Every successful social movement has its defining images. Think of the civil rights movement, and the photos of protesters being attacked by police dogs and pummeled by high-pressure fire hoses. Or the Vietnam anti-war movement, and the video of body bags being beamed back to America's living rooms. Even environmentalism has its iconic images, like Cleveland's heavily polluted Cuyahoga River catching fire in the 1960s, smog wreathing Los Angeles's skyline during the next decade and even the stark hole in the ozone over Antarctica. To help galvanize public support — especially around a complex issue — the right picture really can be worth a thousand words.
Story Continues Below Ad ↓When it comes to climate change, however, that picture hasn't yet been found. Hurricane Katrina's destruction, drowning polar bears, spreading deserts — these images are powerful in their own right, but they're not the sorts of pictures that can drive a movement. Precisely because global warming is so, well, global, potentially touching just about every corner of the world and every aspect of our lives, encapsulating it in a single image has proven elusive. You can't connect climate change to a natural disaster as simply as you can connect a napalm bomb, a running child and the war in Vietnam. That's made building and sustaining a movement against global warming so challenging. We can't see it yet, not quite — and we can't see its victims. But by the time we can, it will be too late.
Actually, Bryan, the Global Warming movement has found its "defining image" in the form of this video from Sydney, Australia showing what happened there when Earth Hour came. And what happened was utterly absurd. Yeah, most of the lights on a designated bridge were turned out but the lighted scene of Sydney in the background remained utterly unchanged. Also a boat lit only by blue neon type lights in the harbor floated by with, you guessed it, the Sydney lights in the background still on. The rest of the video is similarly laughable. You just have to watch it to appreciate the unintended humor. Even Walsh suspected that folks will laugh at the idea of Earth Hour:
Earth Hour itself is easy to make fun of — skeptics will say that turning out the lights won't make but a light ding in our carbon emissions, and critics will claim it proves that environmentalists really do want to send us straight to the dark ages. The Competitive Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, is holding a counter-protest during the same time period called Celebrate Human Achievement Hour, which will "salute the people who keep the lights on and produce the energy that helps make human achievement possible."
Since Walsh wrote those words before the Earth Hour video was recorded, he had no idea of just how easy it would be to make fun of that event. Images of feel-good types lamely turning off lights in a very limited way when all around them, the real world continued shining on, completely oblivious to something called "Earth Hour."
UPDATE: North Korea celebrates Earth Hour 24/7.
—P.J. Gladnick is a freelance writer and creator of the DUmmie FUnnies blog.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Lights Out at CNN?
March 28, 2009 - 21:08 ET by allanfI noticed that CNN, Times sister in leftism did not turn its lights out and go off air for this sacred ritual.
allanf... LOL...good
March 28, 2009 - 21:18 ET by bigtimerallanf...
LOL...good point....
...another perfect example of 'Do as I Say, Not as I Do' rhetoric.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
What Will Today's Ann Curry Do?
March 28, 2009 - 21:31 ET by allanfI had rather hoped that NBC's "queen of green", Ann Curry would show her commitment to environmental causes by resigning from NBC over its refusal to stop broadcasting during the "sacred hour".
Alas, the days of Fred Friendly are long gone.
Fight Global Warming by stopping Solar Cycles
March 28, 2009 - 21:10 ET by PopularTechUnstoppable Solar Cycles (Video) (10min)
We must unify around our one great cause of stopping the sun from going through solar cycles and stopping our planet from wobbling on it's axis and changing it's orbit every 100,000 years or so.
Milankovitch Cycles (Video) (3min)
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is Not Pollution
Not only did I not participate
March 28, 2009 - 21:10 ET by Deskpilotbut I celbrated in my own COUNTER protest to this lefty lunacy:
I crawled into th attic, rescused my Christmas light, and strung out 10 x 100 light strings to outline the property border of my house in DELAWARE, (Home of Joe).
I started my first of 3 loads of laundry to be running during that special hour..
