Green Day?

The Live Earth concerts kicked off yesterday and I'm sorry if I can't get too worked up over this. The amount of hypocrisy is astounding over the subject of going to a concert that expends so much of the very emissions that the concert is supposed to be informing everyone to cut back on. Think of all the power needed to run the klieg light and lasers and video screens. I might have a different opinion if all the performers went acoustic with bare bones equipment, but I know that will not be the case.

People coming to the concert are expecting a show - the lavish sets and stage shows from some of the acts.

But the very notion that we need a concert to highlight global warming is hilarious. I'm all for listening to good music, but the message sucks. When you have a bunch of holier-than-thou musicians claiming that the sky is literally falling if you don't cut back on your emissions, and yet they go about their business of flying around the world to put on concerts, often with lavish stage shows that consume kilowatts of power, you begin to sense the hypocrisy.

There is nothing green about this concert. When I attended the 1994 Woodstock concert with Legalbgl, there was a lot of focus over the eco-green nature of the concert by the promoters, who wanted to send a message besides simply attending for the music. The promo materials were busy touting the green aspects of the show and what you could do to save the environment. Here's a map of the event, and the Eco pavilion was right between the two stage areas, so that if you wanted to see both stages, you would have to transit through the area.

The reality was quite different. As we were leaving the concert, besides all the mud was the mountains of trash that littered the fields. Tons of trash. Tons of tents and other camping equipment that was simply abandoned. It would take weeks to clean up the fields.

This concert will be no different. It will not change the minds of people as to the nature of global warming or climate change. It's simply an opportunity for pontificating politicians and musicians to get on stage and make statements that are only loosely related to the actual science.

The concert in New Jersey is underway later today, and officials are calling for people to use mass transit because there is insufficient parking for all those who wish to attend. Considering that many people eschew mass transit, I doubt that they'll heed the warnings so when there is the inevitable traffic jam, how many more emissions will be emitted in the name of lowering emissions?

Michelle Malkin calls it a green circus. It's not far off the mark. There is a circus-like atmosphere surrounding it. Pajamas Media is also keeping tabs on the concert and its emissions.