Re: E-85

I have to agree with Rexim on this point. While Gore obviously could stand to reduce his own energy consumption first (then explore renewable energy options and finally off-set whatever is left over), I think he has done a lot of good by raising the public awareness of global warming, primarily through "An Inconvenient Truth."

Yes, Gore and his excessive energy usage are obviously far from perfect. I think he could use this opportunity to show the public ways to reduce their own usage. But, finally mainstream America is talking about an issue that scientists and environmentalists have been concerned about for many years. Hopefully that awareness can be transformed into positive action, major lifestyle changes, and consumer demand for more environmentally-friendly products.

However, while I'm really glad that environmental concerns are finally in the public spotlight (and are even fashionable), I do worry about the potential for "greenwashing" by companies that simply put an enviro/green spin on themselves and their products without making any real changes. There are a lot of sincere companies and consumers who want to do the right thing, but there's not enough oversight or transparency yet for consumers to be able to easily determine what is the best choice. Making the right choices still depends on a lot of self education.

I agree with all the previous posters who said we each need to make sacrifices and lifestyle changes, in addition to exploring alternative renewable energy sources. I do not think there is any single silver bullet energy idea that is going to fix all of our energy and climate problems. I wholeheartedly agree that the first step is reducing energy usage across the board.

There have been a lot of different, passionate opinions offered above, which keeps me optimistic since it shows that people care deeply about this issue. Gore may not be responsible for that passion among environmentalists and scientists who already were well aware of the issues, but I do think he’s had a positive effect in making global warming/climate change an issue worthy of serious discussion. So, yes, he should lead by example and has an opportunity here to do so, but I’m not going to put him down (yet).

Also, I have to say that Gore actually did not claim to “invent the Internet” as has been widely reported. He said, “During my service in the United States Congress I took the initiative in creating the Internet…” Many may say that’s just semantics, but Internet pioneers Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn wrote the following about the controversy:

“[A]s the two people who designed the basic architecture and the core protocols that make the Internet work, we would like to acknowledge VP Gore's contributions as a Congressman, Senator and as Vice President. No other elected official, to our knowledge, has made a greater contribution over a longer period of time. Last year the Vice President made a straightforward statement on his role. He said: "During my service in the United States Congress I took the initiative in creating the Internet." We don't think, as some people have argued, that Gore intended to claim he "invented" the Internet. Moreover, there is no question in our minds that while serving as Senator, Gore's initiatives had a significant and beneficial effect on the still-evolving Internet. The fact of the matter is that Gore was talking about and promoting the Internet long before most people were listening. We feel it is timely to offer our perspective. As far back as the 1970s Congressman Gore promoted the idea of high speed telecommunications as an engine for both economic growth and the improvement of our educational system. He was the first elected official to grasp the potential of computer communications to have a broader impact than just improving the conduct of science and scholarship. Though easily forgotten, now, at the time this was an unproven and controversial concept.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Gore_controversies)