Is Al Gore A Hypocrite?
I see this type argument a lot. Most often, it is used as an attempt to discredit people who advocate for environmental protection.
Al Gore lives in a large home that uses a lot of energy but preaches for renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Leonardo DiCaprio flies around the world in jets while advocating for CO2 reductions.
Some random person advocates for sustainable wood use but is building a giant wooden gazeebo in their backyard.
Those types of arguments.
The mistake being made here, be it intentionally or unintentionally, is conflating two separate issues. Those two issues are:
1) The need for clean, sustainable use of the environment.
2) The choice of how significantly to reduce personal use of modern utility and conveniences while waiting on solutions to the first issue.
The first issue is a serious issue. The second issue is more of a stop-gap measure to reduce negative impacts while waiting on a solution for the first issue.
It is a mistake to suggest that issue 2 is the solution to issue 1. It's not. That would be like expecting personal restraint from murdering people to be an adequate solution to people murdering other people. It's not. A law enforced by law enforcement is.
We have a similar issue going on with Al Gore. Is Al Gore going around the world advocating that people shouldn't live in large homes? No, he's not. That would be hypocritical. He's advocating for clean energy, energy efficiency, and other measures that will help us achieve sustainability and address the issue of climate change. He is advocating for issue #1. And if issue #1 is solved adequately, issue #2 no longer has relevance. That said, despite living in a large home, Al Gore has taken measures to make his home more environmentally friendly and energy efficient, such that his home is now Gold LEED certified. You can argue that he should still live in a smaller home. Go ahead. Make the argument. It's a fair argument. But understand you are arguing over issue #2, which is separate from issue #1, and there is no hypocrisy involved.
I've seem some similar arguments in online sources regarding travel habits of climate change advocates, like Leonardo DiCaprio flying to Europe for a climate summit. Again, these arguments are over issue #2. Not issue #1. You can argue that Leonardo should have traveled to Europe in a paddle boat, or simply not attended, but that is issue #2, and you can just as well argue that his making an appearance at the climate summit will do more to solve issue #1 than staying home would, and #1 is really the bigger issue.
I see this type argument a lot. Most often, it is used as an attempt to discredit people who advocate for environmental protection.
Al Gore lives in a large home that uses a lot of energy but preaches for renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Leonardo DiCaprio flies around the world in jets while advocating for CO2 reductions.
Some random person advocates for sustainable wood use but is building a giant wooden gazeebo in their backyard.
Those types of arguments.
The mistake being made here, be it intentionally or unintentionally, is conflating two separate issues. Those two issues are:
1) The need for clean, sustainable use of the environment.
2) The choice of how significantly to reduce personal use of modern utility and conveniences while waiting on solutions to the first issue.
The first issue is a serious issue. The second issue is more of a stop-gap measure to reduce negative impacts while waiting on a solution for the first issue.
It is a mistake to suggest that issue 2 is the solution to issue 1. It's not. That would be like expecting personal restraint from murdering people to be an adequate solution to people murdering other people. It's not. A law enforced by law enforcement is.
We have a similar issue going on with Al Gore. Is Al Gore going around the world advocating that people shouldn't live in large homes? No, he's not. That would be hypocritical. He's advocating for clean energy, energy efficiency, and other measures that will help us achieve sustainability and address the issue of climate change. He is advocating for issue #1. And if issue #1 is solved adequately, issue #2 no longer has relevance. That said, despite living in a large home, Al Gore has taken measures to make his home more environmentally friendly and energy efficient, such that his home is now Gold LEED certified. You can argue that he should still live in a smaller home. Go ahead. Make the argument. It's a fair argument. But understand you are arguing over issue #2, which is separate from issue #1, and there is no hypocrisy involved.
I've seem some similar arguments in online sources regarding travel habits of climate change advocates, like Leonardo DiCaprio flying to Europe for a climate summit. Again, these arguments are over issue #2. Not issue #1. You can argue that Leonardo should have traveled to Europe in a paddle boat, or simply not attended, but that is issue #2, and you can just as well argue that his making an appearance at the climate summit will do more to solve issue #1 than staying home would, and #1 is really the bigger issue.