We’ve just had the Live Earth concerts to raise awareness of climate change, but some people are claiming that there is an element of hypocrisy in those who are leading the charge. Madonna has apparently invested in some environmentally-unfriendly companies. Sting has advertised Jaguar sports cars. Al Gore lives in a 20-room eight-bathroom home which consumes well above the average amount of power.
Almost everyone agrees that the overuse of energy is a bad thing, and many people are happy to demand that the government do something about it, but very few people are willing to start with themselves. We’re happy to attend a concert and make a bit of public noise on the subject, and then we sit back and congratulate ourselves on having done something.
We seem to have fallen into the delusion that by feeling sympathetic towards the environment we are actually doing something useful. It’s like thinking that you are helping to make poverty history simply by attending one of Bono’s concerts. If you want to make a difference in the world you have to actually do something yourself. Install a solar hot water service and solar electricity panels. Reduce your use of air conditioning and heating. It costs money and requires sacrifices, but if you’re not doing anything which requires sacrifices then you’re not doing anything at all.