Do you actually care about the environment?

[HamsterKebab]

I think a lot of people say they care, but do you really? Have you adjusted your life with wildlife or the climate in mind? Or does convenience come first?

Im genuinely interested in how much the general public truly cares about biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution. Does it bother you or do you just think ‘someone else will deal with it’. I’m not judging, I genuinely want to know how people honestly feel rather than what they say out loud.

Maybe caring about animal abuse is also a luxury belief? People who are in desperate poverty don't care about some mangy dog. They're going to work their mule to the point tho at it's back is breaking.

Complaining about the NHS is a luxury belief. Many countries don't have universal healthcare. Don't see them whining.

Same for the police, be grateful ours don't take bribes and beat us to death.

Rent rises and housing insecurity - homeless people exist, therefore it's a luxury belief.

What about the wealthy elite in these countries.why don't they help their own citizens and provide health services

Why is it always the West's problem?

The wealthy elite in some countries let kids starve, and all manner of atrocities happen. Let's follow their example, of course.

It's not like their environmental issues will have any affect on the price of our goods and service, migration patterns and refugees, drought in the UK, foreign aid...

To rephrase a question I have asked about every hundred posts, why does it matter? If there's nobody home to notice or comment, where do humans fit? I think that art and architecture transcend wildlife, which will mudle on regardless.

Gluing oneself to the entrance gate ought to have the desired effect, but I suspect that there will be places that the security isn't 100% watertight.

I'm child free and vegan. Eat whole foods, adopt rescue animals and recycle blah blah blah. Not because I care about the environment but because I'm a decent person with ethical values. I think as a species we're fucked and good riddance imo

@SideBob but why should someone who lives in a council house and has very little- hardly replaces goods or kitchen /bathroom, doesn’t own a car, can’t afford to go on holiday or heat their home, buys just about enough food to feed their family with no waste…. Why should they actively try to reduce their carbon footprint?

There are loads of people living hand to mouth like this in the U.K. today. I live on one such street…in an affluent town, all the council tenants recycle (judging by how full the bins are), everyone walks and cycles.

This group of people live frugally while people drive by in electric Teslas, living obviously affluent lives. But we’re to praise the people driving Teslas because they went for an environmentally friendly car!

You are deluded if you think there is no correlation between poverty/inequality in the UK and low carbon footprints. The people with higher carbon footprints will be the more privileged households who are more likely to identify as environmentalists.

Post from mumsnet last year struck a chord with me…

I try my best to leave as little carbon footprint as possible.
Married with no kids and annual dual fuel bills are under£700
1 small car, holiday overseas once every 5 years.
So why do those wealthy families with 3,4, 5 plus kids who drive SUV tanks and holiday every year multiple times.,who consume £300 plus in energy bills monthly, have the audacity and blatant cheek to lecture others on the climate crisis.
^^
It's like they have only just twigged their excessive greed and consumption just might now mean your kids futures are ruined.
It's making me so angry.

Link to post here:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4859327-sick-of-being-lectured-about-the-climate-crisis

I'm sorry, can clearly explain your point to me? We're taking about Global North and Global South.

You're saying something about people should have to do more. Pretending to care about the working class to bolster your point is always very clever.

In a few months, my rent will be equal to my bills. My overdraft will be feeing my dc. I'll still be doing as much as I can (which coincidentally is a lot, cos I don't have any money - doesn't even take much effort!).

So why do those wealthy families with 3,4, 5 plus kids who drive SUV tanks and holiday every year multiple times.,who consume £300 plus in energy bills monthly, have the audacity and blatant cheek to lecture others on the climate crisis.

People who drive SUVs; fly to Dubai and have 5 kids aren't lecturing anyone about the climate crisis. The new money rich are the very last people who care.

Such a ridiculous point, it's just entirely made up.

I live close to an area with lots of old money loads of SUV’a they might not be going to Dubai but plenty are holidaying abroad

many don’t care they just care about appearing to care as we have seen when road closures are put in place

Yeah, I'm not disagreeing. Wealthy people in general want to enjoy their money (still, bit more likely to choose climate friendly options where it fits their existing preference).

But specifically commenting on the demographic PP mentioned - no, jet-setting Range River drivers with5 kids and a Love Island garden are not lecturing anyone about climate change. Not a single soul.

@SideBob I am living paycheque to paycheque myself on my single wage supporting 2 kids … I wouldn’t say I’m poor because I have a mortgage, we have enough food etc, but I have no money for holidays, days out with kids beyond a picnic at the beach/park. I don’t drive. My heating is not turned on today. So I have a small carbon footprint due to money … not the environment. That’s my point.

Lots of families on my estate are way worse off and have little extra (lots are using the food bank). So I don’t think it’s people like us who need to make the changes and I stand by that!

I do. But watching all those private jets leave after the Super Bowl just shows those that have the power or influence to make the necessary changes don't give a shit.

I could dutifully rinse and recycle all my yoghurt pots for a million years and not make a dint to offset all those private jets caused. And let's be honest, it's hardly a one off.

Might as well empty a pool with a thimble. Still, lots of people are trying to empty the pool with their thimble. Just a shame there's a few filling the pool up with a great big fire hose faster than it can be emptied.

I think you need to separate out caring about the environment eg biodiversity, plastic pollution, chemical pollutants and the man made global warming hypothesis.
I guess I’ll get banned/deleted for this but the science on climate is far from settled and the models aren’t working. If you don’t believe this ask yourself why China is building coal power stations and celebrities are still flying private jets and buying up beachfront property. It’s because the carbon emissions = heat was simplistic, reductive and wrong. The climate is likely to change but there is nothing we can do about this and we cannot predict it.
In the West, corporates/academia/the corrupt NGO sector is heavily bought into the climate change narrative therefore dissent will not be tolerated and it will be used as an excuse for more control of population behaviours in the interests of the powerful.
Even if the narrative was true action is if not futile, wrong. There is no way to stop burning/using fossil fuels at present without causing a massive global famine. From what’s expressed on this thread/in some media some in some ways want that but I find it abhorrent and wrong.
The environmental action we could take eg cleaning waterways, getting rid of single use plastic, supporting organic farming where possible while maintaining yields won’t happen because everyone is caught up on a ridiculous doomsday cult.
i disagree not having children is the best thing you can do for the planet. Children are a blessing if you want them. People are more than carbon. In other places (not the affluent decadent west) they still know this and that culture and values will be what survives. Provided nuclear war, a far more pressing threat, doesn’t kill us all.