environment. Be gone!
I don’t know how many of you know this but there really is a movement dedicated to turning lights out. According to them even light is polluting. As usual they underestimate how adaptable species are by saying wildlife is confused by our lights.
Imagine, dark cities every night just like in Jack the Ripper’s day. I lived in Mumbai for a while. The lights would go out now and then because of badly engineered grids (a side effect of using very low cost labour and materials). It got dark for hours at a time It encouraged people to go out more instead of staying home in the dark, driving long distances to clubs and restaurants where there were lights. In other words, higher energy use than if the lights were on.
This shows again the shortsightedness of environmentalists. Though well intentioned they never think of the consequences because it doesn’t matter what happens as a result. All that matters is being obeyed in the first place.
Heres an idea, drive around your neighborhood, noting houses that have their lights off and then send out information on alterate theorys of climate to them. Svensmarks stuff on cosmic ray cloud links come to mind
If you want more “awareness” about global warming, how about taking a science class, instead of some empty gesture. Maybe then they would be aware of the farse.
So when is this thing going to happen/not happen?
I haven’t charged the deep cycle batteries I keep on hand for power outages lately. Tonight’s as good a time as any, I suppose.
Stefan said “That’s why the Iraq project to create democracy was doomed from the start. Iraq and Afghanistan are tribal feudal lands. ”
Don’t be daft, Stefan. Iraq is the cradle of civilisation and has been civil many times. Its problems between religious sects are no different from that between Protestants and Catholics in past times. They deserve a chance at democracy and they are succeeding. Latest polls indicate that Iraqis prefer the democratic model and want to keep it that way.
Afghanistan. It is a bandit country but so was the Wild West. Would anyone (apart from some crazy people) argue against the civil and industrial development that resulted in the USA ?
what did you do for earth hour?
nothing.
I wonder if I can get a fleet of 10 KW searchlights…….hmmmm
I’m turning on my spot light in protest. This is a nice gesture though.
Above all else during this hour of earth’s need start writing checks as gifts to the government to prepare yourself for the new tax planned by Obama to go along with the EPAs pronouncement that CO2 is a pollutant in the atmosphere. The new expanding government aristocracy needs funding. You might even consider writing a check or two to the UN to help redistribute your wealth to those who want it more than you.
Big plans for tonight! I’ll be doing a load of laundry, running the dish washer, firing up the self-cleaning oven, and taking a hot bath while listening to the game on the TV and/or radio. What with everyone else huddled in the dark, I’m sure the grid can accommodate my needs! 🙂
I am going to wear a CO2 colored, CO2 scratch and sniff ribbon from now on. That will show everyone how much I care. Of course you all won’t be able to see or smell it, but trust me, it’s there.
This reminds me of World Jump Day. Just as effective, too.
[takes a few seconds to load]
The unintended consequence of turning the lights of might be that people in the dark rediscover other forms of entertainment resulting in a large increase in population nine month later.
And from what some Oregon scientists are saying that is bad for the planet too.
They have genuinely gone mad
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/28/g20-protest-police-rainbow-alliance
Millions upon millions of people infected by a disease called Bad Information. We have information at the touch of a button but people have become so dumbed down, divided, self-absorbed, hateful and selfish that they can’t even sit down for a moment to see that they are following lies, lying to themselves or lying to others.
It is ironic that Sydney, Australia led the way with this. Every New Year this same city also leads the way with an incredible fireworks display centred on the Sydney Harbour Bridge that loudly shouts”Green doesn’t matter”. Undoubtedly there will be (electrically powered) television cameras from all over the world transmitting visuals to TV sets (electrically powered) all over the world, showing blacked-out everythings, as they trumpet this milestone event.
Geoff Alder
I think I will just save my lights out for that one week every couple of years after a hurricane’s landfall.
This is goofy.
And I shall remember that Coca Cola and esurance were big participants and spend my money elsewhere. A lack of protest is exactly what made all of our corporations think that we are all ok with them offering all of their services in spanish and pressing one for english. Maybe we should let them know what we think about them pandering to the alarm crowd.
John A (04:42:50) :
All I can say about symbolism and Earth Hour is that it is those beacons of freedom, Zimbabwe and North Korea, that lead the way on reducing our carbon footprint.
_____________________________________________
Oh! John A. You’ve got it wrong. The amount of power Zimbabwe uses and the number of trees they fell to print all that money!! That leaves a dirty footprint if I ever saw one!
Geoff Alder
Actually, I’ll be on stage, complete with my 600 watt bass amp and 300 watt vox amp, crankin’ out some Folk / Country Jazz / Gypsy Blues, singing and playing the night away!!!
Smokey, that has to be the unreal-life sequel to a radio story I heard years and years ago, the rabbits had to tell everyone to jump all together at the same time to save the planet. It was cute then. Now it’s quixote but still funny.
From the London Telegraph at
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/g20-summit/5065721/G20-summit-thousands-start-protest-march-through-London.html
Some of the world’s most famous public buildings and landmarks will switch their lights off at 8.30pm on Saturday as part of a global gesture against climate change.
These include Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, the Eiffel Tower, Sydney Opera House and the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.
But some militant protesters have threatened to force the light out at business headquarters which do not voluntarily take part in Earth Hour, with plans for action against “wasted energy” in London office blocks over the weekend.
I would agree that in general these office blocks with light and the likes of computers on 24/7 is likely simply wasteful and an unnecessary demand on finite resources but the use of or threat of violent tactics in order to impose an ideology is edgy but probably supported in quite a few quarters these days.
Here in Portugal, there will be an important football (soccer) match, Portugal-Sweden, for the World Cup 2010. I bet this action won’t be so successful here. 😉
So ecoworshippers have discovered Lent. They’ve always been into self-sacrifice and flagellation, although not necessarily followers of what they preach.
coka cola is probably worried about what cap and trade is going to do to them, they use so much co2 afterall
It will be interesting to see if the crime rate (esp. burglaries) rises. Law of unintended consequences and all that…
I see Eli Lehrer is quoted in the article. Any relation to Tom, I wonder – he sounds suitably subversive.
Dan Forman said: “It’s all about the symbolism. . .”
Correction: it’s all about the press release.
Skeptics have a duty to not just be reactionary and to be better informed than the sloganeering AGW doomsayer propagandists. Skeptics need to realize that energy conservation is rational. Conservation NOT depravation. The atronomy focused Dark Skies movement admitedly does prattle lip service to the environmentalists, but I support the use of energy saving lamps that shine DOWNWARDS rather than pissing away light into the sky. It’s not anti-technology to deploy our beneficial technology sensibly and efficiently. Our kids and grandkids would be well served to see the night sky in all its glory occasionally rather than watching media TV propaganda.
It is one of those “feel good” exercises that might make an eight-year-old feel good as some sot of grade school exercise.
Me, I am turing on every light in the house and the front porch floodlight (even though they are all CFLs). This way, the teenagers who regularly park on my very dark street to make-out will be able to see what they are doing.
Takes me back to my first “Earth Day” celebration. It was held in downtown Winnipeg at a place called “the Forks” . My job was to do clean-up after the event. As a young man I was idealistic and thought that it would be an easy day with pay. I came upon what can only be described as the “aftermath”. There was garbage everywhere. People dropped their garbage where they stood. I was appalled and could not get over the hypocrisy of “Earth Day”. I still cannot get the shock of that sight out of my mind. I wish I had a camera with me. I find it quite funny that I worked very hard that day to clean up after those people who were there to promote a clean, green planet. I did not waver in my duty to do my job, and it gave me an energy and resolve to continue to clean up after those who claim to be “do-gooders”, yet don’t seem to be aware of the real harm they are doing. Cognitive dissonance anyone?
H.R. (00:01:39) :
Me? Not a thing different from my usual routine.
I do like the idea of “Celebrate Humankind’s Achievements” hour, though.
The Gore Effect entry at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gore_Effect has also been defaced. 🙁
The edit reasons given are in my opinion tenuous and certainly not in the spirit of simple observational humour. The cognitive dissonance would seem to include a low self confidence in the belief.
I plan on celebrating Thomas Edison/Henry Ford hour tonight at 8:30 PM. Every electric motor, internal combustion engine and every filament that I own will be consuming irreplaceable fossil fuels as a token of my appreciation to these wonderful men and the ingenious devices they have helped create for the betterment of the human condition.
Darn! We burned all our yard waste back in November!
The company that runs the business park in West London where I work e-mailed us all last week, announcing Earth Hour and encouraging everyone to take part, i.e., “vote for the planet.”
I sent an e-mail back to them, explaining why I don’t endorse Earth Hour, for the reason that if the WWF succeeds in its mission to persuade world leaders to sign up to Kyoto 2, it will mean that our illustrious government will blow yet more billions of our money on futile and unnecessary CO2 reducing measures. Which, in an economic downturn, will mean that all of us who work in and for the business park will face an even greater chance of losing our livelihoods in the months and years ahead.
