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.”
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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!