While doing the laundry, I watched the VILL/PITT game on the laptop. while the other half watched the same game while IRONG for the first time in months. (I forgot how good a shirt looks when it's been sprayed and starched)
Suffice to say, EVERY incandescant bulb in the house was in. I gave teh fluorescent ones the night off.
Way to celebrate diversity.
If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you can read it in English, You're welcome - Deskpilot, AM(H)1 (AW), USN (Ret)
You will make Olbermang's
March 28, 2009 - 22:50 ET by SRPwrdYou will make Olbermang's WORST(best) PERSON IN THE WORLD tonight then I guess.
"two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century" - PreBO
Along with keeping all the
March 29, 2009 - 08:39 ET by BuxomAnnieMcGreggorAlong with keeping all the lights on, I cleaned my self-cleaning oven (you know how hot that baby gets) and fed my family "Mexican" for dinner.... raising the methane to unatural levels. Just doing my part!
"We retort..... you decide."
When NBC goes black for an
March 28, 2009 - 21:11 ET by d1carterWhen NBC goes black for an hour, I 'll cut off one night light...
Villanova Pitt more important
March 28, 2009 - 21:11 ET by Radical1979Maybe they should have picked a better time, like 3 a.m. Sunday night for lights out. I was to busy watching the Villanova Pitt game to think about turning out the lights. Not that I would have, I figure if Obama can heat the Oval Office to 80 degrees I can keep my lights on.
rad - I think Axelrod said it was like a sauna in the Oval
March 28, 2009 - 21:29 ET by Cape ConservativeOffice - because he grew up in Hawaii (of course we have to forget all those cold days at Harvard/Columbia & years in Chi-town!!!)
It is no dishonor to be in a minority in the cause of liberty and virtue. ~ Sam Adams
Sure I celebrated
March 28, 2009 - 21:12 ET by BlondeTurned my a.c. on.
Feels great!
I hope he fails, too.
Blonde,
March 28, 2009 - 21:53 ET by DEVILDOCMOMHow does this make you feel, I had the heat on this AM and the AC in the afternoon...does that balance out to a participation in the fiasco? BTW, the big moment has not hit yet in Tucson.
DD Mom
March 28, 2009 - 23:11 ET by BlondeSome days are like that, LOL.
Good stuff, tho....I miss Arizona.
I hope he fails, too.
The weather
March 29, 2009 - 22:27 ET by DEVILDOCMOMis great, especially now...just don't ask me in July...lol
Darn! I should have taken a time/date recorded picture
March 28, 2009 - 21:14 ET by Cape Conservativeof our brilliantly lit home - I could have emailed it to Mr. Energy Hog himself, Algore! He uses more energy in one month than we do in ten years!!!! Sorry, I'm not buying his phony-baloney!
Oops, I forgot, he pays himself through his offset companies so he gets to do whatever he pleases - fly here - fly there - build mansion - lots of vehicles
Mr. DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO!
It is no dishonor to be in a minority in the cause of liberty and virtue. ~ Sam Adams
I think I will follow
March 28, 2009 - 21:28 ET by DEVILDOCMOMthe Celebrate Human Achievement Hour and relax with my husband and watch a movie on TV since the two of us (and our son and his girlfriend) "help make human achievement possible". As many lights as possible will be on in our house.
BTW, has anyone else seen the obama "children's corp" ads? The one which has our children in red jackets making "change"? I caught one out of the corner of my eye while making dinner...they sure do not waste any time. If this has been covered in other posts, sorry I missed them.
yikes! I haven't seen the ads - sounds HORRIBLE!!!
March 28, 2009 - 21:33 ET by Cape ConservativeTime to run around and turn off all the lights and call it a day...enjoy your movie ;-)
It is no dishonor to be in a minority in the cause of liberty and virtue. ~ Sam Adams
Hey, hi DDM... Long time
March 28, 2009 - 21:52 ET by bigtimerHey, hi DDM...
Long time no see, good to see you gal.
