"Coal burns. Coal is momentary and coal is costly. There will be no more coal burned in this office today, is that quite clear, Mr. Cratchit?"It could be ripped out of a news story from today. Or from the President's most recent speech. I'm certainly not the first to note it, but Scrooge shared environmentalists' hatred of coal's use, saying
Scrooge: The original environmentalist? Environmentalists would probably sympathize with old Ebeneezer, that's for sure. Wearing warmer clothing in the winter and using less heat, and using a lot less air conditioning, would be right down both their alleys. Politics makes for strange bedfellows."These are garments, Mr. Cratchit. Garments were invented by the human race as a protection against the cold. Once purchased, they may be used indefinitely for the purpose for which they are intended."
So was Scrooge the first environmentalist? I'm not saying he was; I'm just saying.
I actually thought that last year when we watched the movie. On the other hand, when you already have your scarf and coat on, maybe a few more coals are okay? I personally can't move around work comfortably with my coat on and I can't focus when it's cold.
ReplyDeleteOr maybe I'm a bad environmentalist, whichever :)
Well, of course a few more coals are OK for you. I mean, you get to spread out the consquences (pollution) among all of the future "us", so of course you don't care about a few more - you don't suffer much if any of the consquences.
ReplyDeleteAnd there in lies the problem. One more coal might not matter much individually. But one more coal 1,000,000x, plus factor in the development of air conditioning and cheaper fuel delivery methods, and BAMMO, you have today.
There really isn't a middle ground. To get us where we allegedly need to be Carbon wise, we'd have to live at Cratchit-level consumption with pre-redemption Scroogian restrictions.
Environmentalists rarely want to admit it, but that is where we would be. And we'd probably still be emmitting too much Carbon based solely on population numbers.
And I think environmentalists would argue that your coat and focus seem small (to some) compared to the damage done to mother Earth. Comfort is at the heart of how we got where we are. I'm not objecting to it, just presenting their side.