So what do the greeny's (or anyone else) think of Bair's comments on long haul flights?

[uwila]

here

Why did I put an apostrophe in "greeny's"???

i think he talks a lot of sense actually
was talking bout this with a friend the other day (well not his comments) I was getting angry about the amount of rubbish left out on the sidewalks on the way to school ( one house has every single week of th eyear.....3 doors down from us.....at least 10 sacks of garbage, the big black bags, and i cringe everytime i see it... my point, oh yes - she argued that there need to be laws about more reclying, less rubbish etc etc and I agreed but said it really woudn't make that much difference on a global scale, the UK is just a drop in the ocean sort of thing and she disagreed and said if everyne thought like me blah blah bhal
I am responsible and do my part, but it's not just me or my community that will REALLY make a difference

god that was an awful post sorry

It's like saying 'we mustn't make theft illegal or it might put people off obeying the law'. Lifestyles have to change - isn't it preferable to make long-haul flying more expensive than central heating for example, or even car use.

BTW I don't think I'm any more of a 'greeny' than anyone else...and I can't help thinking that if everyone doesn't care about this subject now we really are all buggered.

the options that blair talks aboaut are viable though and really need to be researched and developed - long haul flights will never cease - anywehre, ther are here and it's better to find a solution to what already exists ( the flights) rather than ban them I think

The thing I don't like about banning or taxing long haul flights is that I think the people of planet Earth need to learn to get along. And in order to do that, I think it would be helpful if more of us had a better understanding and appreciation of other people's cultures. Travel is one way in which to achieve that. So, if we reduce world travel, are we going to find ourselves living more within our secluded little communities. I just don't think that's a step forward for world peace.

So, I agree with Blair that there other places I would seek to be green, but probably not for the same reasons as Blair. Blair seemed to just be saying that he wasn't going to give up travel because he finds pleasure in it. Whereas I think travel serves a very useful purpose which being overlooked in the current drive to reduce air traffic.

Good point uwila. But there are ways of experiencing other cultures without neccesarily going there...but not as well perhaps. We don't have to live in a cultural bubble these days - and some people will still be in their own little bubble no matter how many times they go abroad.

I just thought he sounded so self-centred and uncaring.

I also loved the image of people who care about green issues having a miserable time... "putting people off the green agenda by saying you must not have a good time anymore". Sitting there eating boiled turnips and British beef and having wet holidays in Skegness I've only been on a long haul once and I have to confess I don't feel miserable most of the time. Somehow I manage to find life bearable...

most people , ok many, not nec. most go on long haul holidays, not to experience the culture but to go to stupid theme aprks or lie on the beach.

I would agree with it really. Making flying dirt cheap has not helped the environment.

That's a British thing, ernest. And it baffles me. I certainly don't go on holiday to spend it with Americans. (unless of course I go to America)

He is totally disingenuos and doesn't give a flying bat's bum about the enviroment, as obvious in all of his policies. I can't begin to express how let down I feel by him since '97. I can't actually believe that our political leader in the year 2007 can say something as regressive and thatcherite as this.

The growing acceptance of longhaul weekends just makes me . Since when is going to NYC for the weekend a sensible idea? I do think tax would be wise for this.

That being said, I'd bet a lot of the longhaul flights are for business stuff, anyway.

I couldn't agree more Ruty

The problem is too many people have the same opinion as he does. One of his comments around, "the UK accounts for only 2% of CO2 emmissions so cutting/taxing heavily long-haul flights wouldn't make any difference."

Terrible really, can't remember the exact quote but it's along the lines of "the tragedy of doing nothing because we can only do a little" sums general (not mn'ers evidently!) attitudes up