I got a reply saying, in effect, we still think Earth Hour is a worthy cause, but thanks for your feedback.
Needless to say, my lights will be on, to celebrate the fact that we still have electric power in this country. Better enjoy it while it lasts…
Thinking of firing up the Barbecue grill also…..maybe consume some CO2 rich, flatulence producing, steer meat……….even though it’s about 20 degrees outside due to the unprecedented global warming……..what the hell, if I keep the grill close to the back door, leave the heat switched on and the door open, I can probable create a small “heat bubble” to keep myself comfortable while I baste.
I’ve also been considering getting rid of the old tires that have been laying around the yard…..maybe a bonfire.
Thanks for everyones comments about my earlier postings on the UN document.
This is an update on the original story and the wikepedia ref concerning Agenda 21. There are many links that needed to be folowed!
This is the claimed agenda of the UN
http://worldinbalance.net/agreements/1992-rio-agenda21.php
This is the schools agenda
http://sage-agenda21.site.voila.fr/
This is one of the uk schools implementing it
http://sage-agenda21.site.voila.fr/
This gives various UN declarations covering 10 principles voted on at various times by the UN
http://www.worldinbalance.net/agreements/2000-unglobalcompact.php
(This is not an official UN body but certainly operates with their blessing)
http://worldinbalance.net/agreements/gov-agreements.php
The above link gives an idea of the organisation and its funding. Along the top are various links leading to a better description of their work.
They follow the general principles of Agenda 21 which is an overall UN aspiration whose aims are described succinctly here
http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/documents/agenda21/index.htm
The UN document posted earlier from Fox news-which is to be discussed in April 2009 in Bonn- seems to be correct and is firmly based on the work of various sub committees (links already posted) voted for by the representatives of govts funding the UN . It is nothing more or less than an attempt to bring about a ‘one world’ through a variety of socialist measures including removal of industries and serious tax increases for the West and re-education of our children to ensure we all do ‘the right thing’.
The original link is repeated here for convenience. The IPCC seem to be the agent for this reordering through scaring the population into accepting its findings as fact, and stressing there is no option other than to radically change our ways.
http://www.foxnews.com/projects/pdf/032709_informationnote.pdf
http://www.worldforum.org/
This link above on govts using global warming to gain their objectives.
Conspiracy? Idealism? Doing things without our knowledge or sanction certainly
If you want to examine the veracity of the science of the IPCC you can do no better than to ask the opinions of Expert reviewers of the IPCC fourth assessment as I have done. This is part of a much longer reply to me from Richard Courtney
” Expert Peer Review Comments of the first draft of the IPCC’s Fourth Assessment Report provided by Richard S Courtney
General Comment on the draft Report.
My submitted review comments are of Chapters 1 and 2 and they are offered for use, but their best purpose is that they demonstrate the nature of the contents of the draft Report. I had intended to peer review the entire document but I have not bothered to complete that because the draft is of such poor quality that my major review comment is:
The draft report should be withdrawn and a report of at least acceptable scientific quality should be presented in its place.
My review comments include suggested corrections to
a blatant lie,
selective use of published data,
use of discredited data,
failure to state (important) limitations of stated information,
presentation of not-evidenced assertions as information,
ignoring of all pertinent data that disproves the assertions,
use of illogical arguments,
failure to mention the most important aerosol (it provides positive forcing greater than methane),
failure to understand the difference between reality and virtual reality,
arrogant assertion that climate modellers are “the scientific community”,
claims of “strong correlation” where none exists,
suggestion that correlation shows causality,
claim that peer review proves the scientific worth of information,
claim that replication is not essential to scientific worth of information,
misleading statements,
ignorance of the ‘greenhouse effect’ and its components,
and other errors.”
Climate change no longer has much to do with science but the promotion of a belief system.
Tonyb
Everything in our home will get powered up. All lights ON. All hot tub pumps ON, The oven ON, All televisions ON, Toaster, ON (and constantly reset), Furnace fan turned up to High, Radios, ON, My teenage son has written a program to have all the computers in the house (7) run a complex CPU intensive algorithm.
That should do it.
I plan to go to the power box and pull the main breakers for about 30 seconds. When I close the breakers, the power surge will create far more CO2 than if I had let everything run. The fridge and the many florescent lights in my house consume much more electricity at start up than they do running.
My dad used to say it took 4 hours of electricity to start a florescent light. It was his justification for never turning of the lights in his dry cleaning plant.
Here’s some video of the band.
Well, I was going to be running sound for a band at a firefighter’s benefit, but there’s a winter storm warning for the area (Milwaukee, WI). It’s very likely therefore that most people (including me) will be staying in and keeping the heating turned up. Ironic, isn’t it? :).
It’s a BS stunt anyway… just more MSM scaremongering.
I’m going to turn off my cigarette lighter for an hour.
@Aron Lands and people do eventually develop, but it takes time, a lot longer than people usually think it does. Tribal Iraq is no different to when Scotland was tribal, or anywhere else that is tribal. But just look at the history of places that used to be tribal, and notice how many hundreds of hears it took to make the transition to modern democracy. People first thought the Iraqis just needed to be freed. Now we think it takes a little longer, a little nation building, and as you quote, polls say people want democracy. Well, we’re still underestimating how long it takes, and we’re deluding ourselves believing that they’ll finish this anytime soon. Just because people want democracy, doesn’t mean it will resemble democracy when they get it. If you have three major tribes (never mind all the clans for now) each tribe wants its own tribe to win. Tribal means loyalty is to the tribe. Is is not loyalty to the nation state and “we the people” of the nation. It is loyalty to your own tribe. So democracy is just a way for the biggest tribe to gain the most power. That system will not work. And guess what, polls show most people want democracy? Like, the biggest tribe, the majority, want democracy so that the biggest tribe can get all the power? What happens to the minority groups? Democracy stands to make a worse mess, a slow lingering mess that will go on for 50 years at least. You can have democracy when everybody identifies with being a citizen of the state, not a member of a tribe with clan loyalties.
Pat, during the appalling famine in the 1980’s, the biggest export out of Ethiopia was runner beans to Europe. Band Aid may have helped, but it was the politics and corrupt governments which needed (and still need) sorting.
The ethically correct thing to do is turn on all your lights and run let you car engine on idle. The reason is that the more energy you put out, the more likely it is that you can reverse global cooling and stop the arctic cap from creeping all the way down into Kansas and Georgia, a danger that cannot be underestimated.
Global cooling has huge economic implications, here you must agree with the environmentalists. If the arctic cap covers Kansas, not only will the nation be deprived of its most valuable intellectual prowess, but also the wheat crop will be ruined, and we all know how bad that could be.
Figured you guys would love this. This is the first story about Earth Day. It shows comparision pictures of Sydney. Notice anything strange? Do they really think people dont notice its a picture of Sydney at dawn vs a picture of Sydney in the middle of the night to enhance the propaganda?
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29900742/wid=18298287
I’m going to turn every one of my lights on and I have MANY.
4500 watts of line voltage outside alone.
I’m trying to adjust them so they shine a big middle finger up into the sky.
I was going to sign up for a WWF membership to help save the polar bears but I felt like an idiot.
Now I’ll be turning on everything to counter as many member’s efforts as possible.
Just so I’ll feel better.
I may even start up my vehicles and leave them running in the driveway. Yeah, that’s the ticket.
What else?
Help me now. The meaner the better.
Why?
Because they tell me i’m this stupid.
I’ll be turning on all the lights, putting on some headbanger metal and going down stairs and reload some .308.
Check out this “scientific” summary.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29900742/wid=18298287
‘Nonsense’ or urgent priority?
New studies increasingly highlight the ongoing effects of climate change, said Richard Moss, a member of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and WWF’s climate change vice president.
“We have satellites and we have ships out at sea and we have monitoring stations set up on buoys in the ocean,” Moss said. “We monitor all kinds of things people wouldn’t even think about. The scientific research is showing in all kinds of ways that the climate crisis is worsening.”
But not everyone agrees and at least one counter-protest is planned for Saturday.
Suburban Philadelphia ice cream shop owner Bob Gerenser believes global warming is based on faulty science and calls Earth Hour “nonsense.” The resident of New Hope, Pa., planned to illuminate his store with extra theatrical lighting.
“I’m going to get everyone I know in my neighborhood to turn on every light they possibly can to waste as much electricity as possible to underline the absurdity of this action … by being absurd,” he said.
Last year, there was a lot of interest in Earth Hour here in Germany. It was heavily promoted by the popular newspapers, providing the main front page headlines on the day. The power companies were expressing real concern beforehand about the impact of a sudden drop in demand when the lights were switched off right across Germany.
