Why don’t they give up air travel?
So why, pray tell, do we spend so much time talking about suburban sprawl and sport utilities, and so little time talking about FedEx and European vacations?
The question answers itself, doesn’t it? Giving up air travel and overnight delivery is much more personally costly for the public intellectuals who write about this stuff than giving up a big SUV. If you live in one of the five or six major cities that contain virtually everyone who writes about climate change, having a small car (or no car), is a pretty easy adjustment to imagine. On the other hand, try to imagine giving up far-flung vacations, conferences, etc. — especially since travel to interesting locales is one of the hidden perks of not-very-well remunerated positions at universities, public policy groups, nongovernmental organizations, and yes, news organizations.
Yup.
Don’t be fooled: Every time you get on an airplane, you’re helping to shove a Bangladeshi’s home under water.
OK, I won’t be fooled. But it would help if you could provide something that would indicate you’re really a stand-up comedian in development mode. Something about polar bears maybe…
You know the “the polar bears are drowning” has been fully debunked, right?
That’s the point man. These polar bears are being knocked right out of their bunks by oil companies ruining many a night’s sleep. It has to stop. These polar bears are too cute for this debunking to continue.
why, pray tell, do we spend so much time talking about suburban sprawl and sport utilities, and so little time talking about FedEx and European vacations
Who cares? Put a price on carbon and let the market sort it out.
And the market price for carbon was set by the market price of various fuels, and they sorted it out.