Sunday, March 23, 2008
My reaction to "An Inconvenient Truth" with Al Gore
First of all, I am glad that I was given this assignment; otherwise I would have possibly never viewed this documentary. I remember hearing about it when it was first showed as part of the Sundance film festival, from friends who had later watched it in the theater or on DVD, and then when it received the academy award. I had honestly thought that a film about Al Gore talking about the environment would have been “boring”. I was wrong; this was not a boring film. Gore used words, images and concise facts to build a film that is fascinating and relentless to the cause.
It was very easy for me to forget that Al Gore had ever run for office or had been a politician. The film shows a personal, sometimes humorous, and passionate side of the man. Gore appears to be but a concerned citizen warning his fellow citizens of impending crisis. The documentary is based on a speech that Gore has been developing for many years. He stands before an audience of what appears to be college students, before a large screen that he uses to support his points with dramatic visuals. The visuals start with the famous “Earthrise” photograph, then later a series of space photographs that clearly show that glaciers and lakes are diminishing, shorelines are retreating, and the snows are melting.
A particularly significant part of the film for me was when the “debate” of Global Warming was discussed. "There is no controversy about these facts," he says in the film. "Out of 925 recent articles in peer-review scientific journals about global warming, there was no disagreement. Zero." And although there is "100 percent agreement" among scientists, a database search of newspaper and magazine articles shows that 57 percent question the fact of global warming, while 43 percent support it. These figures are the result, he says, of a disinformation campaign started in the 90s by the Big Oil industries to "reposition global warming as a debate." It is the same strategy used for years by the defenders of tobacco. Mr. Gore told the story of his father who was a smoker who died of lung cancer during times when the link between smoking and lung cancer was still "debatable". This comparison is profound. We still have time to react to the warnings, to save the “life” of the future.
I appreciate that Gore isn’t pessimistic about the situation. He isn’t presenting this as a political issue, but instead as a moral issue. Examples of what we can all do were given at the end of the film. We can switch to and encourage development of alternative energy sources (solar, tidal, wind). Move toward more energy efficient cars (especially electric and hybrid), and invest in more energy efficient appliances. We can vote to pour more money into public transit. The easiest of the recommendations was to save energy in our own houses. I did something funny after seeing this film; I went through my home, turning off all of the lights.
Below is the link to the official website for the documentary.
http://www.climatecrisis.net/
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2 comments:
After reading all that Betsy has posted and all the comments, I findy myself arguing and agreeing with all of them so I find it hard to take a specific stance on the subject. Therefore, I am just posting an interesting email I received of little facts that I believe each of us would appreciate considering the prices of gas these days.
TIPS ON PUMPING GAS
"Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening....your gallon is not exactly a gallon. In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role. A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business. But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps. When you're filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has three(3)stages:low, middle, and high. In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed thereby minimizing the vapors that are created while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapor. Those vapors are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're getting less worth for your money. One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL or HALF EMPTY. The reason for this is, the more gas you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine. Another reminder; if there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tank when you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up--most likely the gasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom." Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.
I applaud Al Gore's political bet. I think his call for a greener Earth deserves praise. His proposals are step in the right direction to a better world. However, the political will to accomplish those goals is lacking in the international arena. Sadly, it will take some wars, revolutions and worldwide catastrophe before his proposals are implemented. The generational and cultural challenges are great but the first step to solve a problem is to acknowledge there is a problem. Great post.
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