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Responding to the Gore critics
By jmb | March 2, 2007
Breitbart.com/AP: Group says Gore a Hypocrite Over Power Bill (thanks to Reagan for Rushmore for this link)
NewsOK.com: Roof of clay —Gore’s home not so green? (Editorial)
There are two things I want to address regarding Gore’s alleged hypocrisy.
1. The truth of a message does not depend on the truth of the messenger
The Declaration of Indepence contains this noble statement…
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
The Founding Fathers took a brave stand to write these words, but you can’t help but also hear the rank hypocrisy of the statement. Thomas Jefferson, the man who wrote these words owned slaves, as did many of the other Founders.
Yet, does the hypocrisy of the Founders negate the truth of the statement? I don’t think so.
If Al Gore is a hypocrite on this issue, does it negate the truth of his message? Not really. Hypocrisy might say something about the hypocrite but does not say anything about the message conveyed by the hypocrite.
2. Al Gore lives a “carbon-neutral” lifestyle, which is a step in the right direction.
Here’s an excerpt from the Breitbart article linked above…
. . . Gore spokeswoman Kalee Kreider said: “Sometimes when people don’t like the message, in this case that global warming is real, it’s convenient to attack the messenger.”
Kreider said Gore purchases enough energy from renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and methane gas to balance 100 percent of his electricity costs.
Gore, who owns homes in Carthage, Tenn., and in the Washington area, has said he leads a “carbon-neutral lifestyle.” To balance out other carbon emissions, the Gores invest money in projects to reduce energy consumption, Kreider said.
There is no doubt that Al Gore consumes a lot of resources through his travels and his lifestyle, but it sounds to me that he does a good job of making amends for it. Could he do better? Yes. Should he do better? I would argue that he should.
The truth is that the Global Climate Crisis is a big problem. I think we all should do what we can to support positive change, but the reality is that if we choose to live in this culture and participate in the economic, social and political systems of this country, we are going to be compromised. I know that I struggle to live right and do a lousy job of it. I’m no different than Gore on this regard, and I don’t know anyone who does live out their values 100% of the time without making mistakes.
For those interested, here some links about Carbon offsets…
ClimateCrisis.net: Calculate your impact (also see NativeEnergy.com (the company that Gore purchases his offsets for air travel from)
Topics: Ecology, Politics, Uncategorized |
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