Inconvenient....Truth(?)

I finally had a chance to see Gore's Inconvenient Truth last week at the 89th Annual Phi Theta Kappa convention. Afterward, a forum (of sorts) aired ideas from the crowd. I was astonished that a bunch of honor students seemed to take Gore's word for everything. The few dissenting voices (including one moderator) were scorned. It could have been a byproduct of Gore's personal appearance and presentation earlier in the day (star power drives the masses). It could have been that the film has a very ominous tone and fair credibility.

Whatever the case, I became only more disconcerted. In my opinion, mass hysteria spawned from the film's screening did not make it beyond the doors of the room in which it was screened. Informal follow-up discussions were even more disconcerting. The students were proud of their recycling, highway clean up projects, and of Phi Theta Kappa's Operation Green--but they did not seem to get the point. Should the flaming prophets of global warming truly be correct, world culture would need much more reform than hybrid cars.

Those idealistic students are to be admired, for at least they are somewhat sensitized and they do at least make a token effort towards cleaning up the environment. Young people are not so jaded; they are more receptive to a message (if not downright gullible at times). Social change can and has at times been driven by youth.

However, to affect change, we must go deeper than band-aid service and pats on the back.

I probed for student opinion on the following, but my queries were considered comical:

1. So, what percentage of emissions are individually based versus industrially based?
2. Ice core records clock 1/2 million years of C02, what of the millions of years prior to that?
3. Would you give up cars, planes, plastic or air conditioning?
4. Other than sweat equity service projects, what can you do to address core problems?

No one seemed to notice the disparities...they claimed to be converts to Gore's environmental army, yet they were staying at a resort hotel that must have one hell of a power bill. They were all flying or driving to/from the conference; their very transport would be burning a great deal of fossil fuel. They spent over $1000 a head on their conference when the funds could have been directed toward affecting change through an advocacy group, etc...

I am not much different. I know and own my disparities, so do I think that makes me any better? Nah. At least it allows me to amuse myself. If I ever hop on the environmental bandwagon, I'll make sure it's not propelled by petroleum. I'll be wearing hand-crafted natural fibers, too. I'll be living in an intentional community that's self-sustaining. Above all, and with every issue, I'll be questioning 'authorities' like Al Gore.

If the Honorable (former) vice-president and one time 'next future president' had his heart in the right place, he would not charge for his presentation. True prophets are not interested in profits, after all. Instead, rumor has it he charged our academic honorary an honorarium of $175,000 for his 1/2 hr rap. In the film, he stated that he had given the speech worldwide well-over 1,000 times...what a lucrative sermon!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: when money's involved, sniff for sincerity.