Al Gore/solving global warming for years.

Discuss away....

The concensus of the mod team was that this should remain as a us news post for member discussion....

That is a good question. Other than write a book, make a movie and endlessly pontificate, I have no idea what the man has done.

Someone please educate me (if you can).

His accomplishments are really hard to measure. I think his main accomplishments are education and motivation and bringing people together to rise to the challenge. People are motivated to make changes through their awareness. His website says more about what he's doing if you care to check.

There is so much resistance to anything he has to say because people don't believe him, are more worried about other immediate problems like the economy, or are resistant to change, and of course people immediately dismiss him because he's a democrat.

It's not that he's a democrat. It's that he's a hypocrit:

Here’s the story:
MONDAY • FEBRUARY 26, 2007

A VERY INCONVINIENT TRUTH: POWER: GORE MANSION USES 20X AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD; CONSUMPTION INCREASE AFTER ‘TRUTH’:

The Tennessee Center for Policy Research, an independent, nonprofit and nonpartisan research organization committed to achieving a freer, more prosperous Tennessee through free market policy solutions, issued a press release late Monday:

Last night, Al Gore’s global-warming documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, collected an Oscar for best documentary feature, but the Tennessee Center for Policy Research has found that Gore deserves a gold statue for hypocrisy.

Gore’s mansion, [20-room, eight-bathroom] located in the posh Belle Meade area of Nashville, consumes more electricity every month than the average American household uses in an entire year, according to the Nashville Electric Service (NES).

In his documentary, the former Vice President calls on Americans to conserve energy by reducing electricity consumption at home.

The average household in America consumes 10,656 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, according to the Department of Energy. In 2006, Gore devoured nearly 221,000 kWh—more than 20 times the national average.

Last August alone, Gore burned through 22,619 kWh—guzzling more than twice the electricity in one month than an average American family uses in an entire year. As a result of his energy consumption, Gore’s average monthly electric bill topped $1,359.

Since the release of An Inconvenient Truth, Gore’s energy consumption has increased from an average of 16,200 kWh per month in 2005, to 18,400 kWh per month in 2006.

Gore’s extravagant energy use does not stop at his electric bill. Natural gas bills for Gore’s mansion and guest house averaged $1,080 per month last year.

“As the spokesman of choice for the global warming movement, Al Gore has to be willing to walk to walk, not just talk the talk, when it comes to home energy use,” said Tennessee Center for Policy Research President Drew Johnson.

In total, Gore paid nearly $30,000 in combined electricity and natural gas bills for his Nashville estate in 2006.”



OK. We need to do carbon footprints of lots of people—but how do you measure it? House/houses size, cars, private jets—what else should we include. And how do you offset these with hybrid cars, solar heating, wind turbines, etc.?

We need an algorithm folks. Got one out there?

full piece: http://www.businessweek.com/innovate...carbon_fo.html

His political party has nothing to do with it; as Jolie says, it's his hypocrisy. And, I might add, it's his hyperbole and how every "solution" he proposes seems to require both a lot of taxpayer dollars as well as a host of personal sacrifices by the rank-and-file. But, that's just my not-so-humble opinion.

Point well taken. As a wealthy man in a mansion his carbon imprint is definitely higher than the "average American household" as stated by those stats two years ago. Hopefully he's a little greener today in how he uses his power, but it still will be more than me and the "average American household". He also has the wrath of vegans because he fails to advocate that the meat industry leaves one of the largest carbon imprints there is.

Still, I can't dismiss all the good he's doing in keeping the issue out there.

Pay now or pay later. Marla, most of the "sacrifices" and yes we're going to have to sacrifice some for a better tomorrow is being asked of industry and governments, not the "rank and file", although there are things you can do that don't really cost too much....give up eating so much meat, buy efficient lights (which cost more last longer), and all that jazz.

The complete dismissal of all things Green as being wacko or too costly is not an option. In my not so humble opinion.

For Marla:

http://74.125.93.132/search?q=cache:...&ct=clnk&gl=us

Upset about FirstEnergy's pricey, hand-delivered light bulbs? You ain't seen nothing yet -- Kevin O'Brien

The question should not necessarily be "what has Al Gore done?", but what has America done? I think we've done a some, but I don't think we've risen to our potential.