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Monday, May 07, 2007

An Inconvenient Truth

4 months back, I watched this documentary by Al Gore (thinking all the while that if Bill Clinton had made the same presentation, it'd have more impact) about global warming. The US contributes the most to the global warming phenomenon. It is a shocking revelation to know how close to disaster we all are. What's more shattering is that most of our so-called modern day "conveniences" are actually causing nuisance to the world at large! Eg. hot water, indiscriminate use of electricity, paper towels, electronic devices etc...





Here's some of the things I've started doing after I saw this documentary -



1. Stopped using paper towels at home for household cleaning. I went back to the good old, Indian-style wash cloths. I am sure most of us in the US can do this.



2. Stopped using hot water in the washing machine to wash clothes. Except for really soiled clothes, I find that this works just as well.



3. Recycle! Switched to using paper bags for grocery wherever possible.



4. I am thinking of carrying a hand kerchief with me at all times. We use a lot of paper towels/facial tissues in public restrooms. It is horrifying how much paper I consume in one day to just wipe my hands! If we can just be disciplined enough to carry a hanky, it might save all the wastage of paper.



5. Switched to energy saving bulbs at home. They're not that expensive (in the US).



Looking back, I find that most things I followed in India seem to be eco-friendly - carrying hand kerchiefs, not buying too many canned products etc..



The good thing is that there are some simple things that you and I can do that will reduce global warming. I'd highly recommend that every conscientous citizen of the world watch this documentary! Spread the word wherever possible - amongst friends, family and those who care to listen. It could be as simple as writing a blog post or sending out an e-mail. The more people are aware, the more we can get some action out of them.



It is our Earth. Let's save it!

10 comments:

P B said...

category 7 varanu solren..yaru kekkara. mayan calender 2011 la mudiyudhu. Nalla enoy panniko!!

Unknown said...

Nice to see that a person finally accepts that India is much helpful in eliminating global warming. I had been saying this to most Indians and they just laugh at me... Ur daily tissue savings saves at least a couple of trees. Great work... keep it goin

Zeppelin said...

good post! reading this made me think of a few points..

*The A/C works better with the thermostat set at an optimum/comfortable temperature, instead of turning the switch ON and OFF whenever required. Lotsa people do this - all this does is increase energy bills, and maintenance costs.
*People should use the car pool/ride a bus/subway whenever possible instead of driving to work...heck if you are close by you could even bike to work.
*walk as much as possible to nearby stores, unless you need to a carry a mountain of groceries back home.
*simple things like using the computer - as much as possible, it is better to leave the machine on instead of shutting down and starting it back up every now and then.

and of course, there are many more...

psst.. on the side, as with many such 'truth revealing' movies, there are a lot of conspiracy theories around the "so-called-facts" presented in the documentary film - "An inconvenient truth" :)

Kishan said...

No doubt such small things will have a significant result in reducing the damage but this country really needs to focus on public transport as this will have a major impact. Almost 80% of the cars on the road have a single person in them...

The Doodler said...

PB, pralayathukku oru kappal thayaar panni vaingo..:)

Desiguy,
Hmm..Some other things we do in India contribute to environmental damage -- improper disposal of waste, pollution etc...But some things do seem to be helpful..:)

Zeppelin,
Agree with all other points except the computer one. It is highly recommended that everyone switch off their electronic devices when they're not using it!

The Doodler said...

Kishan,
In a country of great distances and fierce independence, I don't see that we'll be able to reduce the number of cars on the road. But we can definitely make fuel efficient vehicles and try carpooling etc..

SamY said...

paper saraswathi nu sonna siripeenge, adhe global warming nu oru fundae kudutha u'll decided to switch to water :p ... ennal ulagam ada :)

** I am thinking of carrying a hand kerchief with me at all times.

I heard that ppl scoff @ our fellows when they do that :-s

I saw this movie too ... since the IT outburst india has also started contributing plenty ... esp the habbit of ppl leaving gadgets on standby

u know what they say ... mankind will be its own undoing :)

earth can handle a lot of damage ... but we can't handle when it chooses to wreak its wrath ;)

Kay said...

I am a sane follower of South park (watch season 11 to know what i mean). i dont believe in Al gore or what he says. he is just a media goof up.

Maayaa said...

sooper subha.. i will try to do some of these

Anonymous said...

All said and done this are some of the people who talk about the doomsday. But the harm caused to the human beings in try to save the world from global warming they are opening us to more harmful dangers please look at the article and the episode by Glenn Beck.
http://www.glennbeck.com/realstory/05-01-07.shtml


E.g please see this
It's the same thing with these crappy fluorescent light bulbs that environmentalists are trying to get the entire world to switch to. I'm glad they last longer, but what about the fact that the mercury from those bulbs vaporizes and is absorbed into plants, animals and soil when they're thrown away? As soon as we all switch, mark my words: the environmental groups will be screaming about how we're poisoning the environment with mercury. Think I'm kidding? It's already happening in Canada!