Carbon Shmarbon

Al Gore took a lot of heat this week over the excessive energy consumption at his house. Ok, sure, his house is four times larger than the average home built last year. But so what? Turn the lights off when you leave the room Al, sheesh.

Some would argue that it's ok for him to use so much power because he buys carbon credits. Bullshit I disagree. Carbon credits are an excuse. I drive a Prius, so does that mean I can heat my house to 80 degrees in the winter? Wait, my girlfriend rarely drives her car, so we're saving a boatload of carbon there, so can we heat to 90 degrees? How about if I buy my neighbor's 1973 Dodge Dart - the one that runs like it's got a two stroke engine; if I buy that and then leave it parked in my garage, can I then heat my house to 100 degrees? I'm still saving tons of carbon, right?

No, of course it's not right. The point isn't to live a carbon-neutral life (I just held my breath for 30 seconds - can I bump my heat up another degree?), it's to conserve energy, produce less pollution and waste - you know, save the planet. I save energy, you use extra energy, so you give me money and then somehow things are ok? That's capitalism, it's not conservation.

Nice try though..