Do as I say, not as I do....

[Don Corleone]

Merriam-Webster's Online dictionary defines 'Hypocricy' as

1 : a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion
2 : a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings
- hypocrite adjective

.

Today, while testifying why Congress needs to enact strict legislation hamstringing the American economy and the average American's personal energy usage at home, former Vice-President Al Gore received a request from the ranking Republican on the Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works, Senator James Inhofe.

Senator Inhofe presented records indicating that the former Vice-president consumes electrical power at a rate twenty times that of the average American household. He then asked Gore if Gore, fully aware of the dire consequences of man's activities upon the planet and it's direct, causal affect to hurricanes, wouldn't take a pledge to reduce his consumption to no more than the national average household usage. A curt "no" was all Gore would answer with. Senator Inhofe pressed on, indicating that surely Gore would be a beacon for all and encourage responsible energy usage among millions of Americans by his voluntary reduction in his own energy usage.

The former Vice-president responded with a furioius "Go screw yourself, buddy. I am the law. The rules are for the rest of you slaves, erh, I mean citizens".

Actually, he made a vague reference to carbon offsets, claiming he had planted a tree. The affects of carbon offsets are dubious at best, and even when taken at face value can take up to a century. Vice-President Gore does not believe Congress should allow for carbon offsets by American industries or by American families in their own energy usage.

So, I'm just curious. Why would Gore, who's convinced and trying to convince Congress that energy consumption and mankind in general is killing the planet, consume over twenty times the national average? If that doesn't fit the bill of hypocricy, I don't know what does.

Poster's note: I agree the planet is warming. I suspect mankind's activity has had a tertiary affect on it, but has not been the primary contributor. Even so, for reasons of national security and for other environmental concerns, I personally would outlaw the use of fossil fuels the day after I secured the White House in my junta, but would switch over to full nuclear the very same day. I'd build each and every town it's very own reactor. Presto! Problem solved.

[Kralizec]

I agree he's a hypocrite.

Poster's note: I agree the planet is warming. I suspect mankind's activity has had a tertiary affect on it, but has not been the primary contributor. Even so, for reasons of national security and for other environmental concerns, I personally would outlaw the use of fossil fuels the day after I secured the White House in my junta, but would switch over to full nuclear the very same day. I'd build each and every town it's very own reactor. Presto! Problem solved.

Nuclear power for the win

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Didn't we have a thread on this and it turned out he donated enough money to green causes to outweigh the environmental effect of his house?

[Don Corleone]

Didn't we have a thread on this and it turned out he donated enough money to green causes to outweigh the environmental effect of his house?

You mean the carbon offsets I mentioned in the fine print. A few things about carbon offsets:

1) Their value is highly controversial, even among people that agree with the "Shut the Lights Off" crowd

2) Their affects take up to a century to be felt

3) Gore advocates legislation to be enacted that does not allow for the use of carbon offsets for average Americans or American businesses (just him).

4) Doesn't it bother you, Sasaki, that carbon offsets are really just a way for the rich to pay their way out of playing by the rules?

Not to mention, Gore has steadfastly refused to offer any evidence proving he actually has offset his energy usage. He says he paid to have some trees planted and such. He never showed any balance sheet proving he's actually carbon neutral.

[drone]

In Al Gore's defense, he has lately been offsetting his home energy usage by removing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it like this.

[Papewaio]

You mean the carbon offsets I mentioned in the fine print. A few things about carbon offsets:

2) Their affects take up to a century to be felt

I'd like a link to that as it seems at face value to be entirely wrong.

If I withdraw a gram of carbon from the atmosphere now, it has an immediate effect.

So how would it be different if I used a carbon scrubber on a coal stack or a tree?

The controversy could be that trees don't offset as much as claimed, but that is different to it taking a hundred years for the carbon to be offset, a quantity vs time effect.

[TevashSzat]

Al Gore though is more than making up for his higher than average energy usage by bringing up the attention of Global Warming to many people.

[Devastatin Dave]

In Al Gore's defense, he has lately been offsetting his home energy usage by removing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it like this.

I just tinkled myself!!!

[Devastatin Dave]

Al Gore though is more than making up for his higher than average energy usage by bringing up the attention of Global Warming to many people.

You're right, maybe to get more people's attention he could strip mine the rest of the Appalations instead of just what he and his daddy did in Tennesse. e.

[KukriKhan]

Tennesse. e.

Now that there's clever. I don't care who ya' are.

So, because of the sins of his father, Mister Gore is a liar on all topics? And because of his participation in america's love affair with oil, anything he says is automatically wrong?

[Devastatin Dave]

Now that there's clever. I don't care who ya' are.

So, because of the sins of his father, Mister Gore is a liar on all topics? And because of his participation in america's love affair with oil, anything he says is automatically wrong?

