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April 25, 2007Stow the Summer Concerts, Save the World - UPDATEDSheryl Crow’s plea for all of us to save the toilet paper, save the world has been walked back as a “joke” (Ms. Crow, go join John Kerry over in that corner, please). Crow is just glad that her nonsense has people “talking about global warming,” because heaven knowns, no one was talking about it before she opened her yap. Look, if we’re going to be urged - relentlessly - to accept that global warming is “the most important moral, ethical, spiritual and political issue humankind has ever faced”, the unrelenting “crisis” of our time, if it’s as urgent a matter as these preening moralists insist it is, then we need to explore concrete, measurable means of conservation that - unlike “sparing the square” - may actually matter. Let’s start with Sheryl Crow’s medium, the rock concert, shall we? I recall U2’s fun, splendidly ironic “Zoo TV” Tour of the early 1990’s. The band spent over 18 months traveling the globe in support of their fantastic album, “Achtung, Baby”, hitting all the stadiums and large venues on every continent. 157 shows. The tour boasted:
And that was for every show. That’s a pretty impressive bit of consumption, but let’s add into it the luxury jets (and non-luxurious staff planes) that carted U2 and their handlers, techies, roadies, belly-dancers, make-up, costumers, etc all around. Add to it the air-conditioning at the indoor venues. Add into it the trains, planes and automobiles used to transport hundreds of thousands of people to the shows. Add to it the klieg lights used for every televised interview, the trees killed to print every magazine promo and to print the $30.00 posters sold at all 157 shows. And consider if you will the souvenir teeshirts - probably stitched together in some hellish Indonesian sweatshop - that weren’t even made out of bamboo fiber! Good heavens, if only U2 had not run the ZooTV tour, the planet may not be in its death throes, today! If only, when Al Gore was writing Earth in the Balance he had alerted us to this sort of hoggish consumption (by these supporters of the Clinton/Gore campaign) and what it could mean for the planet, the icecaps wouldn’t be melting in 2007! Now, I grant you, Sheryl Crow is unlikely to mount such a tour, but that noted environmentalist Sting will be keening with The Police through at least 40 venues in North America and who knows where else, worldwide. Already the tour rehearsals are being taped and disseminated - lots of energy being used up - and the posters are being printed. The spotlights, amps, mics etc are being loaded into 18 wheelers. So is all the bottled water that performers, crew and patrons will consume. All of these artists will be covered by deathless television news and infotainment crews, who drive their own trucks, use their own lights. The rockers will be joined in their “awareness event” by people like Leonardo DiCaprio, who makes his living in a medium where klieg lights burn by the hour, limos and trucks shuttle important people and their equipment to-and-fro, enormous amounts of paper and tape are expended for promotion (which also involves lots of air-travel - not commercial, for our little princes and princesses, but private). DiCaprio will tell us to take mass-transportation whenever possible while jetting about guilt-free; he’ll be using his Academy-Award Presenter Gift, free carbon-offsets as plenary indulgences, so he’s green. Somewhere in the world a tree will be planted. Am I wrong, btw, or is film petroleum-based? When summer blockbuster films are being made, doesn’t Hollywood create huge explosions, sending all sorts of pollutants into the air? Has anyone ever bothered to calculate just how much damage the film industry inflicts on the environment when they spray fake snow, or take leaves off of trees to “create” winter? [UPDATE: In fact such a study does exist, and it's not very flattering to Hollywood - admin] Getting back to the rockers, I doubt The Police will consume quite as much energy as U2 did in 1992-93, but ZooTV took place at the beginning of the Eight Years Perfection and the Vacation From History. We were all having so much fun that even Al Gore, wasn’t complaining about what a glorious sort of energy-feasting gluttony was being perpetrated by basically all of the rock bands, as big screens and pyrotechnics became ubiquitous -and not just for concerts, but for political events as well. In these Bushian days, of course, we are living in the very worst era in the history of the world, and we’re being told that in thirty years our children’s planet will die unless we unquestioningly accept the unproven scientific premise that “human activity is warming the planet and this is bad…(but you can save the planet by buying these carbon offsets I’m selling with every copy of Earth in the Balance…”) If things are as dire as Gore and his minions insist, then I say “stow the concerts, save the world.” Just