....anyway, I haven't caught those ads...been busy most of the day and got here later myself, so I don't know if it has been mentioned either, but like you say, they don't waste one little bit of time...neither did congress and much more to come before 100 days are up...or as close as possible.
That is the plan Stan...Nationalized Health care coming soon.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
Oh, don't mention
March 28, 2009 - 22:07 ET by DEVILDOCMOMtheir loser plan of nationalized health...I cannot believe so many actually believe this will help us. And I work in the ER with many who think this is a positive step...and some of these are docs too. It frightens me, of course, just when I need health care my family and I will be stuck with this "solution". How ignorant can the electorate be?
Good to see you too...I have been working too many part-time jobs...in the ER, teaching, and for a cosmetic surgeon...I need to spend more time involved in defeating bho...
DDM... In regards to your
March 28, 2009 - 22:22 ET by bigtimerDDM...
In regards to your last line...
You already are in you own way...thank God for people like you.
Enjoy your family tonight...that is all that really counts in the end.
A person only has so much time in one day!
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
You are so right, bt
March 28, 2009 - 22:37 ET by DEVILDOCMOMIn many ways, of course, but especially in your comment "Enjoy your family tonight...that is all that really counts in the end." The more I live and work the more I realize how fragile life is... The more I realize how quickly it can end with a wrong decision AND how valuable good medical care can be to save a life.
North Korea Celebrates Earth Hour
March 28, 2009 - 21:54 ET by P.J. GladnickNorth Korea celebrates Earth Hour 24/7.
P.J. ...Pow right in the
March 28, 2009 - 22:03 ET by bigtimerP.J.
...Pow right in the kisser!
That couldn't have hit the nail on the head any better!
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
:)
March 28, 2009 - 22:08 ET by DEVILDOCMOMThat's FUNNY!
no laughing matter
March 28, 2009 - 22:35 ET by jaywlAt first I thought it was just another enviro-wacky idea, but then!
It was like deja-vu and omnivorous predestination all rolled into manna. I felt like a hand from PETA was on my pec...Well, what happened was I took a dump and read about this hour thing. Upon leaving I turned the light off. AND it was exactly 8:30PM--Earth Hour! I felt like the Obama himself was guiding my hand on the switch. I know some will not understand what that convergence of predilections means, but to me, everything. I told the wife what happened. She told me to shut the ...up, so she is a prime example of those non understanding peoples out there. But now that I have seen the light...well, seen the darkness, I will carry on in spite of attitudes like hers.
jay - a good post! Thanks for the grins ;-)
March 29, 2009 - 17:52 ET by Cape ConservativeIt is no dishonor to be in a minority in the cause of liberty and virtue. ~ Sam Adams
I find this tormenting of
March 28, 2009 - 23:04 ET by SRPwrdI find this tormenting of poor North Korea to be distasteful! If the Capitalists had given them what they wanted, they would look just like South Korea!
"two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century" - PreBO
Do these nitwits have a
March 28, 2009 - 23:25 ET by CooltomDo these nitwits have a clue how power is generated? If you turn off a light the power coming into your house does not go down. The amount of power created at the plants is based on historical norms and monitored loads, not the individual demands of a 100 watt light bulb.
Power must be created BEFORE you switch on the light. And that power is still there if the light is off. All that results from switching off a light is that you are not charged for the electricity not used.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Hour
Electricity that is produced is not stored (because there is no practical, cost effective means of doing so). Thus because the electricity that is produced is not stored, Earth hour actually wastes the energy that was produced during the hour rather than saving that energy. Due to this technicality, Earth hour is only really a symbolism of conservation rather than an actual conservation or saving of energy and in real terms, Earth hour does not actually lower emissions. Lowered emissions can only actually be realised if the power generation companies commit to lowering their output during the event.
The Christian Science Monitor said that most candles are made from paraffin, a heavy hydrocarbon derived from crude oil, i.e., a fossil fuel, and that depending on how many candles a person burns (if one uses candles during Earth Hour), whether or not they normally use compact fluorescent light bulbs, and what source of energy is used to produce their electricity, in some cases, replacing light bulbs with candles will cause an increase, instead of a decrease, in carbon dioxide emissions.