In the event, it turned out to be a damp squid: the power companies reported afterwards that there had been no noticeable drop in demand at all.
This year it’s very different – there’s been very little coverage indeed in the German MSM. I guess they’ve learnt from last year’s experiences, and can’t see the point of promoting something that apparently very few people are interested in.
I get the impression the situation is similar in the UK. Apart from reading an article in yesterday’s Guardian about what a waste of time it was (“Earth Hour: Turning out the lights plays into the hands of our critics”: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2009/mar/27/climate-change-carbon-emissions ) I really haven’t come across much else in the UK MSM.
Despite all this, though, I have to say the lights chez Paulus WILL be switched OFF at 8:30 tonight. Look, I’m sorry – but it’s Mrs. Paulus’s birthday today, and we’ll be eating a romantic candlelight dinner for two about that time, something which is definitely improved by the lights being in a state of offness.
“Damp squid”? Of course squids are damp – they live in the sea. I meant, of a course, “a damp squib”.
No change of plans for electrical use, sorry greenies. However, I have pledged not to pass gas during the hour, thereby making my contribution to a cleaner, fresher planet!
Putting Up Christmas lights and Driving my F-150 4×4 (Which given the forecast for NE Oregon, I will have to do anyway.) Christmas lights look good in the snow,BTW..
Sunfighter:
Environmentalists make the typical liberal mistake of thinking that the community of skeptics is mainly composed of politically dogmatic people who think shooting moose from helicopters if fun.
Of course, we all know that this is obviously not true. I just don’t know what gave them that idea. But nothing will stop them from trying to deceive you. Therefore, I would encourage you to go on shedding light on pictures taken at night.
@ Aron (05:24:03) :
“I don’t know how many of you know this but there really is a movement dedicated to turning lights out. According to them even light is polluting. As usual they underestimate how adaptable species are by saying wildlife is confused by our lights….”
Aron, a proper “dark sky” policy is not a bad thing, nor are the natural conservation measures that come from it. Low cutoff light fixtures and targeted lighting can provide all of the security (including enhanced visibility due to glare reduction) needed, at much reduced wattage levels. There are documented municipal savings of upwards of 58% in energy cost to cities which have embraced a good dark sky policy. As a sometime amateur astronomer I’m all for it. As a taxpayer, ditto. This isn’t about embracing mind-numbing ideological suicide, its simply about using your head constructively. And yes, wildlife and many plants do have their circadian rhythms upset by night lighting. The aim of Earth Hour shouldn’t be to turn off the naked light bulb – it should be about properly shielding and directing it so that energy is conserved, costs are lowered and visual efficiency is achieved. If the proponents of Earth Hour were real, they’d all donate replacement low cut fixtures to their municipality or install them on their homes and businesses. I wonder how Las Vegas is working out for the Earth Hourites?
More feel-good fuzzy hubris from the left. I guess the science really is settled, earth hour proved it!
Every light in the house is on
The backyards bright as the crack of dawn
Thr front walk looks like runway lights
Its kinda like noon in the dead of night
Every light in the house is on
Just in case you ever do get tired of being gone
Every light in the house is on
Let’s think positive. Maybe if it cuts down on light pollution at night, at least the astronomers can rejoice, even if only for an hour. Otherwise, it’s just a trivial saving of energy as the enviroayatollahs generate more hot air while breathing out more CO2 and humidity that benefits our cloud cover.
bob p.
F Rasmin (00:10:08) :
PS. That should have been ‘me’! I am girding up for the final battle against the opposition (I am a Biotechnologist) by repairing to my lab whereby I continue to work on my pet hobby of attempting to raise the average IQ from that of the early Cro-Magnon (Have hope folks, I am very very close! It is all to do with activation and silencing of genes!).
FR, give Cro-Magnon a break! He was a survivor….
I’m going to shut the power off at the local ER for an hour to show my solidarity with those most vulnerable to climate change: the sick, poor and the elderly!
I’ll be turning on all my lights. I would light a bonfire in the yard, but it looks like I’ll have to run my snowblower instead for the 12+ in. of snow we’re getting tonight.
Then I’m going to shut off all the power at my house, cut down an old-growth tree and burn it in my fireplace for light and warmth! This is the best holihour ever!
Aron, a proper “dark sky” policy is not a bad thing, nor are the natural conservation measures that come from it. Low cutoff light fixtures and targeted lighting can provide all of the security (including enhanced visibility due to glare reduction) needed, at much reduced wattage levels. There are documented municipal savings of upwards of 58% in energy cost to cities which have embraced a good dark sky policy.
I agree with that part, as I said earlier that I am all for efficiency in every corner of life. Everything I do from walking somewhere to working on a project is built around doing no more than I need to and getting the most amount of work done with the least amount of effort. This began way back in my martial arts days when I learned about ‘economy of motion’ and then applied it to the rest of my life.
But like I said, there are unintended consequences to many of the things environmentalists advocate and if they thought about them more thoroughly they would be so much more effective and respectable. Dr. Patrick Moore and Michael Crichton are two of many people who have highlighted the disastrous consequences of ill-thought or ideologically driven policies.
Earth hour, is this another Gore Idea? i am willing to bet, that all those who shut off all their lights for one hour are now wondering where all their stuff went to.
OT, but related to electric consumption in a way.
California has passed the mandatory tire-inflation measure as part of fighting Global Warming via AB 32. Each time a vehicle is serviced, tire pressure must be checked and adjusted, by law.
The law applies to the 40,000 service providers including smog check stations, engine repair facilities and oil service providers. Those not included are car wash, body and paint, and glass repair businesses.
I wonder if this will increase employment? Will costs of each service be increased to adjust for the man-hours spent checking tires? Will service providers spend the capital to install an air compression system, if they do not already have one?
More importantly, how much will electricity use increase as those air compressors run more often across the state? Compressing air is energy intensive, especially with very small compressors.
Ahhh…California! Land of nuts and flakes, and not a few fruits…sorta like living in a bowl of granola, to mis-quote a favorite comic (Gallagher).
One can read all about it here:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/newsrel/nr032609b.htm
I prefer to think of earth hour as an acronym; EARTH. Perhaps we should have a contest here for who can think of the most appealing and revealing meanings.
My effort: Environmental A.s.h.l.s Rejoicing at their Twitish Hypocricy Hour.
Now add yours. laugh at them. Death by a thousand slashes of sarcasm and denigration.
I shall be turning ON, all of my lights.
I’m turning on every exterior light I own…I will not go quietly into the night.
If we get the winter storm being predicted, I might be sitting around without any lights, or heat! But only if the power is out.
Otherwise, I’m going to ignore it.
I just posted the link and my comments on 25 ways to mark Earth Hour.
I personally found one suggestion was a good one, have a scotch or wine tasting party!
The most telling suggestion was to get out the Ouija Board. AGW and this toy work on the same principal….
http://theclimateheretic.com/
Aron (22:35:51) :
I’m 100% with you on this one. I hate waste and unnecesary excess and yes I’d like to see us all do a little more with a bit less – good, old fashioned efficiency.
So I will do very little different to what I usually do. That is, I seem to spend half the evening going round the house switching lights off after the family – empty room with lights on and TV blaring even though person watching has gone out of the house. Sound familiar anyone? Nevermind that electricity prices have gone up so much recently. I’m not fanatical about it, but I switch off and use less when I can – I just hate being told to do it, or that i should do it because of CO2, or the planet.
Oh, and yes, I’d love children to be able to see the Milky Way and stars like I used to as a child, only a few miles from the city.
The high school a block away will not be green today either. Their spring musical “Beauty and the Beast” is again on tonight, and the matinee is going on right now. Ah, the stage light.
Happy Alpha Proxima Day everyone.
Got the heating on, the 40 inch TV on downstairs, Had my HI Fi amp on all day to warm up properly— now blasting Jimi Hendrix through at near concert volume, with awesome Bass which is going through the key board as I type.
I also put by 500W Halogen outside light on so the garden pond and patio areas are nicely lit
I will be thinking about the 1.8 billion people on Earth who have no access to electricity, and how insane they must think we are.
I partied at a well lit friend’s house. It was warm and cozy. Does that count?
Well, well… some minutes ago I broadcasted my radio program. The producer asked me to talk about the “Planet Hour”, that is the “Earth Hour”. I told the News director that I don’t agree with the IPCC politics or its “science”; however, she insisted and I talked on the absurdity of the “Planet Hour” and how the whole thing on climate change is full of lies, imprecision, mad science, etc. Surprisingly, the anchor agreed with my viewpoint!!!
0
Change of plans: I’ll be celebrating Tibet Liberation Day instead of Earth Hour…or else.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/mar/27/china-earth-hour-tibet
“Oh, and yes, I’d love children to be able to see the Milky Way and stars like I used to as a child, only a few miles from the city.”
