To think flying off on holidays is immoral?

[RedTriangle]

Anyone planning to fly off on holidays?

“Every round-trip ticket on flights from New York to London, keep in mind, costs the Arctic three more square meters of ice”
nymag.com/intelligencer/2017/07/climate-change-earth-too-hot-for-humans.html

I live near an airport and there is a steady stream of planes landing and taking off. It feels ominous now in light of the recent WWF report talking about life on earth being wiped out.

There are posts on mumsnet on the section about long haul travel where people are talking about flying off with their families to Thailand or Mexico etc not thinking or not caring about the impact! Future generations won’t be jetting off and living lives like this as we will have destroyed the planet and they will be scrambling to survive.

My parents have booked a weekend in Spain! They regularly do this and they will be long gone while future people pay a terrible price.

limboluna have a look at this;

Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost Stopped Climate Change
www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/08/01/magazine/climate-change-losing-earth.html

You do have a good point. When we fly abroad it's almost always to visit family, but it is something people do a lot more of now. I kind of agree. My husband is usually the one to say let's fly here or there (this half term he was talking of going to Mexico but we had a lot on so didn't go). I have to admit I didn't immediately think it was bad for the environment, but we should think about that.

Interesting doris. I’d heard population was a huge problem, but not the only problem. Not a popular view on Mumsnet, (kind of surprisingly), where I see on every climate change thread, words to the effect of “having babies is the worst thing you can do for the environment”. But I guess being alive at all is the worst thing one can do for the environment 🤷‍♀️.

I’d also heard it was increased life expectancy which was partly to blame as well as births. Another unpopular or at least, not widely shared, view on here.

I think if nearly everyone became vegan, nearly everyone got rid of their car, everyone limited foreign holidays to once every 3 years, recycled as much as possible, used green energy etc then we would have a good chance of saving the planet. The problem is people are far too selfish.

dontalltalkatonce

Yeah, people on low wages are really going to avoid Aldi because of their packaging. They have tons of time and skills to start a fucking campaign, too. This thread is champagne socialism at its finest. Having a house where you can chose the form of power you use is a huge luxury for many. hmm

If you can fly long-haul you're not on a low wage, are you? Which is what this thread is discussing. Obviously people on low incomes have less choice. I'm saying if you can afford to choose, then you can make environmentally sound choices.

I try to buy British fruit and veg in the supermarkets. I live in a county that is known for its apples. Can I buy local apples from Tesco - no and if I can they are more expensive. Until the whole economics of food production change we will never improve the situation.

Couldn't care less. This planet is damaged beyond repair.

Beansandcoffee don’t worry, all that will change after Brexit, we’ll be growing our own fruit and veg, and eating rats!

Basically people should just stay in one place, never move from it, never commute and never eat anything that didn’t come out of the ground they stand on??

You mean like we did before the agricultural and industrial revolutions? It's capitalism, man. That particular can o' worms would be impossible to close.

I think if nearly everyone became vegan, nearly everyone got rid of their car, everyone limited foreign holidays to once every 3 years, recycled as much as possible, used green energy etc then we would have a good chance of saving the planet.

How do you expect people to get to work if we all get rid of our cars? In an earlier post I said for me it's 15-20 minutes in the car or 58 minutes by public transport. Until public transport is cheaper, cleaner and more convenient a lot of people won't use it.

Until public transport is cheaper, cleaner and more convenient a lot of people won't use it.

Also, if there were fewer cars on the road, people would be more inclined to walk or cycle. Something needs to push people out of using their cars every day.

The planet is not damaged beyond repair... yet! People are getting apathetic though now and who can blame them? We’ve known about this for decades. I do think things are improving though. I don’t think humans will go on all that much longer, but I’m hopeful we can leave something salvageable behind.

Public transport won't be better until more people start using it. If you hate public transport you could move somewhere more convenient and get a bike.

I said most people, not all, could ditch their car, but they won't because in most cases it would be slightly inconvenient for them and people are selfish.

I've never owned a car, I've never driven, I've also never been unemployed, not even for a day.

Humans are consumers. Companies/businesses produce products/activities/lifestyles for us to "consume."

Nothing will change that. If the products change for the better then that would be awesome.

Do what you can to make less impact but try not to judge/stress about what everyone else is doing......and don't drive yourself mad trying to achieve a zero carbon footprint.
Raise awareness about important issues if you like but don't be surprised if no one listens.

It's an hour and 20 minutes for me whether I drive or take the train. I get the train purely because I get too tired driving.
I pay £340 a month for the privilege. I earn 20k. If I could do it cheaper, but it was more damaging, to be honest I would.
I don't have the luxury of being morally superior.

How do you expect people to get to work if we all get rid of our cars?

1.35 billion trips on the Tube yearly. Most of these are people going to work.

I don’t think most people will make the big changes necessary until they are forced to. I know I could do more too.

I was an avid recycler, took my own cup to Pret, got rid of the car and commuted by bus etc. All the right things. Now I’m living and working in the Middle East and it’s an eye opener.

There are no recycling facilities, and the packaging is unbelievable. In Waitrose there was a pack of four passion fruit, each individually wrapped in plastic, and then all four in a hard plastic outer. And things like coconuts - coconuts FFS! - come wrapped in plastic. Everyone gets food delivered for lunch and dinner. All in plastic.

I know every little helps but it’s literally the tiniest drop in the ocean when you see what other countries are(n’t) doing.

If you hate public transport you could move somewhere more convenient and get a bike.

Only on Mumsnet do people think you can move at the drop of a hat because it's so easy and cheap to move isn't it? Who's going to pay for it? I do have a bike, I just don't fancy either of the unlit routes that would get me to work.

1.35 billion trips on the Tube yearly. Most of these are people going to work.

Fine if you're in London, many of us aren't.

It's only one example.

Millions of people manage to go to work on public transport. I do too.

Another point, my husband is a handyman. Without a car or van he couldn't work. I can't see him transporting his ladders, paint, tools etc on a bike or public transport! Some people don't have another option.

You sound like you need a holiday

Millions of people manage to go to work on public transport. I do too.

Oh I know that. As I said earlier it would take me nearly an hour to get to work by public transport, around 50 minutes of which would be walking too and from the bus stop. I'm not going to do that and if that makes me uncaring then so be it.

Of course some people have to use a car, but for many it's a choice.

This is the near-future and most people atill have their heads in the sand:

”Children alive today in the UK will face unimaginable horrors as a result of floods, wildfires, extreme weather, crop failures and the inevitable breakdown of society when the pressures are so great”.
risingup.org.uk/XR/

you hate public transport you could move somewhere more convenient and get a bike.

Just like that

1.35 billion trips on the Tube yearly. Most of these are people going to work.

I know it's really hard to believe, but not everyone lives in London.