The Year of Not Buying In
posted at 8:03 pm
on Feb. 14, 2008
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Troubles on the Home Front
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We Got the Call
Since the beginning of 2008, there have been several themes people have told me would be prevalent this year.
“The Year of Leisure” was one I rather liked. “The Year of Getting Serious” was another, tinged slightly with omen.
But very few people that I know made New Year’s Resolutions. That tradition seems to have fallen by the wayside. Martin Luther King Jr. day, too, went by without my except twitter comments in acknowledgment. And when Groundhog’s Day came and went with nary a mention, I noticed its lack of notice.
Then, today. Valentine’s Day. The circle of people I know, did they celebrate it? Nope, not really. “Hallmark made it,” said the drive-time radio host I was listening to. “Just a chance for people to find fault with each other’s generosity,” said a fellow I was in a meeting with.
Holidays—not necessarily a bellwether test, I know. But birthdays as well have seemed devalued in the past two months. Enthusiasm for charity, for activity groups, has dropped in the conversations I’ve had.
And here’s my ultimate worry. If this is in fact the year of cruising past, dropping out, or just not buying in, it couldn’t come at a worse time. The U.S. presidential election needs a lot of attention this year.
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I also wanted to mention global warming. Where to start? (And actually, isn’t that the question—where to start?)
I think one of the biggest problems with the environmental movement, is that their naming of issues sucks. “Global warming” sounds rather pleasant. Who could be against that? Call it “global heating” or even better “global burning” and now you’ve got yourself something to worry about.
And “Save the planet”—it’s not even accurate. The planet is going to be fine. The planet, we’re not going to do much more than wipe out all life. Earth will still be there, spinning and tilting and so forth. How about something more like “Save yourselves!” or “Save your family!” or “Save nature or you won’t have anything to eat”—again, that’s the motivational angle I think current eco-vocab is lacking.