I don’t mind that starry skies aren’t so visible in the cities. It’s a good excuse to go to the country and mountains where the folk there really could do with some money from visitors. Besides, in Britain we hardly ever get clear skies anyway because of cloud cover so stargazing doesn’t apply much to us 😛
rickM:
Rage! Rage against the hour without light!
CPT, Charles
You asked for something from me on Maurice Strong. For those that don’t know him, he is as influential in the environmental movement as Al Gore, but tends to be an organisation man compared to Al Gore’s media role.
If anyone is interested, I also did a piece on William Connelly-the gatekeeper to the climate pages on Wikipedia -and also on the committee who awarded the Nobel prize to Al Gore.
Link 1 http://www.mauricestrong.net/bio.html
The above is a profile from Maurice Strong’s own web site
Link 2 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122368007369524679.html
the above a very considered piece from the Wall Street journal
Oct 11 2008
Link 3 http://takebackcanada.com/kyotoentity.html
Above about Maurice Strong and his early career-covers more ground than link 2 and is written by one of the same people that wrote next two Canada Free press articles
Link 4 http://www.canadafreepress.com/2007/cover031307.htm
The above about Strong’s carbon credit activities with Al Gore
Link 5 http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/3618
The one above more specifically on Strong’s politics
Extract:; Vaclav Klaus, President of the Czech Republic, was the only world leader to openly understand the science and what Strong and his instrument the IPCC were about. He was also immediately aware of communism and recognized what is happening. In a 2008 article for The Australian he wrote,
“I am afraid there are people who want to stop the economic growth, the rise in the standard of living (though not their own) and the ability of man to use the expanding wealth, science and technology for solving the actual pressing problems of mankind, especially of the developing countries. This ambition goes very much against past human experience which has always been connected with a strong motivation to better human conditions. There is no reason to make the change just now, especially with arguments based on such incomplete and faulty science.” (The Australian)
The link above also leads to a whole series of articles about the IPCC/climate change
Link 6 This leads to two articles by the National Post, the first a suggestion by Strong that China be allowed to buy up substantial parts of the US automobile industry
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fpcomment/archive/2009/02/05/maurice-strong-let-china-buy-detroit.aspx
Extract . Encourage and facilitate China to make major investments in General Motors, Ford and Chrysler that would enable them to reconstruct and revitalize their companies on a basis that would ensure their survival and competitiveness, including the use of Chinese components. This would be done through investment by, or joint ventures with, leading Chinese companies.
The U.S. and Canadian markets would be opened on a selective basis to Chinese automobiles, which would be marketed through the General Motors, Ford and Chrysler dealer networks, restoring the viability and profitability of dealerships afflicted by the industry crisis.
Link 7 This next link has a quote from it below
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fpcomment/archive/2008/08/09/chairman-mo-s-fantastic-plan.aspx
Mr. Strong has been described as a “brilliant visionary and a shockingly bad administrator.” The problem is that most of his visions involve administration at a planetary level. His take on history and economic reality is, as usual, sui generis. He suggests that “China has raised more people out of poverty than any nation has ever done.” True, but primarily by abandoning the kinds of government ownership and/or control that Mr. Strong– as a lifelong socialist –has always recommended. Also, when noting China’s turbulent history in the past century, he significantly fails to mention the factor that has cost most in turmoil and lives: Communism.
Hope you enjoyed this CPT, Charles.
TonyB
We spent the day cleaning and prepping our AC units(3 and 5 ton units). Firing them both up full blast at the appointed time to see if all is well. It’s a standard spring thing anyway, so why not join the celebration.
Mick J (06:16:47) :
“I would agree that in general these office blocks with light and the likes of computers on 24/7 is likely simply wasteful and an unnecessary demand on finite resources but the use of or threat of violent tactics in order to impose an ideology is edgy but probably supported in quite a few quarters these days”.
Mick J,
There was a time where office lights were switched off.
Until the bill for crime and vandalism went sky high.
Now they keep the lights on to keep the crooks away.
The Hague, Netherlands remains well lit at 20:40.
Is there another instance of the Gore Effect?
It seems there is a sudden cold wave hitting Europe and the USA starting just today. Cold temperatures in Spain and a blizzard in Texas.
Can anybody confirm this?
Alex (23:03:24) :
Go onto the facebook earth hour page and you will see earth hour mugs, shirts, caps and other “earth friendly” produce for sale! … ‘a portion of the earnings will go toward conservation’ A portion could be 20%, 1% or even 0.99%… the rest?? Into the moneymaker’s pocket of course!
It’s GWeed, pure and simple.
OT:
I just talked with my sister who lives N of Calgary. They still have massive snow cover and the temperatures have been so cold that it is estimated that 95% of the Western Pine Beetle have been destroyed with extended temperatures of -42 C. Of particular interest is that her neighbor who has been putting in his garden on April 1st for the past 25 plus years has had to delay the effort as it is “hard to sow in the snow” !!!!
With the extended SC minimum and reversal of the PDO and enhanced volcanic activity, it looks to be a very late Spring.
It seems there is a sudden cold wave hitting Europe and the USA starting just today. Cold temperatures in Spain and a blizzard in Texas. Can anybody confirm this?
I can only confirm I am colder than I should be for end of March.
“…the event, which began in Sydney in 2007, want everyone to turn off non-essential lights.”
Duh! If they are non-essential, they should already be OUT!
I already do this at home, and often walk around the house and turn off the lights after my children (and wife) walk out of well-lit rooms …
In our case, I’m just trying to save a buck.
Enough is enough already.
Urederra (11:49:03) :
Is there another instance of the Gore Effect?
It seems there is a sudden cold wave hitting Europe and the USA starting just today. Cold temperatures in Spain and a blizzard in Texas.
Can anybody confirm this?
I’m in Monterrey, Mexico; about 124.27 miles from the border with Texas, and yes, we have cold temperatures today and expect cold temperatures tomorrow. Temperature this morning was 50 F (10 C) and we’ll awake tomorrow on similar conditions.
I’ll turn the TV volume down…
Warmer Is Better. Fight the ignorance.
This is a programme I enjoyed a lot and have a copy of. No hysterical mentions of climate change and the popular physicist Professor Brian Cox is seen driving about quite happily in a great Dodge.
Can We Make a Star on Earth?
Professor Brian Cox takes a global journey in search of the energy source of the future. Called nuclear fusion, it is the process that fuels the sun and every other star in the universe. Yet despite over five decades of effort, scientists have been unable to get even a single watt of fusion electricity onto the grid.
Brian returns to Horizon to find out why. Granted extraordinary access to the biggest and most ambitious fusion experiments on the planet, Brian travels to the USA to see a high security fusion bomb testing facility in action and is given a tour of the world’s most powerful laser. In South Korea, he clambers inside the reaction chamber of K-Star, the world’s first super-cooled, super-conducting fusion reactor where the fate of future fusion research will be decided.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00hr6bk/Horizon_20082009_Can_We_Make_a_Star_on_Earth/
If non-Brits would like a copy maybe I can upload it to FTP space if someone has one otherwise I’ll try to YouTube it.
Oh yes, will also fire up the BBQ and scorch some prime beef. Still can’t decide if charcoal or propane gives off more CO2.
Urederra (11:49:03) :
“It seems there is a sudden cold wave hitting Europe and the USA starting just today. Cold temperatures in Spain and a blizzard in Texas.
Can anybody confirm this?”
The cold in Texas is the remnant from the weather system that came through California / Oregon / Washington on March 22. That same system is causing major problems in North Dakota with bitter cold while they face flooding.
http://energyguysmusings.blogspot.com/2009/03/late-winter-storms.html
There is yet more snow in the Seattle area today. So much late-season global warming!
The voluntary lights out today will become the mandatory lights out tomorrow as we go into the Algore night—a worldwide Pyongyang.
As for me, I intend to turn on every light inside and outside the house and crank up the stereo. Snow is predicted for tonight and tomorrow; hopefully, I can fire up the snowblower too.
Oh dear! i missed it. Curses.
For Human Achievement Hour (HAH) I plan to turn on all my lights. Each of my incadescent light bulbs will consume 8 to 10 times more energy than flourescent (dim) bulbs that will be turned off for Earth Hour. Sweet!
My indoor incadescent light bulbs give off heat as the supposedly unused energy, but lately, that indoor heat from lighting is offset by savings in heating my house. Being smart, only my outdoor lights are flourescent.
Drive a wooden stake through the heart of this World Wildlife Fraud inspired propaganda campaign. Consume as much power as you possibly can starting at 8:30. Individually we can each overwhelm any savings realized by twenty sheeple dwellings full of those CFLs! Go for the heavy hitters – electric heating, clothes dryer, self cleaning oven, fridge/freezer (turn the temperature down temporarily at 8:30) and even the air conditioning. May cost you a buck or two but would be well worth it!