for one summer, cancel it all! Of course, that means less fun for all of us, but we should not be having fun when the world is going to end in thirty years, anyway. Canceling summer entertainment in all of its forms will deprive artists and corporations of hundreds of millions of dollars, and those economic losses will trickle down everywhere - to the stores, the restaurants, the hotels, the airlines…the loss of income will affect employment numbers, it will be felt by the vendors selling wares at concerts and even by the Indonesian sweatshops no longer engaged to create $40.00 tee shirts. You will feel the pinch, somehow, and so will I. But a “crisis” situation demands a “crisis” response, and if we suffer a little, at least we all suffer together. But meanwhile, an entertainment-free summer may have conserved so much energy, that we might just be able to defeat the “man-made catastrophe” of global warming, in its entirety. And wouldn’t that just be something? C’mon, now - wouldn’t it all be worth it? If Al, Sheryl and Sting and Bono (and I’m a fan) and Leo are willing to do their parts and go away for a few months - for just a few months - in order to save the world, well…I’ll do my part and give them up! UPDATE: Excellent snark by Lewis Black on celebrity hypocrisy via Instapundit. More here. Related: http://theanchoressonline.com/2007/04/25/stow-the-summer-concerts-save-the-world/trackback/ 26 Responses to “Stow the Summer Concerts, Save the World - UPDATED” |
April 25th, 2007 at 2:50 pm
Brilliant, beloved Anchoress, absolutely brilliant!
If there was a Pulitzer for blogging, this post alone would win it for you!
April 25th, 2007 at 4:55 pm
I second the first comment. This is absolutely the most keen analysis of global warming hypocrisy.
April 25th, 2007 at 4:59 pm
Anchoress, you came off the sick bed with a delicious vengeance didn’t you? You made my day!
April 25th, 2007 at 5:10 pm
I really hope this post means you’re on the up-swing, A. It sure sounds like it :).
April 25th, 2007 at 5:20 pm
Dear Anchoress you should publish “Best of the Anchoress blogs.” You really have an extraordinary gift of talent and “inspiration.” Hey, any chance you will be applying to take over for Rosie on the View? ABC couldn’t pay you enough for what you would do for ratings. Go for it Anchoress, it’s ok if you go in disguise, all the more interesting! Glad you are feeling good enough to write today
Kia
April 25th, 2007 at 7:12 pm
[...] remained only for the Anchoress, safely returned from a lengthy illness, to expose the fact the Ms. Crow should do a little housekeeping in her own industry before she starts making sanitary [...]
April 25th, 2007 at 9:31 pm
Golly, I have to agree with all of the above, especially poster #5!!! A book of The Best of the Anchoress, plus having you take over on The View. . .even I would watch it then!!! Thanks for one heck of a post.
April 25th, 2007 at 10:26 pm
But my dear Anchoress, you miss the point completely. Global warming, global cooling, energy consumption, __________(insert your pet cause here) is all YOUR FAULT!!!! It’s your fault; it’s my fault, but it most certainly is not their fault. Sheesh. Would you pluueese just close your eyes, turn off your brain, and get on the modern American bandwagon??? Meekly, contritely, and full of self-loathing please……:)
April 25th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
What an extraordinary post, Dear Anchoress! You put all of these hyprocrites to shame. I was trying to find the news article I read just a couple of days ago where a study was done by the universities in So. Calif. on pollution and found that the second worst polluter in the area was Hollywood and the Film and Entertainment industry. They were right behind the big oil companies that we always hear such terrible things about. Of course, now the site has taken the article out of their archives. Not only were they polluting the atmosphere but the article made a point of how much waste there is when they could be doing some recycling. I guess some studios are beginning to do just that.
But they sure are quick to point out everyone else’s shortcomings. Do you ever think that this phenomenon is based on a whole lot of guilt? And since many of them have no belief in God, or a very tenuous one at best, they cannot just thank Him for their good fortune and talents. So they lask out at everyone else and then make some pitiful gesture which assuages their conscience and allows them to get on with their selfish life. It’s so terribly sad to me when they could have the riches of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Thank you and I’m so glad you seem to be feeling better. God bless.
April 25th, 2007 at 11:42 pm
Thanks Berean, found the article here.
April 26th, 2007 at 7:21 am
I don’t know how CD’s are made
Now you do.
April 26th, 2007 at 7:24 am
CD’s are essentially a thin layer of metal sandwiched between two layers of transparent plastic. So they’re a mostly petroleum-based product.
