To ask you to stop flying

[Walkingthere]

We are facing a climate disaster. Our children will have to live through it. And yet I overheard two women today discussing how many holidays abroad they had been on this year. Both over 60 years of age. Obviously it will not directly impact on them.
This is also very common in my social group, people jetting off 4-5 times a year. Mini-breaks, weekends away, European trips, long haul, hen do's, weddings, birthdays. It's unbelievable how much people are burying their heads in the sand.

We need to stop flying. Urgently. Now. My family have not flown in over 5 years. We used to travel a lot, before we realised the consequences. I am putting this here, to make people think, we all need to urgently reduce (ideally stop) flying now.

How many people urging the rest of us to stop flying think nothing of jumping into their 4x4s to go shopping at a supermarket a 10 minute walk away? I want to see something of this world and it's a big place with lots of sea between one country and another. Flying to these places is more efficient than taking a car and then a ferry and the driving the car another few hundred miles and it's more environmentally friendly sitting in an areoplane with another 300 people. Should we all just go the longer more inefficient route or will we just never leave or own little country. What a sad life you want for us all to live I for one won't stop flying I don't do it often. The people of the world have always been explorers that's not going to stop and I try to do my part in recycling, planting shrubs and curbing the amount of plastic I use but unless the big conglomerates take action in the things they can do its all just spit on the fire.

As for funerals? Why would anyone travel half the way around the world to NOT be able to see someone? That makes so little sense to me I can't even begin to argue the case. Are you fucking serious, M3lon?

When an extremely close family member of mine died, the family members who travelled to their funeral didn't do so to 'not be able to see someone'. They travelled to see someone who they loved very much laid out. Looking peaceful. At rest. To have one last opportunity to hold their hand, to stroke their face. To stand and hold their relatives for support as their loved one was lowered into the ground. To mourn their loved one together. If you can't understand why doing this might be important to people, then I think there is no reasoning with you.

Bore off. YABU.

OK M3lon, so I assume that you have no children. You never drive. You are vegan and only ever eat food which is produced locally. You don't use anything plastic. You don't buy any imported goods. You live an incredibly simple life and only consume that which is absolutely essential to your life, because you recognise that your right to live a particular lifestyle doesn't trump the rights of future generations to live on a life sustaining planet. Hats off to you if you are truly living in accordance with those values. I'm impressed.

If I've misunderstood, and you do actually make lifestyle choices which impact on the planet, then you are merely a hypocrite.

No, I won't stop flying.

@M3lon are you quite well in the head, or?

Saying unless someone is perfect in this regard they have no right to comment doesn’t make any sense to me. They have no right to preach, but they do have a right to an opinion about if people are irresponsibly using shared resources in the context of a global environmental crisis.

Newark, I get what you're saying, but more often than not, the people who are most vocal about these things tend to focus on narrow issues that appeal to them while ignoring the bigger picture.

For example, I work with someone who bangs on constantly about how everyone should go vegan for the sake of the planet, but she thinks nothing of taking 2/3 long haul flights each year because she loves to travel.

I also know a mother who is currently pregnant with her sixth child, who likes to post loads of stuff on Facebook about what we all need to do to stop climate change.

Neither of these people are wrong about the particular issues that they choose to promote, but they are choosing to ignore equally important issues which don't happen to suit their lifestyle choices.

People are entitled to their opinions, of course. All I am saying is that I don't particularly respect the views of people who I find hypocritical. I'm far more inspired to make changes to my own life when I see people who I admire quietly doing the right thing.

I’d actually argue that travelling for a funeral is about more than saying goodbye to a dead person, it’s supporting those who are left behind. It’s sad to miss a wedding but it’s awful to not be there to support a spouse, sibling or parent who desperately needs the emotional connection after losing a loved one

And never see my Mum again? Just try and stop me.

@M3lon Ohhh I just love it when someone with zero knowledge on a subject/industry goes on a rant of total speculative nonsense! Flying is more efficient and less damaging to the environment than it has ever been!
Reported

I do think that commercial internal flights in this country should be banned. We are a small country and should be capitalising our use of rail more.

Until global warming makes Scotland sunny I will continue to fly, but thanks for your concern.

Aircraft only cause 3.5% of global warming from all human activities. Yet there are over 102,000 flights that take off globally per day. I think that's a pretty respectable carbon footprint per flight.

I would say that’s why we decided to drive to Italy this year instead but it isn’t- i just fancied a change. It’s more costly as hired a motorhome and the logistics are more complicated. We are taking the dog though.

There are a LOT of selfish dicks on this thread

No there are a lot of people riled up by goady self rightous patronising uninformed posters

I am vegan and have no children

Well give yourself a medal! I notice you don't say wether you drive? You definately fly, you've said so yourself, do you eat avocardos and bananas?? How do you think they get here? Is it ok for them to fly becauase YOU eat them. Do you get your milk in glass bottles from the milk man, oh yes your vegan so you have to buy mipk substututes in those very rarely recyleced cardboard contatainers that foil lined. Let alone the petrol it takes to get to the shops to buy your vegan food and milk. Awesome.

I'll change my first statement to goady self rightous patronising uninformed hypocritical posters.
Here's an idea...why not live in the same country as your family if you WANT to see them so very much? Let me guess...you don't WANT to move, you don't WANT to have to change job, you don't WANT any minor inconvenience in your life...and fuck the planet

I can only presume you have no family, a very secure job and think that everyone is in the sane postion i can also garentee you would be the first to complain about all these people on state assistance because they chose to live close to their family rather than moving to secure jobs

I went to visit a friend
£45 each way on plane, 1 hour travel each way
Versus
10+ hours by road each way, costs more in petrol
Versus
Train very expensive

Most logical method of travel at the time was plane

Or not visit at all

Aircraft only cause 3.5% of global warming

That is one hell of a lot, when you think of how many people live in climates where they need to heat their houses in winter, and how many cars are on the roads. Let alone other contributing factors. I wonder what the people sneering at being asked to cut down on flights are doing in other areas of their lives to cut down on global warming.

I dont think asking people to stop flying is the answer op. Trouble is as a species we are destroyers...we consume to live. Only rainforest and other tribes take what they need.
If everyone does something then the effects will add up. I didnt drive for 35 years because of the planet but needed to learn for the commute.
I am flying this year but the last time i did was 4 years ago.

I live abroad. If I stop flying I will never be able to visit my home.

The people who fly regularly for work are the problem, not those of us who fly every 2 years or so.

OP
And what do you suggest we do with airline employees? And related industries? Or how do people see their families overseas? Or travel with limited time?

Yabu if I don't fly I would never see my family

I wonder what the people sneering at being asked to cut down on flights are doing in other areas of their lives to cut down on global warming

And i wonder what the self rightous are doing to cut down on their food miles, food waste, plastic and oil consumtion, use of unrecycable matiarals. But you know .....

Those in glass houses probably shouldnt throw stones if they dont want to be questioned back 🤷‍♀️

Oh and for what its worth i've flown maybe 3 times in over 20 years

So we all should avoid flying because op has concience epiphany...