False Environmentalism

With the release this year of the White House Climate Change Report, there was a lot of talk in the media about the topic of climate change and environmentalism.  There's the usual talk about the consequences of climate change and some of the ways we can start to slow down its effects (since honestly, at this point it's probably unavoidable).  In light of this, I again start to think of the massive green-washing that's taken place and the false environmentalism that many progressives seem to believe in.  While I'm normally a fairly optimistic person, I can't help but feel that if the most progressive among us can't make actual "green" life choices, we're pretty much SOL.

Want an example?  That Prius you're driving might be getting better gas mileage than the SUV someone else drives, but you're still likely driving it far too often.  About half of the trips people in metro areas make are less than three miles and over a quarter are less than one mile.  Yet autos are still by far the dominant mode of travel for these trips.  Let me emphasize - THIS IS INCREDIBLY UNNECESSARY.  One more time - if you're traveling under one mile, there's almost no reason to drive.  Only your biggest loads couldn't be carried by bike or foot.  Even if you're driving a Prius, it's still an unnecessary drive and a trip that could easily be avoided.  Not only are trips of this distance unnecessary, they're some of the worst environmentally.  Your car has yet to warm up and produces far more pollutants.  With some small changes in behavior, a huge number of the trips currently taken by automobile could be replaced by walking, biking, and transit.  Would this solve our climate problems?  Not by a long shot, but it would represent a significant change in the right direction and one that's currently not happening to a large enough extent.  Increases in mileage efficiency are great, but the most efficient car is still far less so than going by bike or foot.

The term RINO gets tossed around by Tea Party types to signify someone who is a Republican by title or name, but not in behavior and voting (at least by their standards).  But the opposite of this also exists - what I would term either the EINO or PINO (Environmentalist or Progressive In Name Only).  How can we expect conservatives, who don't even "believe" in climate change, to change their behavior when most progressives don't either.  While many out there are working hard to bring about real change at a personal and larger level, far too many of us aren't.  It's time to change that, bring about real, progressive change.  Get off your butt - walk or bike to those close destinations.  You'll feel better about yourself mentally and physically.  Plus you'll actually be taking cars (and their emissions) off the road.  Truly stand up (really, I mean it, get up and walk!) for what you believe in and make change happen.  Remember - don't be an EINO!

An Introduction

This blog will cover the three topics I currently care about most: bikes, politics, and science (the occasional post about music might appear too). I’m interested in each of these topics for different reasons, many of which I plan to cover in the following posts. These topics also overlap quite a bit from time to time, for better or worse, and I'll definitely discuss those overlaps.

When it comes to bikes, my primary interest lies in riding them. I won’t be reviewing the newest Dura Ace components – I can’t afford them and neither can most people who ride bikes and better qualified people than me already have it covered. As for politics – if you think President Obama’s an America-hating Muslim, you’re probably in the wrong place. I’m a liberal and believe in facts and well-reasoned arguments. Which brings me to science. Science gives us answers and information – evolution and climate change are real. While it is our responsibility to continuously question and think critically about what science tells us, it is also our responsibility to heed what we learn from science and plan for the future. Plus, science is just really cool.
So to sum up the focus of the following posts and draw this introduction to a close: get on your bike and ride, be knowledgeable about and involved in politics, and make an effort to understand science.