Makes you start to understand why the music industry gets so holier-than-thou about global warming. It’s a natural human response to guilty feelings — and they’re utterly dependent on all those nasty, non-Eco-Friendly(TM) things for their livelihood. No wonder they end up confused.
We need more Christians in Hollywood and the music industry being salt and light — because those industries desperately need it.
April 26th, 2007 at 9:45 am
Spot on, Anchoress! This reminds me of Charity Benefits in NYC (where I live), which I attend on a regular basis. I am always wondering actually how much of the 150/200/500 dollars I pay actually goes to saving the children/planet/lepers/tigers. But somehow we all feel like we’ve done something “good” because we turned up for a fancy dinner/cocktail party for a cause.
April 26th, 2007 at 10:00 am
Two Birds, One Stone:…
Some advice for Sheryl Crow to save the planet, “stow the summer concerts.” (The Anchoress)……
April 26th, 2007 at 10:02 am
Every time I see these folks on TV, playing their instruments, singing their songs, making these childish statements, I wonder how they’d do if they had to make their own instruments? I doubt they know what goes into the making of an electric guitar or a drum set. Or even a guitar string! I’d bet they have no idea what the process is to make microphones, pick-ups, speakers, or lighting systems.
Yet, they prance on stage, wearing their fancy glasses, their designer costumes, playing their expensive instruments, and talk about doing things that would make it impossible for them to perform at all.
Silly, unserious children. Yeesh!
April 26th, 2007 at 11:40 am
[...] my good friend The Anchoress has said it all ever so much better than can. Go. Read. posted by kimschBookmark [...]
April 26th, 2007 at 9:09 pm
As a rebuttal to Al Gore’s concert, I thought I’d hold one of my own the same evening. It won’t go 24 hours, just an hour and a half or so. I’ll sit out on my back porch and pick and grin with my trusty six string. The only aim of the concert will be the enjoyment of being alive. Maybe I’ll light a little bonfire. You’re all invited. Bring your instruments if you got them. (I know “Ghost Riders” by heart.)
April 27th, 2007 at 5:15 am
Harry Reid through history…
See the proud tradition of Harry Reid through the prism of American conflicts: Valley Forge, Tippecanoe, etc….
April 27th, 2007 at 10:27 am
Historically, many societies have had “sumptuary laws,” which were intended to prevent people from consumption at a level unsuitable to their class. Certain clothing and jewelry, for example, might be reserved only to nobility of a certain rank.
It’s pretty clear that–consciously or not–many “environmental” elitists have something in mind that would effectively be like sumptuary laws. If there are limitations on the use of incandescent light bulbs, you can bet there will be an exceptions process for the well-connected. If the anti-nuclear and anti-coal policies of someone like John Edwards succeed in reducing the electrical grid to chaos, you can bet *his* house will be powered by a diesel generator.
April 27th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
You have been tagged for the Thinking Blogger Award
April 27th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
Thinking Blogger Award…
I have been tagged by DeMediacritic with the Thinking Blogger Award. I am honored to think that someone would even think of my blog for this honorable award. It is hard to just come up with 5 blogs that make…
April 27th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
[...] Bands can save the Planet! April 27, 2007 at 5:08 pm | In Uncategorized | The anchoress hits it out of the park again. She suggests that all Rock tours stop immediately to save the planet [...]
April 28th, 2007 at 8:12 pm
Sister Anchoress!
You are also ranked high in the Blogger’s Choice Awards running for “Best Religion Blog”. Presently, you need five more votes to run past an atheistic, anti-religion blog in that category. Catholic blogs are predominant there.
http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/categories/14?page=2
Last day of voting is May 22.
April 29th, 2007 at 11:42 am
[...] The Anchoress has a simple solution to the whole Global Warming Crisis. Add the theatres showing the next [...]
April 30th, 2007 at 9:20 am
[...] by demolition65 in Liberal Hypocrisy, Global Warming, Idiots, Humor. trackback . . .again from the Anchoress. Look, if we’re going to be urged - relentlessly - to accept that global warming is “the most [...]
May 1st, 2007 at 6:00 pm
[...] Anchoress is back! Writing about GW hoohah, Tenet’s convenient justifications, and everyone’s favorite GasBag. Pull up a chair and [...]