Government Taking Major Action- Signing of the Civil Rights Bill

9/13 - This commentary by Mike Tidwell, author of The Ravaging Tide, is thought-provoking, with its comparison with the Civil Rights Movement. Many of us cringe when the To Do lists only slash maybe 1 % or so of our emissions. Of course, the government didn’t act on civil rights until the streets had thousands of people protesting and the conscience of the President was hit. - Editor
Enough with the bloody lightbulbs already! Strange but true: Energy-efficient light bulbs and hybrid cars are hurting our nation’s budding efforts to fight global warming. More precisely, every time an activist or politician hectors the public to voluntarily reach for a new bulb or spend extra on a Prius, ExxonMobil heaves a big sigh of relief.  But what’s the solution (to climate change)? Most media sidebars and web links quickly send us to that peppy and bright list we all know so well, one vaguely reminiscent of Better Homes and Gardens: “10 Things You Can Do to Save the Planet.” Standard steps include: change three light bulbs. Consider a hybrid car for your next purchase. Tell the kids to turn out the lights. Nice little gestures all, but are you kidding me? Does anyone think this is the answer?.  But what’s the solution (to climate change)? Most media sidebars and web links quickly send us to that peppy and bright list we all know so well, one vaguely reminiscent of Better Homes and Gardens: “10 Things You Can Do to Save the Planet.” Standard steps include: change three light bulbs. Consider a hybrid car for your next purchase. Tell the kids to turn out the lights. Nice little gestures all, but are you kidding me? Does anyone think this is the answer?Imagine if this had been the dominant response to racial segregation 50 years ago. Apartheid rules across much of our land and here are three things you can do: Take time, if possible, to feed three negroes who seek food at your lunch counter each month. Consider giving up your use of the N-word, or at least cut down. And avoid vacationing in states where National Guardsmen are needed to enroll blacks in public schools.

Obviously, there are times in history when moral, economic, and national-security wrongs are so huge that appeals for voluntary change are not only wildly insufficient but are themselves immoral as a dominant national response. By 1965 we had appropriately banned racial discrimination in housing, employment, voting, and other realms of national life.

Next time Aunt Betty goes to buy bulbs at the CVS, there should only be climate-friendly fluorescents for sale. When she shops for her next car, there should only be 50-mpg models across the lot, the sort even Detroit admits it can readily build. Demand that Congress step up the fight against global warming — visit www.climateemergency.org
http://grist.org/feature/2007/09/04/change_redux/index.html  AND http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/blog/?p=131