OT . . . but *Gulp* . . . I looked at the sunspot indicator in the side bar and it looked like the sun is growing darker.
Had to run over to Space Weather.
Everything seems to be OK. Sun’s still there.
From iceagenow.com:
Human Achievement Hour
By Robert W. Felix
28 Mar 09 – New York City’s Empire State Building is scheduled to go
dark for one hour tonight, as are the St. Louis Gateway Arch, the Golden
Gate Bridge, the Eiffel Tower, Egypt’s Great Pyramid of Giza and many
other symbols of human achievement.
Environmentalists are leading a worldwide hour of shame and darkness,
a propaganda device invented by the World Wildlife Fund in 2007
I think this is a travesty, a slap in the face to all of those who have made
this world into a better place to live. Instead of being ashamed of human
accomplishment, we should be celebrating it.
Today, Eli Lehrer, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute
(CEI), announced a “Human Achievement Hour” to counter Earth Hour.
The group says millions of people will participate by turning the lights on,
going to a concert or seeing a movie. “It’s obviously tongue-in-cheek,”
Lehrer said.
I wish it weren’t tongue in cheek. I think we should honor the leaders, the inventors, the creators, the businessmen, and yes, those horrible capitalists,
who have raised our lives out of the mud, out of the hovels, and out of the
darkness of yesteryear.
Now the global warming crowd wants to take us back into the darkness.
CEI also created a Wikipedia page on Human Achievement Hour to let
people know why it was established and how they might participate– just
as environmentalists had created a Wiki entry for Earth Hour.
Not content with freedom of expression, the environmentalists forced
Wikipedia to remove the page.
I am outraged.
This is the shame; to raise our children to believe that human achievement
is bad.
Please watch this video on Human Achievement Hour: http://blip.tv/play/AfXybYrPcw
.
I actually took the hippies up the road shooting… i had no idea it was earth hour, but the hippies remembered when we got back… so i saved on power by not watching tv… but i did leave the heat exchanger running, and burnt copious quantities of cordite using large centifire rifles on rabbits. 😉 my shoulder is black today!
We are witnessing the fall of a civilization. The cause?, as Aron wisely and keenly put it in another post:
There is no secret society or conspiracy. It’s just cronyism, idealism, political correctness and too much cocaine
We, commoners, do not need these or any kind of drugs to face reality, because none of us did build our lives on self indulging phantasies.
We, commoners, are not seeking for some cataclysm to solve our inner contradictions, because we have none, but our common and happy life of hard work and a family close and around us.
I am sure these words will make them inhale another more strong shot.
They feel lost in the world, that is why they need to implant in us their fear to survive. They are but frightened kids; this is why they dont´t even refrain in using kids for their pathological purposes (I am saying this because I witnessed today a march on the streets where small kids were more than 95% of the ralliers, taken carelessly out there by a small bunch of “greens”).
And for all those folks around the world sitting in the dark, burning their candles for light, they’re burning fossil fuels! Candles are made of paraffin which is a hydrocarbon made from methane. I shall have all my lights on.
here in Australia we had earth hour last night. I spent it at a concert given by The Who at a vineyard in the Hunter Valley. The carbon footprint and the noise were both stupendous as was the music. Lights, huge speakers and amps and we finished with fireworks.
For Human Achievement Hour, it isn’t necessary to do anything in particular: Anyone who doesn’t participate in Earth Hour is automatically, by default a member of the Human Achievement Hour club! I like that.
Maybe with more advance notice, more could be done with this idea next year.
My lights have been off since 6PM. It’s 11:15PM now.
That’s the way I work in my office every evening.
I planned to turn as many lights on as I can. I usually walk around the house turning lights off, that my family has turned on in rooms they don’t inhabit. I do this to save money that I don’t need to needlessly spend. I do that 364 days out of the year. This ridiculous night, I planned to do the opposite in defiance to the neo-commies.
However, my wife and I are going out to dinner. My 10 yo son came home from a friend’s house to tell me his friend wants him to turn the lights off. I’ll have to give him a lesson in the mindless Obamunists quest to control humanity through fear and intimidation. Hopefully, he’ll start to learn.
Disconnect from the electric utility company and connect to my gasoline powered generator for an hour instead . 🙂
Just kidding- atually I don’t plan on doing anything different.
It’s getting warm in here. I’m going to have to crack some windows cause I’m not turning the gas fireplace off nor turn down my furnace.
All floodlights on. Check.
Seasonal affective disorder full spectrum box on. Check.
All incandescent bulbs glowing nicely. Check.
Big screen glowing. Check.
Think I’ll make an electric pot of nice hot decaf. Check.
Laptop keeping me cozy. Check.
Too lazy to pull the cars out of the garage and I don’t want to risk CO poisoning.
Have I forgotten anything?
Oh yeah. I think I’ll run a tub of towels and throw ’em in the dryer.
Then later, a nice long hot shower.
I am walking around my house right now turning on every light and every floodlight outside.
Then I through I would go start my mustang and let it run for a while with the high beams on.
Chris
Norfolk, VA
Correction: Then I THOUGHT I would go start my mustang….
MikeE (14:19:57) :
I actually took the hippies up the road shooting… i had no idea it was earth hour, but the hippies remembered when we got back… so i saved on power by not watching tv… but i did leave the heat exchanger running, and burnt copious quantities of cordite using large centifire rifles on rabbits. 😉 my shoulder is black today!
I hope you sequestered that bunny carbon in your belly.
8:34 here now. Every light is on and I’m flipping my 11 year old daughter right out. I know many think it’s better to ignore the whole thing, to not even give the concept any legitimacy by thumbing our noses at it. But I just can’t help myself. Long live the revolution!!!
Earth hour begins! Estimated Consumption at present 9kw. Im afraid to go higher and blow my breakers and become a de facto particpiation in this ridiculous charade.
It’s getting warm in here. I’m going to have to crack some windows cause I’m not turning the gas fireplace off nor turn down my furnace.
All floodlights on. Check.
Cathy, you need to turn on the A/C – Stat!
Earth Hour… what Earth Hour?
“jpt (12:24:55) :
I’ll turn the TV volume down…”
Funniest line of the day!
We’re all going to die from Al Gore’s SuperNova anyway. So, what does it matter.
YouTube video :
Cloud cover here so I did not turn on the spot lights skyward!!!!
I did fire up the burn barrel though!
Help strengthen the WWF brand identity:
http://www.unep.fr/scp/compact/dialogue/2004/pdf/WWF.pd
Help them achieve higher financial extraction leverage with corporations: http://www.panda.org/what_we_do/how_we_work/businesses/businesses_we_work_with/ways_business/corporate_club/
Checking web camera shots of Washington D.C. throughout the last hour. Not a single light on a single Federal building had been switched off that I could see. Capital building lit up brightly as usual.
I suppose Congress is not subject to their own rhetoric.
Well, Earth hour has been and gone in Canberra and on the whole I think it went rather well. Thousands of people all sitting in the dark with that “fuzzy warm feelgood ” feeling. Good on ’em.
“Hold up!” you may say, ” you’re in the wrong forum mate”.
Noooo! WUWT is exactly the right place.
The gods smiled on me last night and presented me with a little “social engineering” opportunity.
About half an hour into the event I was outside in my driveway unloading some groceries from my car when down the road came a group of youmg kids all sporting candles in jars checking to see who was participating in Earth hour.
They stopped at my place and said “Hi”.
“Back at yer kids, are you having a good night?.
I received a collective “yep!”
Then the biggest or oldest of the group ( about 13 or 14) noticed that I had my porch light, kitchen light, lounge and backyard spot lights on.
“Are you going to turn those lights off?”
“Why ? “I said.
“It’s Earth hour and you MUST turn your lights off! “.
It was a full 5 seconds before I could think straight because of the 120 decibel alarm bells ringing in my head.
“Hold the phone ” I thought. Who taught them that little chestnut.
My immediate reaction was to tell the little buggers to sod off but my evil alterego took over and I decided to ask them some questions instead.
“What does turning the lights out do apart from making things go dark? “.
Every one of these kids was armed to the teeth with answers.
“It saves the planet ” said one. “And it saves the environment” said another. “It stops climate change and droughts so we can grow food.”
And from the smallest “teenie greenie ” came ” It stops ice from melting and saves the polar bears “.
Damn, I should have seen that one coming, what was I thinking?
These kids were on a quest. I was actually being stared down by a pack of mini enviro-vigilantes. The theme tune to ” The good the bad and the ugly ” came to mind. Then it suddenly struck me that perhaps this was an opportunity to do some good in this world, something like save the planet my way.
My next question to them was a bitch I must admit.
