The Pollutinator

This last Sunday The Independent newspaper of London ran an op-ed by Arnold Schwarzenegger about global warming. I'm sure you've heard about it, as it has been getting a decent amount of press. So the Republican governor of California disagrees with the leader of his party and believes that global warming is: a) real, and b) caused by humans. Here is a little bit of what he said, courtesy of the L.A. times. (The Independent wanted a whole British Pound for the original article and I just couldn't justify spending that much money on an piece written by a talking monkey):

"The debate is over. We know the science. We see the threat posed by changes in our climate," Schwarzenegger wrote. "And we know the time for action is now.

"I ask citizens and governments everywhere to do their part by conserving energy, reducing the use of fossil fuels, reducing waste and taking every opportunity to work together for a cleaner, healthier tomorrow."

and this:

"Many people have falsely assumed that you have to choose between protecting the environment and protecting the economy," he wrote. "Nothing could be further from the truth. In California we will do both."

OK, so far so good. We need politicians who stand up for the environment. Global warming is a very real problem and it needs to be addressed. And we damn well know this current administration is going to do dick about it. But when looking for a leader on this issue should we really turn to this guy?:



So the guy with the fucking Hummer cares about our air quality? I've got one suggestion for the first step he could take: QUIT DRIVING THE HUMMER!

Seriously, this is one of the things that pisses me off about my fellow Americans. They claim to care about the environment and think we should do something about it, as long as they aren't the ones who have to make any sacrifice or alter their lifestyle at all. How many times do you think Arnie has taken the train between his home in L.A. and his office in Sacremento? Or do you think he's been driving his 10 miles/gallon Hummer up there? I've never once read in the news about any Arnold sightings on the L.A. subway either.

The first thing Arnold did as Governor of California was cut dramatically the cost of car license plates, in effect giving people more incentive to drive. And he cares about global warming? I'll believe that when I see something in the news about his multi-billion dollar plan to expand L.A.'s public transportation system. Until then, all his talk is nothing but more hot air adding to the problem.