An alternative celebration of "Human Achievement Hour" is being promoted by the libertarian think tank the Competitive Enterprise Institute to celebrate the advancement of human prosperity. Participants in this celebration are asked to "celebrate the achievements of humanity such as eating dinner, seeing a film, driving around, keeping the heat on in your home ".
The Ayn Rand Institute wrote, "Participants spend an enjoyable sixty minutes in the dark, safe in the knowledge that the life-saving benefits of industrial civilization are just a light switch away... Forget one measly hour with just the lights off. How about Earth Month... Try spending a month shivering in the dark without heating, electricity, refrigeration; without power plants or generators; without any of the labor-saving, time-saving, and therefore life-saving products that industrial energy makes possible."
According to the Christian Science Monitor, an organization called "Carbon Sense Coalition" wants Earth Hour to be renamed "Blackout Night," and be held outside, on the shortest and coldest day of the year.
It was no tea party
March 28, 2009 - 23:17 ET by nwahsI'm sure it fell short of the tea parties :)
"We don't need no stinkin significance!"
You're irrational if you don't want the new president to succeed - Gingrich
Good point. It was great to
March 29, 2009 - 06:12 ET by Roger the ShrubberGood point. It was great to see (y)our leaders do their part!
I am sure your token dive into ludditism assuaged all the guilt of the electricity you murdered by being on your computer.
The two year anniversary of
March 29, 2009 - 00:23 ET by nicksmith112The two year anniversary of the "Stop Global Warming College Tour" is coming up.
Laurie David and Sheryl Crow were warning us of some extreme WARMING that should be here today. There must be some juicy clips from their tour about sweltering heat that never came. I recall the 5-10 doomsday warnings. I remember hearing a 2 year chaos scenario.
http://i43.tinypic.c...
I hope NB does a piece on this...lol.
I'm a refugee from the Democratic Party.
Let me get this straight
March 29, 2009 - 00:34 ET by KC MulvilleIn order to get an "iconic picture," they turned the lights out.
Does that strike anyone as the smallest bit ... counterproductive?
I'm all for reasonable
March 29, 2009 - 00:41 ET by RR GOPI'm all for reasonable anti-pollution laws...nobody wants to drink urine and feces, nor live on top of buried dioxin, nor see forests turned into fields of stumps, nor waste energy, nor breathe in smog, but like everything else, the Leftists go way overboard.
And the idea of conservation goes way back before it was co-opted by the Communists and Anarchists. Pollution seems to have gotten out of control about the time the Baby Boomers started reaching adulthood as well as the generation right before them.
Despite their BS and bluster about the environment starting around 1970, they invented consumerism and conspicuous consumption. Conservation was/is for everyone else.
Go back and look at photographs of American towns before the 1960s...they were neat and clean, more so the farther you go back in time. Then look at how they were getting in the late '60s and especially in the '70s. The hippies were always really about fulfilling their own personal needs no matter what.
Good one about North Korea...LOL.
One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).
Hey, enviro-weenies
March 29, 2009 - 01:00 ET by SvenI'll tell you what you tree huggers can do: pucker-up and kiss my carbon emitting arse!!
I'm so sick of these freakin' idiots and their stupid causes! This is nothing but a means by which these socialists can push their marxist agenda on the rest of society...all under the guise of "the environment."
I'm going to go and turn my porch lights on...ALL NIGHT!
Hey real quick Sven...glad
March 29, 2009 - 01:07 ET by bigtimerHey real quick Sven...glad to see you and catch you here, we seem to hit and miss...anyway...I was just buttoning up with a lot of what I do around here and you just reminded me to turn my porch lights back on...then I did...and that depressed me more as is snowing here now...I don't want to see anymore of the algoreglobalwarming stuff...enough is enough!