“How many polar bears does Earth hour save? ”
The group mumbled to themselves in the dim light of their flickering candles.
I noticed that one of the smaller kids had a big soot mark across it’s forhead.
Must have been the mark of the devil.
Note to WWF. Drop the panda and get a shot of this kids face. LOL
I am still wondering how they worked this out but it appears they believed that 1 polar bear would be saved for every city that turned out their lights.
I quickly established that they beleived that using any electricty whatsoever from a coal fired power station was bad and killed animals. Cute!
“Ok then, what about having an Earth day, how good would that be? ” I had just set the trap, these guys now thought I was on their side.
That was met with much nodding and smiling.
” Lets then save all the polar bears at once and have Earth year. ”
I’m sure one of the little tikes was about to hug me. This bunch was now becoming very enthusiastic about the prospect.
” Do you all think you could do that to save the bears? “.
Another collective “Yep! “.
The bastard in me was now shifting into top gear.
” You realise of course that to do that you must not use any electricity at all. ”
One of then almost looked like he knew where I was going with this.
” And that means no lights, no cooking, no hot water. ” And here came the knockout punch. ” No ipods, playstations, youtube, xboxes or the internet .”
” Don’t take my word for it, go and ask your mum and dads. ”
I also added that the electricty used in a google search was enough to take out a penquin. If only I had a camera!
If anyone needs to know how to turn a happy crowd into a hostile one in 1.5 seconds just drop me a line.
I could see that they were giving this some thought. The youngest looked most puzzled.
” Don’t worry kids, not all electricty comes from coal, we have windmills and the don’t kill polar bears or penquins. ” Phew!
” Just parrots ”
Not wanting to hear anymore home truths the pack went on it’s merry way debating, I’m sure, whether it was really worth saving polar bears after all.
I did reassure them that the ice was not melting and the bears would be just fine.
I may have been a little over the top with these kids but a little dose of reality now and then must help. Must’nt it?
The scary thing about all of this of course is these kids are being fed this climate change BS and it is going to be very difficult to correct it.
Anyway having managed to burst their little bubble It was I who now had that “warm fuzzy feelgood” feeling over Earth hour.
Come to think of it I’m rather looking forward to next year.
Ian
My wife will will be running the washing machine, the kids are watching tv, and we have two computers running as well as some lights on. I should go put the porch light on for good measure…
Lights are on and I’m about to liberate some CO2 sequestered by Budwiser.
What did I do for earth hour? Cooked, added some red wine, cooked some more, tasted a glass of the red wine for quality control purposes, of course, tasted the red wine again to make sure that the bottom of the bottle tasted the same as the top, and completely forgot about “earth hour”. Oh, well. All the lights were on, the oven and stove were on, the quality of the red wine was thoroughly tested, and now I get to trudge through the pouring rain to carry a bottle to a lamb and check on a ewe that is near term. They always like to lamb in the worst weather.
Enjoy a quiet outdoor evening fire by pouring gasoline on a pile of old snow-tires.
Earth Hour does us a service by worming into our brains now.
So when the inevitable rolling black-outs hit us, we’ll already be conditioned, and it won’t seem so scary…
The lights that I would like to turn off don’t belong to me. I pay for them, as do all the residents, through surcharges imposed by the local utility company.
One of these days, we are going to have to unwire them.
Thanks for the reminder (7:42 local time) just in time to fire up the (almost never used) yard lights and get a string of outdoor christmas lights going…
Hey, I didn’t make the rules. Someone else decided to make this a political statement, the least I can do is vote my conscience.
FWIW, I find the pointless posturing to “make a statement” that means nothing, accomplishes nothing, changes nothing and raises no awareness to be incredibly stupid. But since someone else decided to make this an issue, least I can do is help make the stupidity obvious.
Once my boss had a flickering fluorescent light over his desk. This caused him to be very irritated (and eventually could cause a headache). This is related to the tendency to epilepsy. Too much of the trait and you have epilepsy, too little and you have slower reflexes: A lot, but not too much, and you have very fast reflexes and fast thinking; but a 3 cps flickering light that sets of epileptics causes severe irritation. (FWIW airline pilots have the most of whatever the trait is without being over the line…). Calls to facilities to change the bulb were greeted with “it’s not a crisis, we’ll get to it soon enough”. Day 3: Flickering light. Boss climbs on desk, takes bulb out and drops it on the floor (didn’t break). Takes out second bulb and drops it at a 45 degree crossing angle: satisfactory breaking glass and dust pile.
He then called facilities and reported a health hazard with broken glass, phosphor powder, and mercury contamination; oh, and unsafe low lighting. It was cleaned up with new bulbs in and fixed in about an hour.
The point? Sometimes you have to be a bit of a jerk and make the stupidity obvious. Time to go use the lights to do my bit to “make the stupidity obvious”…
Rolling blackouts are not inevitable. What is inevitable is that the greed that makes money off of the useless mass of lights burning at 2am.
The UK counties already got smart and de-wired a lot of them.
Folks complained at first, then got used to it.
Well, I missed it. I went out fishing and forgot all about it. I caught so many crappies I lost count. I quit fishing when I ran out of minnows.
All was not lost, however. Mrs. H.R. didn’t (and still doesn’t) know a thing about it so the TV was on, she made dinner (a rarity, I’m the cook), and lots of lights were on as she had been puttering about while waiting for me to get back from fishing.
I suspect a LOT of other people forgot all about Earth Hour.
swampie – your lamb likes red wine?
Carl Yee (13:12:28) :
Oh yes, will also fire up the BBQ and scorch some prime beef. Still can’t decide if charcoal or propane gives off more CO2.
Charcoal. No hydrogen so all the energy has to come from C combustion, so more carbon used per BTU.
Turned on every light, turned up the temp on the heater. Then got in the car – V6 – And drove half a mile to the corner store.
My teenage son and friends think the Earth Hour is a crock of …
They thought Human Achievement Hour was hilarious.
Well I have most of my lights on, turned the dryer on with no clothes in it, am about to turn the dishwasher on, and have the furnace fan on curculate.
With any luck, the major impact of “earth minute” or whatever it is, will be to educate some folks about just how important it is to have lots of electricity and light…
Front string of christmas lights up and on.
Back and side yard floods on.
Front porch light on.
Driveway Sodium Vapor on (automatic).
Clothes in washer / dryer.
Living room TV on and all lamps lit.
Computer and network on.
Fridge door opened frequently (beverage check 😉
Kitchen lights on.
what else…
Ooh! Bedroom entertainment center! I forgot to fire up the bedroom!
And in just 25 minutes I need to start the electric oven on the cleaning cycle…
FWIW, the neighbors have about 25 incandescent lights on an extended grid lit up over their patio for a party of some kind. Always liked those neighbors…
At the appointed time for this worthless demonstration significant snow was falling from the sky with an accumulated depth of 3.4″. The “Gore Effect” sure is making a grand appearance! If we get enough snow maybe the snow mobilers will be able to ride into April. I was too busy keeping the house warm to worry about turning off the lights, as it should be. Too bad this irony is lost on the true believers of the church of global warming.
After reading the 244 comments, I think the energy usage during earth hour may have set a new record.
Aron (22:35:51) said : “I wrote this yesterday: By the way, may I ask everybody here to support Earth Hour :)”
Aron, I understand your position (and have to apologize that I’ve not read most of the comments since Aron’s missive of 22:35:51). Here, (GMT + 4), Earth Hour has come and gone some three hours ago. I didn’t feel rebellious, but also did not see a need to cooperate. I love seeing the stars without light “pollution”, as only observable far in the wilderness, but I hate hypocrisy and “ends justify the means” Machiavellisms.
The bottom line right now is not so much effective conservation and thriftiness, but to change arrogant and economically disastrous attitudes such as “we have to stop/combat/fight climate change”. Time is of the essence – less than nine months to the Copenhagen conference on the Kyoto succession process.
Let’s put our heads together and marshal viral cyber might to mount a broad, post-partisan crusade for alternatives to the consensus doctrine!
UL
ian middleton (17:45:42) : nice story! appreciate your restraint
Let’s see, what did we do: hockey game on TV (featuring the proper use of hockey sticks!), washer running, dishwasher running, two computers in use, which required a light on in two rooms, two space heaters in addition to the furnace, a brief car trip, opened the refrigerator a couple times. In other words, normal Saturday night behavior. Except for the occasional unnecessary flush.
My power has gone out at least three times this winter, once for over a day.
So I believe I’m exempt from earth hour or at least should be paid out in carbon credits for all my sacrifice! :p
Lights are out, computers are on. No candles.
The unchallenged assertion that the power grids will continue to run at capacity is, or crash because turning off lights will reduce demand to zero, er, about what I’d expect.
