Climate change activists shooting themselves in the foot?

[2beesornot2beesthatisthehoney]

I had sympathy with the both the cause and actions (though not the vandalism) until today. They are now paralysing the public transport system. Isn’t the main thrust of encouraging better habits for climate change , getting people out of their cars and onto public transport.
Fact 1: people need to work
Fact 2 : most need to commute , short journeys or long.
Fact 3: protests are to promote awareness and get the people on your side.

THIS WON’T !

Still better than the May Day ‘protestors - oh god are they going to be at it again this year? I remember when that started to be ‘a thing’ and the amount of damage done was terrible (lots of smashed windows near/where I worked).

And yes - it may well start peaceful (walking by today it all seemed very white middle class types) but these things always attract the non peaceful types (I did notice a few of the local guys who hang out around my office yelling at people joining at the edges today and looking a bit excited).

I worry about the safety of women sleeping in the tents to be honest.

Parliament is in recess, so the wrong time to be campaigning. No-one at school so the harm of the school run by car cannot be raised.

DS gets the bus to school. He would be walking (well he will be next week)

It's supposed to be disruptive if everyone is able to carry on about their business as normal then it doesn't really work as a protest.
We are at a tipping point, it's no good tinkering around the edges with your cloth bag at the shop and doing all your recycling, major change needs to happen.

People on here asking "what have YOU done??" And then basically any response is apparently not as valid as protesting!! It isnt clear whether the protesters have made a difference yet (except caused lots of obviously eco-friendly rubbish and disruption to the general public NOT anyone of influence)

I don't disagree something has to be done about climate change but what actual evidence is there that the protesters are doing more for the planet right now than people at work or home changing their lifestyles to be more eco.
One of my most outspoken friends about climate change is probably the most well travelled (goes on holiday- flying, most months!)

Are ambulances/fire engines having to divert round them?

There's no excuse for violence or vandalism or leaving lots of rubbish but generally speaking I support them.
It's not about people "doing their bit", to tackle climate change we need systematic change, led by governments and large companies.

They need people to sit up, take notice and talk about these issues. Which I think they are broadly doing.

If anyone has any ideas of other things they could do given that this issue is URGENT then they would like to hear about them i'm sure. My dh goes to XR meetings and in the main they're not just trouble makers going from one cause of the next, they're just really worried and realise how f*cked we all are.

I’m with them 100%. How many people here criticising actually DO anything in regards to climate change? Chucking a few bits in the recycling bin isn’t enough anymore

Well I'm vegan, don't own a car, recycle as much as possible, shop ethically where I can, haven't been on a plane in about 5 years. Will that do for a start?

I do agree that climate change is one of the biggest issues facing the world today and it needs a lot more focus and attention. But what these people are doing today though is ridiculous and counter productive. They say they had to be disruptive to get their message heard; no they didn't. What they're doing is lazy and unimaginative, they could have come up with better ways to get their message across without disrupting so many people.

THEre is no excuse for government failing to build sufficient renewable electricity generation capacity which is necessary for the following. Instead they cancel world leading programmes for tideal energy

There is no excuse for lack of regulation on space heating, which need to be run on renewable electric not gas

There is no excuse for failure to force a switch to electric cars and ebikes . As part of which the government needs to invest in the necessary infrastructure especially for long trips

The government should be helping farmers move away from beef and diary production ( and eliminating antibiotic use for farm animal)

Ideally funded by immense taxes on the highest carbon emitters.

And the only things that governments understsnd are financial impact

Why do protesters like these not seem to get that the public will push against them if they make their lives more difficult with disruption?
Some of the people I work with really struggled with public transport today. Do you think the guy on minimum wage that is now one step away from a disciplinary gives a shit about this now? They are fucking around with the wrong people!
FFS at least "inconvenience" the people that are responsible for trading with global polluters, protest outside Gove's house or offices etc. (Although he's probably on holiday because the timing of this is absolutely crap)
Joe public, scraping by and trying to get to work will just push back. Cant you see that?

Joe public has mostly ignored this. Joe public cares so deeply about this that not one politican sees this as a election losing issue.

Why do protesters like these not seem to get that the public will push against them if they make their lives more difficult with disruption?

As has been mentioned many times, they are not trying to get through to the general public.

And in fact the public will petition their representatives if they continue to be affected by it, won't they.

The guy who was interviewed on Sky news about this was appalling though!

Joe Public will not support it as long as their lives are made difficult by preachy idiots glueing themselves to bloody trains.
Of course, Joe Public is incredibly dumb and needs to be "educated"
Everyone knows we are up shit creek, but when you are barely surviving it's hard to really give a crap.

Vangogh, so why during recess? Why public transport which is not used by the people you are "trying to reach"

There is no excuse for the current air travel expansion plans of this government.

I support the protestors despite it causing my family and me inconvenience.

Hopefully in 100 years we will look on them fondly like we do the suffragettes!

Serious action needs to be taken NOW, everyone is just burying their heads in the sand. This method of protest is out of desperation not choice.

None disruptive protest...failed to get changes
Rational argument...failed to get changes
Millions of ordinary people making what changes they can ...failed to get changes
Celebrity endorsement...failed to get changes
School children protests...failed to get changes
..any more suggestions of pointless things to try?

Because everyone is just too busy with more pressing concerns, just trying to get by and keep their home or the business or the country running.

Why not try to make change from a position of authority?

I worked in one company and there was a department whose job was to engage with companies who had investments/pensions and study their portfolios. They would report on how ‘green’ their portfolios were and advise either dropping the companies or going to them with a list of concerns and using their leverage (as big clients) to make changes. If their did neither they wouldn’t get our coveted ‘stamp of approval’. This worked in a lot of cases.

Still, the illiterate arses who got our name muddled up with another company still sent hideous antivivisection stuff through the post. Which was opened by junior staff. (Slow hand clap)

Maybe we could get Jeremy Corbyn's wife to tell them that disrupting public transport is just alienating the travelling public. Not to mention the graffiti - who thinks that's OK? They said they don't want to upset her (although making the lives of the rest of us harder is apparently fine).

They are not helping their cause. Whilst I had concerns for the environment, no more. I won’t be bullied into thinking they are right by their appalling behaviour

Disruption is a good thing. The more we are disrupted the more we will take notice. It’s getting press attention and that’s the main thing.

And for people who walk to work the streets are lovely and quiet!

@Chloemol you’ve stopped having concerns for the environment?! That’s a bizarre response.

Whilst I had concerns for the environment, no more.

You have no more concerns? You feel confident your environment is sound, safe and your children will have the healthy environment to grow up in?