I'm sweeping off the Dish...putting another log on the fire and calling it quits til that evil sun shines at the break of day somewhere in the world.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
Hey bt
March 29, 2009 - 01:16 ET by SvenLOL...I know what you mean!
Good grief, it was about 70 here in Utah about 1 1/2 weeks ago, now we've got another 8 inches on the ground with more coming tomorrow!!
Seriously, these morons should be laughed to scorn! They're abject idiots!
BTW, I hope you've been doing well! Great about Rush's ratings ehh? This must be driving The One nuts ;-)
Will the insane persons switch out the lights?
March 29, 2009 - 06:21 ET by Jack BauerFrom....
The Dark Ages...
to the
Age of Enlightenment...
and back to The Dark Ages...
All in a thousand years...
technology or not we truly are devolving backwards as a species. The forces of darkness are gaining daily.
The court jesters (like actors) are now running the court. And they are scary evil klowns.
In his book, The Neophiliacs, Christopher Booker wrote these perceptive words in 1969...
God help us all.
Booker still writes a provocative and humorous column weekly in the UK Sunday Telegraph. Check him out.
Jackson...
March 29, 2009 - 06:26 ET by Roger the ShrubberI know you'd like this, my friend.
WOW. Earth Quakintastic!
March 29, 2009 - 06:51 ET by Jack BauerWOW. Earth Quakintastic!
Lump in the throat at our great acheivements over the milleniums.
Makes one proud to belong to a different species than that of the ignorant luddites running Dark Ages Day. They want you to shit in a hole in the ground, you know!
Deny the Green Shirts pencillin and modern medicine is what I say. But I'm a harsh inglorious basterd!
Mind you, when Obama's FANNIE MAE NATIONAL HEALTHCARE plans kick in, you, my American friends, will all be longing for some rationed antibiotics.
Boobs Aplenty
March 29, 2009 - 07:06 ET by Harry 3 LimeThis site is known far and wide for its collection of nitwits, but this character, Jack Bauer, takes the cake.
Clamoring for laughs, childlike, overwrought, just downright stupid, he has it all and is not afraid to show it.
When did the bulb go out in
March 29, 2009 - 08:03 ET by Jack BauerHey Cuckoo Clock Lime .. When did the bulb go out in your head?
As a child I suspect, maybe your mom dropped you on your noggin during a brown out?
How about attempting to make a cogent comment about something? Apart from an incoherent ad hominem attack on me, which I wouldn't mind if you were remotely amusing. You sure put the fun into funeral.
Is that beyond your dim-bulbery?
Oh -- and the "real" movie Harry Lime aka Orson Wells (may I call you The Turd Man, it fits so well) was actually selling penicillin in black market Europe after the war.
It was rationed medicine. A situation I suspect that will become all too prevelant in the US once Obama's Fannie Mae Rationed National Heathcare starts.
ADDENDUM
I also note that you've made three comments in three years. Try putting on the lights in your house. You may get something done, no matter how inconsequential. Or at least see the on switch for your PC.
I am rather offended that
March 29, 2009 - 09:33 ET by Roger the ShrubberI am rather offended that Jackson has out-nitwitted me. I am now more motivated to shame crybaby puds like you in the future. Thx, Sparky!
shrubbo sir... BLOODY
March 29, 2009 - 12:25 ET by Jack Bauershrubbo sir... BLOODY TYPICAL!
I finally top a Worst Person In The World List --- and it's some bozo with even less fans than Olberwomann!
????
March 29, 2009 - 06:24 ET by CatherwoodNow, please, what the heck is all this about 'earth hour'? Since America chose the Chosen One as the cool dude prez, man, I haven't paid much attention to the liberal left's news agenda
What a valuable picture.
March 29, 2009 - 07:37 ET by sevenMove to North Lorea. Shall we let them smim to Korea? Using a powered boat would add to a carbon footprint.