“…The silly part of this is that the grid will still need to be running at capacity, so no actual CO2 savings can be made (- if you really believe that makes a difference).”
“Here in Europe, one is anxious that power plants could not react to a total loss of demand on the grid at 8:30 PM local time. If the success…”
Commendations to
John (21:57:17) :
Mick J (06:16:47)
for noting that conserving finite resources might have some value.
Overall, this blog is mostly clean fun, but hardly persuasive. Have a good time in the fort, guys.
Bill Abbott
Went for a walk, got home at 8:30, then switched on all lights visible from the outside. It’s now around 10pm and all surplus lights are now off.
As far as I can say, none of the 10 million Czech citizens has celebrated the Earth Hour.
California Weathers Earth Hour
http://sowellslawblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/busted-earth-hour.html
The power load for today for California is shown on the post above, in which may be seen a normal, smoothly decreasing load from 8:30 to 9:30 this evening. I took a snapshot of the grid loading for the day, and posted it on my site. It appears to me that normal functions happened tonight, where people went in to cook around 7:00, watch a little TV, or whatever.
Bill Abbott
I think you may be missing the point that doing the oposite of what we are told to do is an act of rebellion. This is accentuated by our knowledge that we are being asked to follow bad science with all sorts of consequences. Personally I am very careful with resources, which is more than many leaders in the AGW cult are.
Tonyb
News from Christchurch (New Zealand):
“Christchurch failed to match its previous power-saving effort for Earth Hour
Orion New Zealand estimated the electricity saved in the city during the lights-out event was 8.1%, well short of last year’s 12.8%.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/2299022/Christchurch-powers-down
Our neighbour is a real-life Ned Flanders. Get this: he drove his family up to the hills to look down on the darkened city. Yes they all got in a CAR and made an unnecessary journey. They were thrilled about just how dark it looked. They don’t normally go out after dark – so they have no idea that it ALWAYS looks like that.
They truly are post-rational people – they have seen the benefits of science and technology and they want to throw it all away.
The bottom line right now is not so much effective conservation and thriftiness, but to change arrogant and economically disastrous attitudes such as “we have to stop/combat/fight climate change”. Time is of the essence – less than nine months to the Copenhagen conference on the Kyoto succession process. Let’s put our heads together and marshal viral cyber might to mount a broad, post-partisan crusade for alternatives to the consensus doctrine
To be realistic, we can talk about how bad surface stations are all day, and how bad the historical temperature data is, and how daft it is to measure Arctic ice thickness by walking a straight line to the North Pole, or measure cosmic rays, etc etc, but unless we offer up solutions then you’re not going to get much more attention than getting now.
Activists are split. There is one camp that doesn’t care if AGW is real or not. Or even that the credit crisis was caused by government regulation in the first place. They want the end of capitalism and no other solution will do. They have a totalitarian gene that tells them egomaniacal, bearded, cigar chomping tinpot dictators and government control of all industries is good. Many activists want to be the guy with the cigar. You can’t do anything to change these people. When people argue with George Monbiot, leading environmentalist campaigner, on his blog they’re wasting their time. The guy is a maniac who isn’t interested in science (along with Saddam’s friend George Galloway, he helped set up a Marxist-Islamist political party called Respect).
The other camp is made up of gullible daft stoners and soft-hearted limp-wristed couch potatoes who believe what they hear on the TV and in movies and are too lazy to go on the internet to verify facts and figures. These people worry about everything. These people are treated by Alarmists as useful idiots or simpletons who can be used to do the dirty work of voicing their concerns in the media. If you want to change these people you have to offer them solutions to solve the energy supply problems, mortgage payments, clean rivers, etc.
The media won’t give you an inkling of attention unless you come up with the solutions. I suggest setting up something like a competition which offers a ridiculously huge prize to the person or team who can solve the energy supply problem. The money would be donated by the public and each donation will count as a share in the company. But it would have to be a really massive prize. There is no reason why the winner of such a competition shouldn’t become richer than Bill Gates for powering the world.
Or if the US government or the UN wanted it could do it themselves. Instead of throwing billions around on punitive carbon trading or inefficient solar panels and windmills, all they need to do is get all countries together to put $250 billion on the table as a prize. Or even a trillion dollars. That money will form a new, internationally funded power company which the winner or winning team will head. It will be tomorrow’s Exxon-Mobil, but providing clean, efficient, never-ending power to the whole world. We’ll even allow it to have a monopoly position as long as the vast majority of its shares are publicly owned.
That’s incentive. Offer that as a prize and we’ll see scientists get off their arses to brainstorm and fast track the solutions through.
To those decrying the lack Wikipedia coverage, “Yes, but…”- when I just checked, Wikipedia had 6 lines describing “Earth Hour 2009” and 13 line of criticism, with links to CEI, etc. I’m not saying thats the right way to do it, but a look-see for HAH will come up with real content.
Squidly (22:42:57) : is correct
“…Wikipedia..is adamantly refusing to allow an entry for “Human Achievement Hour” (the opposite of Earth Hour).”
There was a page submitted, it does NOT maintain a neutral tone, as called for in the Wikipedia content guide. It could benefit from some editing, too. The Wikipedia editors took it down. A number of people including myself entered complaints that the removal appeared to be taking sides. I sure wish someone would re-write the page to clearly meet the Wikipedia neutrality requirement.
deepslope (19:52:32) :
The bottom line right now is not so much effective conservation and thriftiness, but to change arrogant and economically disastrous attitudes such as “we have to stop/combat/fight climate change”. Time is of the essence – less than nine months to the Copenhagen conference on the Kyoto succession process.
Yes, I do not think there are many rational people against conservation. Just against the hijacking of the earth project by the AGW ship of fools crew.
I think they are getting desperate to get measures agreed in Copenhagen because if the climate keeps cooling by itself for a few years they will not be able to fool the people. If they get strong measures in December, after a year they may be tooting victory over climate, and it will be hard for the average Joe to dispute it. If they loose Copenhagen, their game is lost, the way climate is cooling.
Only one house in my entire neighbourhood turned out their lights. Albeit only briefly. As it happens it was the “family” right next door to me! At precisely 8:25 PST they turned out all their lights and lit candles throughout their massive house. I went and turned on the garage lights (All 850 watts worth) which illuminates most of the area, and and was immediately accosted by them en masse. After a short lecture about my heresy from their titular head of household (the delinquent son) I countered that they were spewing massive amounts of carbon into the air by burning several dozen candles! “And besides”, I said, “I am merely making a statement by turning on all the lights”. (That caused much consternation. LOL) 10 minutes later I heard a loud crash next door that was followed by shouting. Another 2 minutes saw the lights go back on throughout their house. I imagine someone tripped over something in the dark… Possibly someone’s brain. I’ll bet that a vast number of the supporters couldn’t make the entire hour. Thats a long period for those whose attention span is impaired.
Had to add another comment in light of Human Achievement Hour. At 8:30 last night, after going around and turning on every light that would be visible from the outside, my kids (9 & 11) were laughing and carrying on like they’d each just had a bowl full of sugar. They were terribly excited about how every house on the street was completely dark except ours. So, while the sheep in the neighbourhood huddled around their greenhouse gas spewing candles and enjoyed their family time cold and alone in the dark, I took it as the perfect opportunity to teach my kids a little about this subject, which they normally don’t care a rats butt about.
We talked about the science. We talked about the politics of “climate change/global warming”. We talked about how science is not about building concensus, but is about testing hypotheses (thank you Philip Stott for such a straightforward definition – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtPDuZzfzhw&feature=related), and then going whichever way the evidence leads you. You don’t decide in advance what the results are going to be and then manipulate your data to show what you want it to show. And I played them the audio from Anthony’s 2008 ICCC presentation (http://www.heartland.org/bin/media/newyork08/audio/Monday/watts.mp3) and simultaneously showed them the slideshow from surfacestations.org (http://gallery.surfacestations.org/UCAR-slides/index.html).
About 9:15, we got a knock on the door by a young boy of about 8 years, asking us to turn off our lights for earth hour. My kids were literally in tears, laughing so hard. My wife was the polite one, explaining to the lad that we were well aware it was earth hour, and that we had turned all our lights on, on purpose to protest the ridiculousness of earth hour. She told him we didn’t believe the sky was falling, that the planet stopped warming 10 years ago, before he was even born, and that we weren’t going to be turn our lights off until earth hour was over.
First, I’d like to say shame on his parents for getting their son to do their dirty work. Although I didn’t see his parents outside with him (it was dark out there!!), I can’t imagine he was out alone. Why didn’t they have the guts to stand up for their own convictions? I know lots of people have made comments on WUWT about the indoctrination of kids into the “religion” of GW, but this was just downright cowardly, in my books.
