Al Gore named hypocrite by conservative group

I thought this was funny...

Al Gore, a leading voice in the fight against global warming, is being called a hypocrite by a conservative group that claims his Nashville mansion uses too much electricity. (Read the whole AP article here)

So, let me get this straight. Al Gore builds a compelling case that global warming is an alarming problem that we are creating and we can solve (though now it's questionable whether we can solve it very quickly, if at all). Then, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences honors him with an Oscar (unpresidented in US Presidental political history? I think so). So, the best the conservative groups can do is call him a hypocrite?

The article goes on to say...

Gore participates in a utility program that sells blocks of "green power" for an extra $4 a month. Gore purchases 108 such blocks every month, covering 16,200 kilowatt-hours and helping subsidize renewable energy sources.... Gore has been purchasing the "green power" for $432 a month since November. The Gore home is also under renovation to add solar panels.

Sounds like sour grapes to me!

Comments

[Jared Wright]

Perhaps there is a touch of truth to the accusation. I doubt that any of the high-profile political advocates of environmentalism may not be the best of all advocates of the causes they preach because of the luxurious lifestyles that often accompany high-profile politics. But having said that, I think you might be on to something with the sour grapes inference. After all, it's Gore, not any of their group, who is being hailed as a champion of the cause. They're probably wishing they thought of it first...Who knows.

[Jared Wright]

Sorry, what I meant to say was that I doubt that any high profile politicians who advocate environmentalism ARE the best advocates...

That's what happens when my brain goes slower than my fingers do!

[Tompaul]

Like Al Gore, I consume more electricity at home because I work at home. (Thankfully my skylights keep the lights off most of the day.) And having lived both here in TN and elsewhere, I can say that this is one of the more expensive places to moderate one's house's temperature with electricty or natural gas. This bogus charge against Gore is, as usual, completely lacking in context.

[Gemelito Laluna]

Although the "hypocrisy" critiques are understandable and may be justifiable, it still does not invalidate the facts of the impending man-made environmental catastropy that are raised by Gore and other scientists. Just because the messenger may be vulnerable to criticism does not necessarily invlaide the message itself.

[Jared Wright]

That's really the bottom line isn't it? No matter how they work to undermine the message or the man through ad hominem attacks on Al Gore's character (whether valid or not), the facts speak for themselves.

[Tompaul]

I should also note that the "Green Power" option offered to Tennessee consumers, which Gore participates in, works thusly, from www.tva.gov/greenpowerswitch/green_resid.htm:

"You can buy green power in 150-kilowatt-hour blocks (about 12 percent of a typical household’s monthly use). Each block you buy will add $4 to your monthly power bill, and you can buy just one block or as many as you like. The green power you pay for will be added to TVA’s electric system as part of the Valley’s total power mix. Why does green power cost more? Because although renewable resources like sunlight and wind are free, the technology for capturing their energy is still more expensive than traditional power generation methods. By choosing to pay a little more for Green Power Switch, you help advance the technology and increase the amount of electricity generated from cleaner sources. The dollars from every block of green power you buy go directly back into Green Power Switch."

So a big chunk of that extra money the Gores are spending is actually helping make green power more affordable--for everyone--down the road. But again, his critics could care less about the facts. They just want to sow doubt about Gore before he should come back and accomplish anything else.

[Daniel Thomas MacInnes]

Great work poining out the Green Power options. I've heard the GOP talking points from my brother, but couldn't respond since I didn't know what the hell he was talking about. I'm told Al Gore has an energy company, you send him money every month, and "global warming" is solved! This is the right-wing spin.

So it's great to see the truth, and realize just how dishonest and craven the far right has become. Can't respond to the real science on global warming? Simple. Just smear Al Gore! Make stuff up, twist and distort reality, create fake talking points for the party loyal to memorize like good little lemmings. We're at war with Eastasia, we're at war with Eurasia.

[Moshe Liebowitz]

It's great to find a blog such as this that is connected to organizations sympathetic to the Sabbath. To come to a belief in the true Messiah often means giving up one's heritage to join Christendom on their day of worship. So thanks for this blog, and I hope to find others like it. Now, on this environmental stuff, nobody ever discusses that methane gas accounts for more global warming than automobiles. We don't need so many cows. Worldwide vegetarianism would reduce methane gas and help the environment. Curiously, given what I have studied about Seventh-Day Adventism, how does your belief in end time prophecy asynthesize with a concern over global warming? Do you people believe that global warming is part of your signs of the last days? And if so, isn't it inevitable and any efforts to stop it futile?