Green Side Talk

I could not resist the urge to talk about the issue of global warming, and the challenges and threats future generations face concerning this issue, hey for anyone interested in my 3d posts, Ill have to apologise, as Ill be diverting from time to time, to talk about issues like these Ill always come back to the 3d theme, although I'm sure you'd agree with me, the environment is of number 1 importance.
I remember seeing a documentary on the telly some years ago, about an ancient city, once inhabited, which was completely submerged beneath the surface of the sea. I mean, just looking at the underwater ruins astonished me, the scuba divers were swimming between pillars etc with the fish and other sea life which had made the ruins their home. The sea level had risen over the centuries to claim the city. This rise in the seas level may have been due to factors not attributed to mans consumption of fossil fuels, after all, in the history of the world, the discovery of fossil fuels, and industrialisation are relatively recent events.
Having said this, Id say 10 years ago I was not thinking about issues like this, then gradually I became aware that there seemed to be a growing sense of impending doom, from the constant media coverage of the problems. Any time you turned on the telly, it was mentioned. A lot of people do not worry as they reason that {" hey, by the time the world gets messed up to the stage where all the major cities in the world become engulfed by the sea, Id be long gone, so why worry?"}...but some people will always think like that, because that's the nature of the human mind. It is impossible for everyone to think the same, what we should hope for is that the majority would be able to take steps to reduce global emissions, by cutting their individual carbon footprints, and that should be enough to make a change.
A question I asked myself the other day was: If everyone in on the planet complied, both governments and individuals, would it be enough to make a change?. The answer in plain terms is simple : Yes. The next question was : would this change ever be enough? My answer was I was not sure. You see, I say this because the more you think about it, the more you realise that the existence of the planet earth as we know it today is the most amazing and mind boggling balancing act of the forces of nature we are aware of. If that balance , that equilibrium is upset, changes would take place, and the world will readjust. The readjustments could take place over centuries or Millennia, we are just along for a ride.
It is going to take a colossal effort to get the majority of people thinking in a green way, I can only suggest that it has to start with teaching the children. I did say earlier in the blog that I started driving a car not too long ago, and immediately felt guilty, what did I do to reduce the guilt, and the emissions :
(1) Cut down on and eventually stop using the car for short trips that were unnecessary, eg any round trip of between 1.5 to 2.0 miles is short in my books.
(2) Bought a bicycle and taught myself how to ride it. This I use for trips that are too long to walk, but still too short to employ the car on, any round trip of between 2.0 to 8.0 miles falls in this group. I'm probably the first guy in the world who learnt how to ride a bicycle after an automobile.
(3) I embarked on a self designed fitness program to increase my endurance levels, improve my cardiovascular fitness and heighten the quality and efficiency of my bodies ability to utilise oxygen. Hey let me cut out the fancy talk and make it simple. I started jogging.
The connection between exercise, and your carbon footprint is simple, the fitter you are, the more capable you become to handle tasks that you otherwise would have relied on the car for, like just popping round to the corner shop to but groceries or so.
(4) It took a long time to get the kids to realise that they should switch off the tap between brushing their teeth, but we're getting there.
(5) For every household, making use of the recycling facilities requires a big turn around in long term habits, and fixed lifestyles, but it can be fun if done so in an organised fashion. In our area people use local authority freely distributed recycling bags to separate recyclable waste into different categories for easy recycling. Its funny, the odd things that can touch a persons feelings. I do remember, when those bags were first introduced, some households regarded them as freebie bin liners, and started throwing away their normal household trash in them. In a strange way that did upset me.
Okay readers now that Ive expressed myself with a few of my online rantings, lets get back to talking 3d eh?