You're right, maybe we can get Charles Manson to do documentaries on the wrongs of murdering pregnant women or Robert Downey Jr to do one on benifits of a drug free life.

[KukriKhan]

I bet Chucky would be not only willing, but eager to help. 'Course that swatika on his brow, put there by his Dad, might distract folks.

[Devastatin Dave]

I bet Chucky would be not only willing, but eager to help. 'Course that swatika on his brow, put there by his Dad, might distract folks.

Well i'd chat with you more Kukri, but I gotta go give a speech on tolerating Islam, gays, and liberals. Talk to you later...

[Csargo]

You'de figure he'd atleast try to cut down on his power usage just a tiny bit. But I guess that's what I get for thinking.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) has said Al Gore is “full of crap” and compared people who believe in global warming to “the Third Reich.” During today’s Senate hearing, Inhofe used a considerable amount of time to attack Gore’s use of carbon offsets and try to convince him to sign a sham “energy ethics pledge.”

Inhofe asked Gore for his reaction, but then quickly cut him off saying Gore had taken up too much time. When Gore tried to go on, Inhofe repeatedly interrupted, adding, “I don’t want to be rude, but from now on, I’m going to ask you to respond…in writing.” Inhofe said Gore could respond verbally only if it was a “very brief response.”

Committee chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) finally intervened. “Would you agree to let the Vice President answer your questions?” Inhofe said Gore could respond when he was done talking, but Boxer wouldn’t have it: “No, that isn’t the rule. You’re not making the rules. You used to when you did this. Elections have consequences. So I make the rules.”

haha I love it when our government officials act like little children.

In the book version of An Inconvenient Truth where Gore discusses what ordinary citizens can do to help combat global warming, he stops well short of calling for deep sacrifice or lifestyle change.

First, he lists a number of modest steps individuals can take to make their homes and activities more environmentally friendly -- like using energy-efficient appliances, adjusting the thermostat by a couple of degrees, installing solar panels, and using less hot water when possible -- all of which are economically as well as ecologically beneficial, and none of which we have any reason to believe Gore is not taking himself.

Second, he preaches activism -- voting for environmentally enlightened measures and candidates and spreading he gospel of global warming. And in these we know Al Gore has played an exemplary role.

Third, he argues that everyone ought to try to achieve a "carbon neutral" lifestyle. How? By doing precisely what he does -- offsetting one's environmental impact through investments in projects and enterprises aimed at reducing energy consumption overall.

So, where is the disjunct between what he says and what he does? Unless you put words in his mouth, there isn't one. You might argue that it would be better for the environment if people like Gore lived in smaller houses and modified their lifestyles instead of shelling out bucks for carbon offsets -- and you might even be right -- but that's a policy disagreement, not proof that he's a hypocrite. Folks who dislike his politics will no doubt call him hypocritical just the same, but judged strictly in terms of whether or not Al Gore practices what he preaches, the case against him is a sham.

But I guess people will believe what they want.


Also, their numbers are incorrect and the nashville average is 50% greater than the national average. If you adjust for size of his house he only uses 3 times the average. His house includes his office so this isn't surprising.

[Adrian II]

If that doesn't fit the bill of hypocricy, I don't know what does.

When George Bush called for a reduction of America's gasoline consumption by 20 percent over the next 10 years, did he cut back on his own?

When Dick Cheney called for war against Iraq, did he go in first in a helmet and a flack jacket? Or did he stay behind and work to grant huge contracts to a firm in which he had a vested interest in the form of unexercised stock options and deferred salary?

Does it ever occur to our brave little Republican foot soldiers to ask such questions? Nope. Instead they go for Al Gore, not on the basis of his views but on the basis of his private life.

Doesn't the Bible say something about splinters and wooden beams? American politics is turning into a character assassination race. Both sides are guilty. To complain about that and yet to engage in it with gusto, as you do, is hypocrisy of a truly Biblical nature.

[Spetulhu]

Doesn't the Bible say something about splinters and wooden beams? American politics is turning into a character assassination race. Both sides are guilty. To complain about that and yet to engage in it with gusto, as you do, is hypocrisy of a truly Biblical nature.

We are perfectly justified in using all means necessary to defeat the insert group name. It's only wrong when they do the same.

[Don Corleone]

When George Bush called for a reduction of America's gasoline consumption by 20 percent over the next 10 years, did he cut back on his own?

When Dick Cheney called for war against Iraq, did he go in first in a helmet and a flack jacket? Or did he stay behind and work to grant huge contracts to a firm in which he had a vested interest in the form of unexercised stock options and deferred salary?

Does it ever occur to our brave little Republican foot soldiers to ask such questions? Nope. Instead they go for Al Gore, not on the basis of his views but on the basis of his private life.

