People trying. People making sacrifices for the betterment of our greater community. People who authentically care about global issues and are willing to do something about it.
I am sick of being "the lightbulb guy" - but that shit is still going on. People who passionately believe this stuff. And they will authentically get angry about it. They have no clue that their passions have been paid for by the manufacturers so they can make more money.
So this is a quick list of the stuff that the good guys are passionate for. Passions that are probably paid for by some industry. Passions that are ... well ... I suppose I want to say "misplaced"?
light bulbs
If you live in a cold climate, proper use of incandescent lights can save a thousand dollars per year. Incandescent light gives of an extremely efficient form of heat AND a high quality light that improves health. Ignoring the health benefits and focusing just on emergy savings: Incandescent beats LED or CFL.
https://permies.com/t/led
Of course, real energy solutions are with rocket mass heaters, etc.
native plants
Native plant enthusiasm has a massive push behind it from herbicide companies. Because this really isn't about the love of native plants, it is about selling herbicides to kill non-native plants.
https://permies.com/t/41008/dark-side-native-plant-enthusiasm
veganism
I wish to advocate for people to eat whatever makes them healthy. A lot of people get super healthy on a vegan diet. Which is great. And some people get really sick. I would like to ask folks to not shame people looking after their health.
The argument comes from how cow farts are causing climate change. So if we eat less beef, there will be less cow farts and that fixes everything. This sentiment comes from a massive collection of math errors and cherry picking data from beef from CAFOs.
I would argue (along with thousands of experts) that grass raised/finished organic beef actually sequesters so much carbon, that it actually is a strong candidate for a 100% solution to climate change.
I admire vegans for a lot of reasons. I do think that there are some huge climate footprint issues with veganism that are all solved by growing your own garden.
don't fly on a plane
I don't fly anymore, but it is for a different reason. And I have high hopes for a powerful new solution that will be coming in a year or two - but that's a story for a different day.
I think that the real concern is for one person on a private jet. So if you are buying a ticket for yourself, and you will be traveling with 100 other people on a commercial flight - I'm pretty sure you are fine.
Bottom line: $400 worth of plane ticket has about the same carbon footprint as $400 worth of gasoline. So if you are about to drive there and spend the same on gasoline, then the issue is really the whole adventure.
If you can cobble together a bunch of people in one rig to make the drive - that is much better. An EV would make it better still!
Rather than shaming people for the desire to travel, I like the idea of finding ways for deeper fulfillment in staying home.
stuff that makes a real, positive difference
growing your own food, and getting that food into your belly
rocket mass heaters
clothes lines and clothes drying racks
community living (still needs some deep solutions)
more
I am so frustrated by so many things being done by good people in the name of making things better for everybody. I suppose I have become quite the negative nelly. At the same time, I am trying to provide authentic solutions to all these issues. Solutions that add luxury or coin - instead of expense and sacrifice.
In my area, people burn brush piles in winter to mitigate future wild fires. So we all suck smoke in the winter because of this. And communities ban wood burning stoves to cut back on the smoke. So confused.
