The mini-rant brought to you courtesy of a friend who sent me a note questioning my opinion of The First Lady's trip to Spain and the carbon footprint it created on tax payer dollars.Thank you for the inspiration, I hope this clarifies Our Daily Green's position.
I responded as best I could borrowing generously from a NY Times editorial/rebuttal of the criticism. The truth is, I don't have a strong opinion about the matter. I am not the parent raising my child in a spotlight. I am not the child growing up under a microscope.
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| Children of Our Daily Green DC, April 2009 |
We traveled to Washington DC last spring and one of the things that struck me standing outside the White House fence, spying Secret Service snipers on the roof and watching press corps mulling around the grounds is how the First Children will never just be able to run to the playground.
I cannot speak to the decisions that a Presidential family makes because I'm not walking that path. I think though, if I were, I would probably offer my child every opportunity possible to experience the world and enjoy the privileges for the sacrifice of a normal childhood.
But that aside, while that was the spark for today's post, I would rather like to ask why caring for our planet, our environment, healthy living, and saving money has become a partisan issue?
I don't understand why "green" has been deemed a "left/liberal" issue and "consumption" a "right/conservative" issue. Neither issue need be mutually exclusive. Everyone can care about our planet and want to conserve resources. We need not debate about global warming to know that oil/gasoline are not infinite. We need not debate whether garbage is attractive. We need not debate whether it's better to feel healthy than not. These are human issues not something along party lines.
Does flying in an airplane leave a carbon footprint? Yes. Do I expect that planes will stop flying? Not likely. Our Daily Green is a blog about small steps and simple choices we can make that will add up to make a difference. We've written about not using bottled water, buying less stuff, shopping thrift stores, eating at home more often, and air drying clothing. Small manageable steps that anyone can adopt. I try to encourage and educate about different ways of living that are more in harmony with our planet. I don't want to politicize my love of the earth. Our Daily Green just wants to share this passion in an approachable, honest, and manageable way.
Choosing green just feels natural.
1 comment :
well said!
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