Green Insight

Wow, an environmentalist actually asses that he and other "activist" can be self-righteous annoying pricks to people who don't share in their views or way of life:

Personally, the work we did at Walmart opened my eyes to my own arrogance that I believe is shared by many smart, well-intentioned environmentalists who can’t understand why “normal Americans” aren’t more engaged….be it in sustainability, global warming, or slow foods. We’re always talking, trying to convince others of the majesty of our points-of-view…and to most people this comes off as self-righteous, some say elitist, and dare I say…really annoying. I can’t tell you how many times I took part in training sessions in Indianapolis, Tampa, or Milwaukee with 50 Walmart associates, arms crossed thinking (and sometimes saying) “what are you hippie freaks from San Francisco trying to do….telling us what we should care about, what we should buy, how we should live our lives.”

That was their take, and honestly they were absolutely right. During our initial design process, we had brainstormed hundreds of clever ideas and mini campaigns. We were going to try and enlist them in this movement that was largely designed by “smart” greenies from San Francisco

I happen to think that even if the green house effect was man made there is very little we can do about it, since countries like China and India would still be polluting and progressing, while all we will be doing is impeding the American economy. I don't see any problem with encouraging people to turn off the lights or clean up their neighborhood (save money, looks better) or developing alternative fuel resources so we don't have to depend of the Middle East for our energy needs. But, I hate, hate, people pontificating and calling me lazy because I don't want change my light bulbs to florescent kind or have a low flow shower that I know doesn't work. Nice to see someone being a little bit self aware.