What I find most interesting about this entire episode is that I’m seeing a fundamental shift in the idea of “activism.” Left wing activism has a long history (anti-war, anti-globalization, ban-the-bomb, even union picket lines). But now, the left has become the establishment. And this 45 year old, somewhat conservative old fart is teaching his kids to be activists, that they have the right to stand up for themselves as individuals. rather than march lockstep for the collective.
Earth Hour failed in New York?:
http://planetgore.nationalreview.com/post/?q=YjU3MzAwZGZmYjRjNTRkZWMxMjUzZjI2NGQ1NDFiNTQ=
Correction on the link to Anthony’s slideshow that corresponds to the audio presentation: http://gallery.surfacestations.org/watts-NYC-2008/index.html
Oops. I thought it was Friday night. That night we partied under bright indoor lights. Last night the weather turned bad in Wallowa County. The two of us were snuggled in bed watching TV and then the electricity went out at midnight. But we stayed nice and warm ;~).
Bill, I agree with you wholeheartedly! Some crafty person (perhaps from here on WUWT) really should write up a good page for it, then we will see if Wikipedia will post it. If the original was not well written, then I don’t blame them for not posting, but I gotta say, the way Wikipedia “un-posted”, didn’t strike me as real classy (IMHO).
Aron (01:33:47) :
“I suggest setting up something like a competition which offers a ridiculously huge prize to the person or team who can solve the energy supply problem.”
The solutions are here.
http://sowellslawblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/renewables-in-outer-continental-shelf.html
the bias is there for EH !
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooler_Heads_Coalition
this is in there but small in comparison.
Bill Abbott (02:21:34) :
To those decrying the lack Wikipedia coverage, “Yes, but…”- when I just checked, Wikipedia had 6 lines describing “Earth Hour 2009″ and 13 line of criticism, with links to CEI, etc. I’m not saying thats the right way to do it, but a look-see for HAH will come up with real content.
Squidly (22:42:57) : is correct
“…Wikipedia..is adamantly refusing to allow an entry for “Human Achievement Hour” (the opposite of Earth Hour).”
http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=AqQA2U9oQ_D6yvuDowTftydG2vAI?p=human+achievement+hour&fr=my-myy&toggle=1&cop=&ei=UTF-8
1 – 10 of 100,000,000 for human achievement hour (About) – 0.22 s |
http://michellemalkin.com/2009/03/28/leave-the-lights-on-celebrate-human-achievement-hour/
My daughter and her husband went to my home for preparing 500 burgers for a political event, so all lights remained switched on until 2:00 A.M. The city worked as always, and only two streets at the downtown were deprived of “nasty polluting” light.
Roger Sowell
Funnily enough i have just finshed writing a paper on wave and tidal power. Unfortunately the amount of wave power being generatyed is tiny-the big problems are the harshnes of the offshore environment, the nature of the wave devices and getting the power onshore to where it is needed. It is 10 yeatrs behind wind and is unfortunately as variable as wind in as much the waves tend to be best when its windiest. In the medium term waves and tidal will be great but that is ten years off unless we pour in resources.
Tonyb
There’s a part of me that is angry that the environmental version of Ramazan or Lent has been forced upon people without them being aware that they are being made to follow a New Age religion. That’s theocratic.
Roger
Sorry for all the spelling mistakes in my last post but I was rushing to get it finished as I was called for dinner 🙂
You might be interested in this link
http://www.emec.org.uk/
I am very interested in wave and tidal power but many are big projects and the latter medium in particular always giant ones- with all sorts of environmental and cost implications -so often take time to get up and running.
If they are to be genuine contenders we need to spend much more to get them from the mostly developmental stage into actual production, and to recognise there is scope for smal projects-such as several generating buoys moored just off shore which would be the equivalent of the oil industry’s nodding donkeys.
Tonyb
I should add that I had every intention of ignoring this latest AGW/CC marketing ploy, but when I saw my neighbours lights go out I couldn’t help myself…
(Insert “raspberry” sound effect here)
Tonyb
Re wave power machines: I have been following this area for many years, and what strikes me is the lack of knowledge of land-lubbers who design and build a device, install it, then are amazed and crestfallen when the sea obliterates their device. They should really talk to some men of the sea, particularly those who design and build offshore oil platforms. The ocean has power that landlubbers cannot fathom (no pun intended). As a life-long sailor and oil veteran myself, I have infinite respect for the sea. Sixty-foot waves driven by 70 mph winds are not unusual. And those are not the big ones.
For those interested in such things, offshore California (near Santa Barbara) there is an oil platform around 4 miles from land that has an undersea power cable to the shore. This is Platform Irene, currently owned by PXP. It is one of the items mentioned in the MMS proposed 5-year plan for renewable power in the Outer Continental Shelf. There is great interest in installing wave or wind power there, as the power cable already is in place.
I would like to read your paper when it is published.
never knew about it..
AKD (16:26:48) :
“I hope you sequestered that bunny carbon in your belly.”
Unfortunately when rabbit meets .270, the majority o the rabbit is atomized.. but one hare just lost its head, so yea its been sequestered! But these hippies loved it eh, got right into it and forgot all about earth hour 🙂 Ive managed to convert one to a skeptic too.
Roger
I think you have hit the nail on the head-artificial islands-such as rigid oil platforms- have the capability to utilise wind, wave, and tidal devices. In that way one of the three mediums will almost certainly be generating power at any one time. Whether that will overcome the power expenditure in building the platform in the first place is another thing!
The difficulty in getting power from a device, then onto the shore and into the grid should not be minimised. In the UK we are installing something called a wave hub that will take power to a close by connection into the National grid-but the number of places that can happen will be very small, thereby requiring new power lines with all that entails-cost and controversy.
Tonyb
TonyB,
There is much opposition in California to using existing offshore oil platforms for renewable power, because the enviros want the platforms removed once the oil is gone.
Also, to me it demonstrates how economic oil is, knowing that running a power line four miles from platform to shore was not even a minor consideration in whether or not to build the platform and drill for oil. As you wrote, it is a major consideration for the renewable energy forms, wave, wind, and tidal.
Still, there will be offshore wind and wave systems soon. Maybe not in California due to all the opposing stakeholders, I am guessing off the shore at Corpus Christi, Texas will be done first.
For all the enviros that may read this, Texas allows oil platforms, gas platforms, LNG import terminals, and their beaches are beautiful. Texas also does not have a $42 billion budget deficit, either, as California just had and likely will have again soon. There may just be a connection there.
Roger
The enviros can not have it all ways. For years they have opposed conventional power station and have despised nuclear. That leaves us with using the much more marginal sources of generation that come from renewables, of which wind is one.
To fulfill our own needs (the UK) we need tens of thousands of turbines-and hope the wind blows. Most will be on shore, as building off shore is still in its infancy. Our finest windy lansdcapes are our beautiful uplands. You don’t save the environment by trashing the countryside.
I don’t think people have any conception as to the amount of power a modern economy needs, and to replace it only with renewables-whilst laudable-has many problems, especially in the short to medium term.
I can’t see the objections to using suitably located off shore platforms as the base for an array of renewable devices.
IMHO it would do our legislators a lot of good for each be provided with a generator for a week and cut off their mains supply. They would come to realise the enormous amount of power needed for even the most simple task like boiling a kettle.
Personally I like electricity. I don’t want to sit in a cave knitting sheep whilst my children count their rock collection by the light of glow worms
Tonyb
Roger
One more thing I forgot.
Wave energy devices off shore have a possible benefit-protecting the shoreline against waves- Especially useful where there is vulnerable infrastructure. Where I live there is a railway line runs along a sea wall which since the day it was built in 1850 has been affected by waves. I suspect it is the only one in the country where the locals consult a tide table before the time table!
More to the point, such devices are also thought to be capable of affecting sediment, currents etc and would reduce the wave power that creates surf! That might be a consideration in California.
I think studies on both the above are few and far between so if you can just arrange say $10 million in research we can do a joint project 🙂
Tonyb
To the commentator who attributed the improvements to Ethiopia to “Live Aid”, etc.
I think, rather, nonsense. My Church, Colonial Church (refering to the American Colonial Period, as it is a Congregational church, sent several dozen teams to two valleys in Ethiopia. 4 other “well to do” church groups in the southwest suburbs of Minneapolis/St. Paul did the same. They physically dug 3000 wells (plenty of underground water in Ethiopia), brought the equipment to do it. Planted 2 million
trees (with help from the local population). By 1989, the rains had returned. The valleys were fertile again, and that effect washed over Ethiopia like the rain itself.
Maybe the “Live Aid” paid for some equipment. But the experience of the people of my church is THERE IS NOTHING LIKE BRINGING THE PEOPLE, EQUIPMENT AND MONEY DIRECTLY TO THE “USERS” to make sure it doesn’t make some corrupt “government” official wealthy while his people starve.