Hi Chidori, your last post about how it's too difficult to do some things, so we shouldn't do anything at all, is a recipe for disaster. It might cost some money now, but if we don't make changes, it's going to cost us a hell of a lot more later on. Prevention being substantially cheaper and more effective than curing after the fact. I'm sure you've heard that before.
Furthermore, you're basing a lot of your statements on the false presumption that we, as a people, don't have power. We do. There are so many people in just North America, that if we all did a little bit, it would have a dramatically positive effect on the environment. Not just global warming and that kind of thing, but you'll see immediate benefits from these changes as well, such as cleaner air when you go for a walk, nicer parks and streets. Your local neighbourhood will just be a cleaner, nicer place to live in. This is actually one of the things a lot of people forget when they point to China and say "Hey, they pollute why can't we?!" Well other countries pollution do have effects on our own, however, it's more of a global thing, just because you have some smokestacks in China doesn't mean you're going to get Smog in the US or Canada. The reason you have smog in the North America is because of the smokestacks in North America.
So doing something individually, yourself, WILL have an effect. It's not going to happen overnight. But people that are smart, and can think about the future properly, will know they have to lead by example. And one by one the polluters will have less people to point at and say "They're doing it, why can't I?" when the only person they'll be able to point at is themselves. And honestly, imagine doing something bad in school. Is the fact that other people are doing it really a justification? Obviously not! You always hear "If everybody jumped off a cliff, would you?" from parents, teachers, etc. Well that's exactly what people are doing and justifying! By saying "China's polluting so I can too!" is like saying "They're running off a cliff, so I will too!" Do you see how ridiculous that sounds?
Also, it's best not to call it Global Warming. When you use that terminology, then that has a very specific meaning that the world is getting warmer. Then you'll have people say "What? It's never been colder here! Forget Global Warming!" It's actually Climate Change. Places that were cold before, become warmer, places that were warmer become colder, places that were dry become wet, etc. The world will undergo massive changes and it'll be violent, and people will be caught up in the mess. Climate change is already happening, and we are having an effect. Are we the only factor? Of course not, climate change happens on its own as part of Earth's natural cycle, however, we are having a big effect, and humans are very vulnerable to violent changes in the weather. So it's in our best interest to mitigate our effects on the environment.
Fortunately, going green is becoming more and more common. I'm actually surprised, and highly encouraged, by how much environmental awareness is coming to the forefront of mainstream discussion. Al Gore on Oprah talking about how you can cheaply and effectively reduce energy consumption in your own home. I think this has a lot to do with the fact that environmental products for the home, actually save you money! They do double duty because they lower energy costs, which uses up less energy of course, which ends up saving you money sometimes within only a year or two!
Things are going to get worse before they get better, but the winds of change are already here, and North America is at the beginning stages of going green. Hopefully this isn't a false start and really blossoms into something that becomes a fundamental part of our culture.
