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Post by Big on Mar 2, 2007 15:38:08 GMT -5
He wants to be President but he is waiting to see how far his Global Warming agenda can take him before he makes the final announcement.
He looks much more noble by pursuing Global Warming without announcing his run for President.
If he sees he is not popular enough to make a run, he will drop out, aka John Kerry.
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Post by Big on Mar 2, 2007 15:40:12 GMT -5
FWIW, I commend Gore for speaking on Global Warming. I just don't think his lifestyle is in line with someone concerned about Global Warming.
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Post by FloggingSully on Mar 2, 2007 16:01:38 GMT -5
"I just don't think his lifestyle is in line with someone concerned about Global Warming. "
Well, according to the article: "Gore, ... has said he leads a "carbon-neutral lifestyle." I'm not sure he could get too much more in line with someone concerned about global warming.
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Post by satiev1 on Mar 2, 2007 16:02:52 GMT -5
It's not Gore's fault he's rich. What is he supposed to do? Live in a studio? Just because he lives in a mansion dosen't mean he dosen't care about the environment.
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Post by Big on Mar 2, 2007 16:08:36 GMT -5
Yeah, and Hastert was caught switching from a hydrogen powered vehicle he drove to an energy debate meeting and into a gas guzzling SUV last year. Those politicians I tell you!
I don't see anything wrong with Gore living in a small house for the remainder of his hurrah in confronting Global warming.
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Post by Flop the Nuts on Mar 2, 2007 16:16:24 GMT -5
It's not Gore's fault he's rich. What is he supposed to do? Live in a studio? Just because he lives in a mansion dosen't mean he dosen't care about the environment. Does he keep all of his money in gold bars or something? Does he need all of the room to store his money? He could live in a studio if he wanted to. If I had his money, I wouldn't, but I also wouldn't be preening on about energy conservation. I have a problem with the whole theory behind carbon offsets because I think it's just a way to assuage an energy whore's guilt. Assume he spends $1,000 a month on electricity from non-renewable sources. He writes a check for $1,000, contributes it to a renewable energy source firm, and and calls it even - he is now carbon neutral. He could cut his electric consumption to the point where he only has a $500 bill, but he could still cut a check for $1,000 and be $500 carbon negative (or positive however you want to look at it). It's like a mother or father smoking around their kid, but contributing to the Cancer Society. The contribution doesn't change the fact that they are smoking around their kid. |
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Post by FloggingSully on Mar 2, 2007 16:26:19 GMT -5
"Assume he spends $1,000 a month on electricity from non-renewable sources. He writes a check for $1,000, contributes it to a renewable energy source firm, and and calls it even"
-He isn't contributing money to a renewable energy source firm to off set his electric bill, he is purchasing renewable energy, if his house uses 1 million watts and he then buys 1 million watts of solar energy, the solar electricity powers something which now doesn't have to run on non-renewable energy. He makes contributions to off set "other" emmissions (according the article) I'm not sure what that entails as the article doesn't explain.
"He could cut his electric consumption to the point where he only has a $500 bill, but he could still cut a check for $1,000 and be $500 carbon negative (or positive however you want to look at it)."
-Yes he could
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Post by Flop the Nuts on Mar 2, 2007 16:55:57 GMT -5
I agree that it's difficult to tell exactly what he is doing for an offset, but it is a legitimate offset within the environmental community to contribute "x" dollars to firms (profit and non-profit) that are doing research on renewable energy.
Anyway, I guess my position is well known by now, I'll move on.
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Post by Big on Mar 2, 2007 17:17:16 GMT -5
What Gore is basically doing is using his money to buy an idea that he is doing something for environment while his own life is not impacted.
He is not willing to sacrifice an inch in his life for a good cause. As long as he uses even an ounce of gas, he is NOT carbon neutral!
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Post by Flop the Nuts on Mar 2, 2007 18:12:18 GMT -5
What Gore is basically doing is using his money to buy an idea that he is doing something for environment while his own life is not impacted. He is not willing to sacrifice an inch in his life for a good cause. As long as he uses even an ounce of gas, he is NOT carbon neutral! Big, I agree with you 100%. You and I actually do agree on things, occasionally. |
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Post by bob1974 on Mar 3, 2007 0:24:43 GMT -5
There are plenty of hypocrits in politics. Gore is just the one who was outed most recently. John Edwards plays the politics of envy with his "two Americas" schtick while living in a mega mansion with an indoor basketball court. There are numerous Republicans who preach about morality while cheating on their third wife.
Even though I think he is a little "out there", I have to give credit to actor Ed Begley Jr. He is a big environmental activist who lives the lifestyle he preaches, even though he could afford to follow Gore's example.
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Post by Big on Mar 3, 2007 0:33:57 GMT -5
John Edwards earned his money though, no?
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Post by vegeta on Mar 3, 2007 9:46:24 GMT -5
What Gore is basically doing is using his money to buy an idea that he is doing something for environment while his own life is not impacted. He is not willing to sacrifice an inch in his life for a good cause. As long as he uses even an ounce of gas, he is NOT carbon neutral! Thats like saying that someone who rides a bike to work 3 days a week to conserve gas and encourages others to conserve where they can is being a hypocrite because he or she does not give up their car completely. Why should he live in a mansion when he could down grade to a smaller house. Then people would say that he needs to live in a studio because he is using energy. Maybe we should expect the guy to live in a grass hut. He should give up his private jet to go across the country to be at a meeting or summit and take a passenger jet. Oh wait that uses fuel too and we know he can not drive because that uses gas. Ah, he should bike from meeting to meeting. Yeah, he would accomplish a lot that way. We can't compair his lifestyle to the life style of middle class america. He preeches that everyone should play a role in doing their part; is anyone denying that he is taking steps to do his part. Lets see the comparison of energy consumption and output from his home to that of comparible homes with people of the same income. That would be a fair comparison. Big- if this is the same story that you saw- abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=nation_world&id=5072659It also mentions that the energy consumption for his home has gone down from 2005 to 2006. It also mentions the conservative think tank (the Johnson group) that did the story. So of course we will see the story through a red lense. I just think that its silly to lable someone who is clearly making steps to lower his energy use as a hypocrite for encouraging others to do so. |
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Post by Big on Mar 3, 2007 11:09:42 GMT -5
It wouldn't hurt Gore to ride a bicycle.
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Post by satiev1 on Mar 3, 2007 11:24:12 GMT -5
Gore is just living the American dream. His status and wealth give him special privelages that you and me don't have. In other words, even if he preaches global warming, he dosen't have to live like the average american. The argument that Gore is supposed to live in a smaller house and travel by coach is like saying all politicans and all world leaders should stop buying big houses and live like the average american.What constitutes a smaller mansion? If he was to get a smaller mansion, he would still be criticized for living in a bigger house. This isn't communism. He can spend his money as he pleases because he's earned the right to. How many americans live in mansions and how many live in small houses or apartments? World leaders who preach to end poverty live in mansions. Are they hypocrites too? So I guess everyone is a hyprocrite. You guys are all living in a fantasty world.
In America, there's the politicans and the wealthy, and then everyone else. It's sad you guys haven't realized this yet.
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