Sebastian talks a little about Green Americans
One problem I think we’re going to have doing anything about global warming is the fact that most people, while they say they want to do something about it, don’t really want to when it gets down to details.
Like most quasi-socialist ideas, taking care of the Earth is just like taking care of the downtrodden – too much cost and effort to want to do it because you think it's right, so laws are made to make everyone do what you think they should. Most of the 'green wise' crap at the local stores are more expensive, and why is that?
If the resources are scarce, then the materials should be expensive. Recycled materials should be cheaper! Unless of course you factor in the energy costs of the actual recycling process.
The false 'green scare' is doing more to harm the environment than any right-wing, military complex, mega-corporation could dream of doing. People see 'green' and automatically assume it's beneficial when it's not. Renewable is great, but only when the raw materials become too hard to come by. The added effort in the recycling process often chews up more energy than virgin materials (think that Recycling Truck that picks up your Coke cans runs on fairy dandruff?).
As for "Global Warming", I'm not of the belief that we have nothing to do with it at all, I just don't believe we have that much control. What little bit we can do to change anything is pretty much the same as not pissing in the ocean and thinking we're keeping it clean.
Most people who buy into the whole scam have no concept of scale. They see the immediate world around them and extrapolate that to the entire surface of the Earth - a size their minds probably cannot even come close to comprehending accurately.
Whenever I have the misfortune of flying, I try to grasp the scale of what I see when 6 miles or so in the air. The sheer volume of air that I can see is incomprehensible and yet, if viewed on a map, wouldn't be much more than a dot. The deepest hole we've ever dug so far is 7 miles. While that sounds like a lot, comparatively, it ain't much more than a scratch.
We must be cautious with this planet. We cannot pollute and assume there are no consequences. But what we cannot do is pretend that we can exist without exploiting the natural resources. Economics will keep it in check by raising the costs once a certain resource becomes scarce and economics will reward those who do their best to replace what they take (recycle) and not destroy the land in their quests.
True conservation comes from understanding our needs, allowing the free market to accurately give the pricing signals it needs, and punishing those who ruin the land by not purchasing their products and driving them out of business or through the judicial system when their recklessness harms others.
Oh, and if you're reading this, you're killing Mother Gaia by using your computer!!!!!