This mornign I was reading
March 29, 2009 - 08:18 ET by ricklailThis mornign I was reading on here about Earth Hour when I started LMAO. My wife ask what was wrong. I told her during earth hour, which was last night at 8:30, you're supposed to turn off all lights and any other thing that uses electricity. I went to bed early becuase of a bad headache and forgot about turning on all the lights, stove and dryer. She told me that was done. At 8:30 she was drying clothes, stewing a chicken for lunch today and the grandkids had very light in the house on. Mission Accomplished without even knowing it.
"Democray used to be a good thing, but now it has gotten into the wrong hands"-Jesse Helms (Prophetic?)
lol, rick!
March 29, 2009 - 08:27 ET by clinging to my guns and my religionsounds like your wife is a "keeper"!!
hope you are feeling better.
"i believe he will not stop until we are all jobless, homeless, hungry, and cold!"
The defining image of the
March 29, 2009 - 10:05 ET by eaglewingz08The defining image of the AGW nutcakes and luddite movement is the picture of the Korean Peninsula with NK in the dark except for some light in Pyongyang the dear leader's capital, and the flood of lights in SK.
With the caption, the liberals want to turn all the earth into the energy equivalent of North Korea, such photo could indeed do wonders for energy policy.
I'm all for conservation
March 29, 2009 - 10:20 ET by TexasteacherI'm all for conservation and all, but I was watching the Stars game at that time. Yeah they got their a**es handed to them, but they inspired me to give a liberal policy and ideology the finger. That makes them winners in my book.
obama's notion of bi-partisanship is telling conservatives to shut up and do what he wants.
Oh. Was that this past
March 29, 2009 - 11:11 ET by EugeniaOh. Was the lights out thing this past Saturday?
How stupid. The electric cos. are gonna have to get
back money not made during that time. Hello.
I turned all my lights on
March 29, 2009 - 12:16 ET by skeptic1I turned all my lights on last night at 8:30pm (lights that are normally OFF throughout each night)
My neighbors turned their lights off at 8:30pm (lights that are normally ON throughout each night, and are still on as I type this)
Am I missing something here?
North Korea from Space
March 29, 2009 - 13:08 ET by reasonsjesterVery deft on the allusion to North Korea - that was what I immediately thought after hearing this. To celebrate Earth Hour I got my Christmas lights back out of storage and wrote a message for the eco-fascists on my lawn.
Responsibility is the price of freedom. - Elbert Hubbard
Hard Data
March 29, 2009 - 13:14 ET by slickwillie2001Some hard data coming in: No Drop in Electricity Usage in NY and CA: http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/
Pretty hard to propagandize away a plot on a graph isn't it?
slickwillie.. that's because
March 29, 2009 - 13:45 ET by Gary Hallslickwillie.. that's because, they all turned on their lights and their TVs to see how many people were in the dark.
(;~/ gary
the silliness of it all
March 29, 2009 - 18:40 ET by katainkentIf a light can be turned off for an hour at night why can't it be turned off all night long.
symbolic?
How about this : try it for real. Not for some zealous ego-religious reasons but just because it saves money. Or is a power bill something only for us 'little people' are to be concerned about. I wonder if anyone out there 'celebrating' this realized how stupid they look to those of us who spend each and every day habitually making sure the lights are off in rooms not in use.
kata
March 29, 2009 - 18:49 ET by botgdo follow the kids around the house outting the lights?
"Outside of a dog a book is man's best friend,------------inside a dog it's too dark to read" ---Groucho
if necessary
March 29, 2009 - 18:53 ET by katainkentwe do try and instill them with the idea that we have a bill to pay - but sometimes we have spells of forgetfulness - and we have timers on our bathroom fans and motion sensors for lights in the pantry and store room (the 'trouble spots'). It pays to know how to wire :)
_____________________________________________________
Obama does not perform as advertised. I'd like a refund.
Taxed Enough Already.
Time can save energy and
March 29, 2009 - 21:19 ET by RR GOPTime can save energy and trees by going away.
One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).
The networks should go all
March 30, 2009 - 16:41 ET by rbosqueThe networks should go all the way and shut down permanently and lay off everyone since they all generate pollution by going to work.