Doesn't the Bible say something about splinters and wooden beams? American politics is turning into a character assassination race. Both sides are guilty. To complain about that and yet to engage in it with gusto, as you do, is hypocrisy of a truly Biblical nature.

Show me where I've been supporting Bush & Cheney and their Iraq war in the past couple of years and I'll plead guilty. As for Bush's energy consumption habits, I don't know the first thing about what his energy consumption habits are like. I suspect, based on the open ended nature of your attack, that you don't either.

I simply suggested that for Mr. Gore to go around telling Congress they have to pass a bunch of laws clamping down on American industries and American homeowners, yet recklessly continues to consume 20 times the national average at his own house makes him a hypocrite. Rather than answering that, you decide to change the nature of the debate and call me a hypocrite for Bush and Cheney's actions. Nice.

I guess I touched a nerve. Note to self "Al Gore is a sacred cow and is beyond criticism".

[doc_bean]

Sorry Don, but Sasaki puts your argument in a very different perspective.

His usage depends on what he's using energy for, if it includes his airplane rides it could be said that they serve a purpose, it's debatable, but certainly it's different from using energy for warming an empty house or something like that.

I'll agree that he seems like a bit of a hypocrite, but that doesn't necessarily mean that what he's saying doesn't have merit.

Poster's note: I agree the planet is warming. I suspect mankind's activity has had a tertiary affect on it, but has not been the primary contributor. Even so, for reasons of national security and for other environmental concerns, I personally would outlaw the use of fossil fuels the day after I secured the White House in my junta, but would switch over to full nuclear the very same day. I'd build each and every town it's very own reactor. Presto! Problem solved.

For about 50 years and for a *lot* of money. If you threw around that much cash you could simply support every company that implemented energy efficient measures and you'd probably end up with a better result...

[KukriKhan]

Well i'd chat with you more Kukri, but I gotta go give a speech on tolerating Islam, gays, and liberals. Talk to you later...

My pleasure, Dave. I was just keeping you company 'til thr Euros woke up. :) Actually, Mr. Gore hasn't shown me much of anything, aside from an ability to raise money from people.

[Devastatin Dave]

My pleasure, Dave. I was just keeping you company 'til thr Euros woke up. :) Actually, Mr. Gore hasn't shown me much of anything, aside from an ability to raise money from people.

Thanks, i was getting lonely. Not only can Mr Gore raise money, he can also raise the needle on a scale as well!!!

[Ironside]

haha I love it when our government officials act like little children.

He can get a job as the Cuban UN ambassador:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

"Cuba, unlike Sweden, does not persecute migrants or carry out ethnic cleansing that only allows those whose skin and hair color fit with the racial patterns of former Viking conquerors to remain in the country."

Sadly I haven't seen a English version of his whole speech. I guess we pissed him off.

I guess I touched a nerve. Note to self "Al Gore is a sacred cow and is beyond criticism".

I suspect Al Gore is far from a sacred cow for Adrian.

[Adrian II]

Rather than answering that, you decide to change the nature of the debate and call me a hypocrite for Bush and Cheney's actions.

Oh, read again. If Spetulhu can get my point in one go, I am sure you can.

[Devastatin Dave]

The Coming Ass Age...
http://www.anncoulter.com/cgi-local/...gi?article=175
Love that girl!!!

[drone]

Bush's Crawford home, taken from the Chicago Tribune:
http://www.commondreams.org/views01/0429-03.htm

[Vladimir]

Bush's Crawford home, taken from the Chicago Tribune:
http://www.commondreams.org/views01/0429-03.htm

Very funny. Much like his higher IQ scores being revealed when Kerry was assumed to be more intelligent. But like Johnny boy, Algore might just be sick too; a sick, sick man.

[doc_bean]

It just shows there's something bery strange about Bush, a man who's preaching someone else's principles, it would seem.

Or he just had some liberal design his house because he's a damn good architect.

[BDC]

"Cuba, unlike Sweden, does not persecute migrants or carry out ethnic cleansing that only allows those whose skin and hair color fit with the racial patterns of former Viking conquerors to remain in the country."

Brilliant.

I demand reparations from Sweden for the horror inflicted on my ancestors by your ancestors 1000 years ago. With interest.

[Vladimir]

Very funny. Much like his higher IQ scores being revealed when Kerry was assumed to be more intelligent. But like Johnny boy, Algore might just be sick too; a sick, sick man.

*clears throat*

If I may: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6421303.stm

Global impact of Asia's pollution

Smog is having a global impact on weather and climate, scientists say
Industrial pollution coming from Asia is having a wider effect on global weather and climate than previously realised, research suggests

[Husar]

It just shows there's something bery strange about Bush, a man who's preaching someone else's principles, it would seem.

Or he just had some liberal design his house because he's a damn good architect.

Well, the war on terror is quite expensive, he has to save money somewhere.