A Convenient Truth
The Seattle Times is reporting on a Bothell Family -- the Fraleys -- who are attempting to cut their family's greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent in May. Bully for them, and best of luck!
Still, there's something about the Times account of their experiment that rankles, just a bit: it leaves a casual reader with the impression that reducing carbon emissions is a total pain in the behind. To wit:
[The Fraleys] will try to reduce the household's greenhouse-gas emissions by using some common-sense ideas that nonetheless may be inconvenient. [Emphasis added.]
and...
"I realized this wasn't going to be a cakewalk. The easy changes were already made, and the next one will be more — painful is not the word — but will take more effort."
Jeez, that makes sustainability sound like hair shirts and broccoli. Good luck getting people on board with that.
Special Series
Word on the Street
In a Series
Flogging the Horse Race
Can you believe we’re already several galloping laps into horse race reporting on the 2008 presidential campaign? Rolling Stone’s Matt Taibbi describes this phenomenon more eloquently than I can (and with more profanity than I would probably dare) here. For anyone already snorting in disgust and tuning out the constant stream of chatter about who’s raised more money, who is realigning their image this way or that (with what hunting photo-op or change of hairdo), and who’s notched up a point and a half in Iowa polls, Taibbi is spot on:
The election, after all, is nearly a full Martian year away, with a Super Bowl and two World Series still to play out in between – which means that the "urgency" of breaking campaign news is now and will remain for at least a year an almost 100% media concoction.
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