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Live Earth Concert Kicks Off, Critics Weigh In
Live Earth, the 24-hour concert, part of a larger multi-year campaign called Save Our Selves -- The Campaign for a Climate in Crisis (see video below), kicked off today on all seven continents across the globe. The event, organized by former U.S. Veep Al Gore and the Alliance for Climate Protection, features nearly 150 artists, including U2, Snoop Dogg, and Madonna, who play to trigger a "global movement to solve the climate crisis."
But regardless of the star power, some are critical. Live Aid/Live 8 creator Bob Geldof says, "It's just an enormous pop concert or the umpteenth time that, say, Madonna or Coldplay get up on stage." Keith Farnish, a British environmentalist and the founder of the Earth Blog is "not sure events like this make a difference."
Some are more harsh. Matt Helder, the drummer of Arctic Monkeys, a British Indie rock band, thinks the execution is hypocritical. "We're using enough power for ten houses just for lighting," he notes. This type of skepticism is being echoed by many, but Treehugger, an environmental blog that touts bringing sustainability to the mainstream, reports that steps have been made to make the concert greener and proceeds do go to create a foundation to combat global warming, which will be led by the Alliance for Climate Protection.
The concert does have its supporters (it is estimated that 2 billion people will be reached). Vocalist Patrick Stump of the alt rock band Fallout Boy is hopeful. "If we spread out the influence as much as we can and if we hit some people with some really big ideas, there might be a kid there that will totally eradicate fossil fuel." And of course, Gore is a big, big fan. He says, "the task of saving the global environment is a task we should all approach with a sense of joy."
We want to know what you think?
—Anna Weggel
The essential point of this concert is that each of has a responsibility to the earth we live on.
If each of us does just a little something, changing to high-efficiency lightbulbs, not using plastic shopping bags, buying hybrid cars or NOT buying SUVs or other gashogs, etc., it makes a difference. And if a lot of people each do a little something, that is...A LOT!!!
To say it doesn't make a difference is to give up, and THAT is as unacceptable as the current state of our earth, where the despoilers make money and criticize and carp about those who try to change things.
Will the concert use electricity? OF COURSE IT WILL. But, on the other hand, the 2 billion participants would use electricity no matter what they did on July 7th if they weren't going to the shows or watching them on TV!
So why not use this concert to raise everyone's consciousness about the issue, maybe even get people to think about the issue who had not thought about it before?
It turned out to be one of the world's biggest flops. Most people are simply not true believers in Ecotheism. Most people are consumers and you just can't change human behavior. Close to 20% of green houses gases are a result of people eating meat and fat people sitting around and farting. You just can't change human behavior. The Roman Catholic Church went through this realization some time ago.